Mike D'Antoni Reportedly Hired As Associate Head Coach

Mike D'Antoni has reportedly arrived in Philadelphia and joined the Sixers as associate head coach, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompey. He will be the number two to Brett Brown on the team's coaching staff.

D'Antoni, once a evolutionary NBA coach for the Phoenix Suns, last coached in the NBA as the lead man for the Los Angeles Lakers for the disastrous Big 4 run involving a hobbled Steve Nash, a disgruntled Kobe Bryant, a disinterested Pau Gasol, and a gaseous Dwight Howard. He has a winning record despite a less than stellar run as coach before and after his now-legendary, game-changing run with Phoenix.

The Sixers have ranked last in offensive rating each year under Brett Brown despite having a high expected point value based on the Morey-ball types of shots the Sixers take. D'Antoni adds age and past success to one of the league's youngest coaching staffs.

What's most interesting about the move, as was noted by Kyle Neubeck at the time reports first surfaced, is that the Sixers are built not in a way that D'Antoni prefers a basketball team. He played small ball consistently when it wasn't a thing - small ball became the norm in 2014-15. D'Antoni did it 10 years beforehand. More than anyone, he'd prefer to play small and fast. How that affects any time split between Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor remains to be seen.

A source told Liberty Ballers' Jake Fischer that D'Antoni is scheduled to meet with the team today, so he might already be on the job by tonight's game.