Brett Brown lacking momentum to return as 76ers coach

Brett Brown may have coached his last game with the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Philadelphia 76ers were swept in round one, and that may be all she wrote for Brett Brown.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, “Boston beats Philadelphia in Game 4 to sweep the first-round series, and changes are coming for the Sixers. Brett Brown is without internal momentum to return for his eighth season as coach, and a final decision could come soon.” The Atlantic Division rival Boston Celtics completed a four-game sweep of Philadelphia on Sunday.

What other plans are in store for the Philadelphia 76ers this offseason?

Brown famously coached the 76ers through “The Process” era, as Philadelphia was by far and away the worst team in basketball early in his coaching tenure. The 76ers did not win 20 games in his first three seasons on the job and didn’t qualify for the Eastern Conference Playoffs in his first four. While the 76ers have been a playoff team the last three, he may have hit his coaching ceiling.

It became abundantly clear down in the NBA bubble that this current concoction of players cannot continue in Philadelphia anymore. Their two star players in center Joel Embiid and point forward Ben Simmons’ games don’t complement each other. While former 76er Jimmy Butler is flourishing with the Miami Heat, free-agent acquisition Al Horford looks increasingly also-ran.

Even though key pieces of last year’s team like Butler, J.J. Redick and T.J. McConnell played elsewhere this season, the perpetual frustrations continued with the 76ers on the hardwood. General manager Elton Brand has some serious work to do before his team plays again. Losing in the first round is one thing, but getting swept by a division rival is an embarrassing look.

If Brown were to be fired here in the coming weeks, it will be interesting to see what direction the 76ers go with their next head coach. They may want a coach capable of getting the team over the top when clearly Brown could not. Philadelphia may also look at doing a temporary reload or rebuild and bring in a new culture builder akin what Brown was in an attempt to start fresh.

The 76ers were the first playoff team eliminated from the bubble, and now Brown may have to go.