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The Philadelphia 76ers needed to change some pieces to get over the hump, and they did what they had to do by cutting ties with Doc Rivers.
More importantly, they replaced him with a much more capable coach and tactician in Nick Nurse, who had found some success with the Toronto Raptors.
With that in mind, Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the Sixers are looking to bolster that coaching staff even further by adding Rico Hines, who was a part of Nurse’s staff in Toronto.
Rico Hines is joining the 76ers as an assistant on Nick Nurse’s coaching staff, sources tell ESPN. Hines had been a part of Nurse’s staff with the Raptors. Hines is a former player development coach who has worked his way to a front-of-the-bench assistant.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 14, 2023
The ESPN insider adds that Hines was a player development coach who climbed his way up Nurse’s coaching staff, so he’ll definitely be a positive addition to the Sixers.
Now, the Sixers will need to focus on trying to convince James Harden to stay.
Harden is reportedly looking to opt out of the final year of his contract to sign a new, more lucrative deal, and the Houston Rockets are expected to aggressively pursue him at the beginning of free agency.
Should Harden leave, then they’d need to think of a plan B and another star and playmaker to pair with reigning MVP Joel Embiid, with Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul, or even Fred VanVleet as potential candidates to replace him in the City of Brotherly Love.
The Sixers have a championship-caliber core, but it was evident that they were never going to reach that potential under Rivers.
Nurse will be a breath of fresh air and a much better tactician, and it’ll now be up to the players to show how much they want it.
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