The Philadelphia 76ers officially announced the hiring of several new assistant coaches. The team has hired Jim O’Brien and Kevin Young as assistants, and John Bryant and Alvin Williams as player-development coaches.
They have also added John Townsend as shooting coach, Chris Babock as Assistant Director of Player Development, and Dr. Lance Pearson as Director of Applied Analytics.
Most notable among the new hires is O’Brien. The Philadelphia native has previous ties to the team. O’Brien coached the 76ers in the 2004-05 season. He led them to a 42-39 record and a playoff berth where they lost in the first round.
O’Brien last coached as an assistant for the 2012-13 Mavericks. Before that, he was a head coach for nine seasons in Boston, Philadelphia, and Indiana. As a head coach he accumulated a 303-327 record. His 2000-2001 Celtics reached the Eastern Conference Finals before losing the series 4-2 to the New Jersey Nets.
Jim O’Brien also has experience as an assistant coach for the Knicks and Celtics, spending two and four seasons with each, respectively.
O’Brien will bring a wealth of experience to a team in need of it. His years in the NBA will help teach the youthful Sixers roster alongside head coach Brett Brown.
