By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)
The number-one enemy of hardcore Process trusters and current advisor to the 76ers, Jerry Colangelo was a guest on the Vertical Podcast with Chris Mannix Tuesday. The conversation mostly discussed Team USA as we gear up for the Olympic Games in Rio. but the two also touched on Colangelo’s role with the Sixers and how it might conflict with his position with Team USA.
Colangelo had this to say on the subject:
“Well, there were some people in the league, owners, friends of mine, who got a little nervous that I was going to use that platform to my advantage. And those who knew me a little bit more intimately knew that would never be the case.”
“You know, I told Pop, if you think I had a problem, can you imagine the problem you’re gonna have when you’re coaching all these guys? We live in a competitive world, and in the NBA everyone is as nervous as you could be, and everyone’s looking for an edge, and everyone’s concerned about everyone else’s edge.”
“But I didn’t let any of that bother me. I haven’t done anything different than I ever had, and that’s over a decade now, and part of the reason we’re successful is because I do it the way I do.”
Quite a few Sixers fan have speculated that the combination of Colangelo and the world-class traning facility being built in Camden would make an attractive pitch for superstar free agents embedded within the Team USA pipeline. As you would expect, Colangelo didn’t exactly give anything away in his response to Mannix. But there definitely weren’t even any hints for Sixers fans to grab a hold of as far as helping the team down the road.
Interestingly, Mannix also asked Colangelo about Sam Hinkie’s departure:
“Are you okay with how that whole Sixers situation kinda went down, with you taking over in a role there? Sam Hinkie resigns, it sorta, it became a national story for a while what was going on in Philadelphia. When you look back at the last six months or so there, how do you feel about what went down?”
Here was Colangelo’s answer to that query:
“Well, I think everyone may have opinions about what transpired and I would just say that I was surprised and taken back when Sam stepped down and how he stepped down. When I was hired, it was basically to advise as to what might be done to go forward with the franchise, because it was in dire straits at the time. So I never anticipated that kind of an outcome, but that’s what took place.”
Again, I think when members of the Sixers front office talk about how they were surprised Hinkie resigned, they can’t truly believe it. Management was talking about bringing in someone else at the same level as Hinkie, essentially stripping him of his power, after marginalizing him by degrees ever since Jerry Colangelo’s arrival.
As for the dire straits comment, it reminds me of how some mainstream media members who were talking about what a disaster the Sixers were six months ago are now saying the team is so well-positioned now, as if being bad to get someone like Ben Simmons wasn’t the plan all along. It wouldn’t surprise me if Jerry actually believes he and his son came in and really turned things around, when in reality, everything that has happened since Hinkie’s resignation were a result of plans he had already set into motion.
Basically, nothing Colangelo said here made me think any more positively about him. Still, for some interesting Team USA talk, be sure to listen to the whole interview with Mannix.
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