Sixers’ Elton Brand, Andre Iguodala Buy In To Collins’ Plan
Coach Doug Collins was not being overly dramatic after Sunday’s 125-117 overtime victory over the Warriors (even though he has a tendency at times to do that), when he mentioned a touching postgame locker room scene involving veteran forward Elton Brand.
Rather, Collins was being smart.
Brand, limited to a shade under 29 minutes in the game (none after 5:57 remained in the fourth quarter), gave his coach a hug afterward and said he didn’t mind sitting, because he was “all about winning,” according to Collins.
“That’s what we’re trying to build here,” the coach said. “And that’s why in a game like this, you’ve got a chance to win, because everybody over on that bench is cheering for each other. And it makes it pretty special to coach those kind of people.”
Collins surely means this. At the same time, he knows he must have the unqualified support of his key veterans, Brand and Andre Iguodala. It’s essential. If he doesn’t, he loses the locker room. He loses the young guys – the Jrue Holidays and the Evan Turners and the Thaddeus Youngs and the Jodie Meekses. And then he’s done; it’s time to go find a new coach.
So it’s never a bad idea to massage the egos of Brand and Iguodala, never a bad idea to talk them up at every turn. And Collins has done so.
Way back when, he also challenged Brand’s pride, asking him to get in tip-top shape in the offseason. Brand complied, and Collins has made him an essential part of everything the team does, at both ends of the floor. Especially important is the fact that Collins installed Brand as part of his game-ending team, that he usually has him on the court in the fourth quarter. The previous coach, Eddie Jordan, did not do that, alienating the veteran forward immediately. And, well, you see what happened last season. And what happened to Jordan.
As for Iguodala, Collins expressed the opinion before the season that his play with Team USA last fall would certainly propel him to a big year. There has been some carryover, particularly at the defensive end, and after some injury-induced fits and starts Iguodala has picked it up offensively – to some degree as a scorer, though his average at present (14.3) would be the third-lowest of his career – but more as a playmaker, having been transformed weeks ago into a point forward by Collins.
The results speak for themselves. Brand and Iguodala, squarely in the coach’s corner, have set a positive tone. And everything has fallen into place as a result.
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