Brett Brown

Brett William Brown (born February 16, 1961) is an American professional basketball coach who is an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Brown is a former college basketball player who previously served as head coach for the Philadelphia 76ers from 2013 to 2020. Before that, Brown was an assistant on Gregg Popovich's staff on the Spurs. He also has extensive experience coaching in Australia, having been the head coach of the North Melbourne Giants and Sydney Kings of the National Basketball League (NBL).

Playing career

High school Born and raised in Maine, Brown first played organized basketball in Rockland, was a star guard in junior high school there, and then his father was hired as the head coach. Brown transferred to South Portland where he became a star basketball player at South Portland High School, from which he graduated in 1979. Brown was a two-year first-team all-state guard in 1978 and 1979, and led his team to a 27–0 record and a State Class A Title in his senior year. Brown also took a sales job with AT&T, saving enough money to take a backpacking trip to Oceania in 1987. Brown made a cold call to Melbourne Tigers head coach Lindsay Gaze, ultimately leading to a job offer. He spent four seasons as an assistant to Gaze in the Australian NBL.

Brown became head coach of the North Melbourne Giants in 1993 and was named NBL Coach of the Year in 1994, when he led the Giants to a championship victory over the Adelaide 36ers. He served as head coach of the Giants until 1998, before taking a job with the San Antonio Spurs. Overall, he was a head coach for 278 NBL games, winning 54 percent of the time.

San Antonio Spurs

After attending a basketball camp run by Brown and Andrew Gaze, San Antonio Spurs general manager R. C. Buford hired Brown as an unpaid member of the Spurs' basketball operations department for the 1998–99 lockout-shortened season. Buford credited him with focusing attention on the team's lesser-known players, creating a consistently strong bench; this philosophy would continue to benefit the Spurs even after Brown left his role as player development director. He was promoted to assistant coach in September 2007, working under coach Gregg Popovich. Popovich calls Brown "one of his best friends," and Brown would later incorporate many of Popovich's concepts into his own offensive system. He played a major role in signing Australian guard Patty Mills, who played under him for the Australian national team. He inherited a team in "total rebuilding mode" led by new general manager Sam Hinkie, His appointment made him the 24th head coach in the history of the franchise, and the second person to be a head coach in both the NBL and the NBA, following Mike Dunlap. The Sixers were the youngest team in the league during Brown's first year, and one of the youngest of all time. During the second half of the 2013–14 season, the Sixers would lose 26 games in a row, tying the record for longest NBA losing streak. Sixers point guard Michael Carter-Williams won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 2014, and credited Brown for helping him win the award and grow as a player.

On December 11, 2015, the 76ers signed Brown to a contract extension. On May 31, 2018, the 76ers signed Brown to another contract extension, coming off their first playoff appearance since 2012. On June 7, 2018, Brown was named interim general manager after Bryan Colangelo resigned after a social media scandal, where he and his wife criticized team members. Before the 76ers found his replacement in former player Elton Brand on September 20, 2018, Brown signed off on multiple trades that the 76ers did in the months of June & July, including an infamous trade during the 2018 NBA draft where Philadelphia native and 2x NCAA champion Mikal Bridges from Villanova University was traded to the Phoenix Suns for Zhaire Smith and a 2021 first round pick from the Miami Heat after being selected by the 76ers. He also signed off on the signings of players like Shake Milton, Norvel Pelle, and Anthony Brown at the time, as well as re-signing veterans like JJ Redick, Amir Johnson, and Demetrius Jackson.

On August 24, 2020, Brown was fired by the 76ers after being swept out of the first round of the 2020 NBA playoffs by the Boston Celtics.

Return to San Antonio On June 30, 2022, Brown re-joined the San Antonio Spurs as an assistant coach.

National team career Brown was an assistant coach of the Australia national team between 1995 and 2003, serving during the 1998 FIBA World Championship and the 1996 and 2000 Summer Olympics. Under Brown, Australia finished 10th in the 2010 FIBA World Championship. He was expected to lead the team at the 2020 Summer Olympics but it was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic until 2021. Brown quit his role on October 13, 2020, without having led the team in a game. He cited his career uncertainty after his firing from the 76ers and the difficulties of travelling with his family due to the COVID-19 pandemic as the reasons for his departure.

Head coaching record

NBA

NBL

Personal life Brown met and married his wife, Anna, in Australia. They have two daughters, Julia and Laura, and a son, Sam. The family resides in San Antonio, Texas.