There’s A New General In Philly, 76ers Promote Elton Brand To General Manager

Elton Brand named Sixers' new GM (Wikipedia Commons. Author: Keith Allison)

Elton Brand named Philadelphia 76ers general manager Tuesday as the search ends with an in-house hire.

Philadelphia 76ers Hire Elton Brand As General Manager

Brand, 39, continues his meteoric rise from the hardwood to the boardroom as the Sixers’ new general manager. The two-time All-Star replaces Bryan Colangelo, who resigned in June as a result of a Twitter scandal.

Brand will be elevated from his current role as the 76ers V.P. of basketball operations and replace head coach Brett Brown, who served as the interim GM after Colangelo’s resignation.

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The Sixers also elevated Alex Rucker to executive V.P. of basketball operations. Rucker is now second in command followed by assistant GM Ned Cohen and senior V.P. of player personnel Marc Eversley, who will both remain in their current positions.

The ownership group also conducted interviews with Houston Rockets vice president Gersson Rosas, Utah Jazz assistant GM Justin Zanik, and assistant Golden State Warriors GM Larry Harris.

Brand first landed a role in 2016 as a player development consultant for the 76ers. In 2017, the 76ers promoted him to GM for their affiliate G league team, the Delaware Blue Coats.

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A few of the Sixers starters hit social media to approve of the new hire:

“Elton has been not only a friend but also someone who I’ve looked up to for a long time,” Sixers reserve guard Jerryd Bayless said. “He’s been preparing for this moment, and I’m happy for him it has come sooner rather than later.”

“Since we were teammates, I have always been so impressed with EB’s work ethic and professionalism,” reserve point guard T. J. McConnell said. “I’m really happy for him, and I know he’ll carry those same traits into his new job.”

After playing college basketball for Duke, Brand was selected with the first overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls and later appeared in 263 games with the Sixers,

Last season, the Sixers went 52-30 and reached the Eastern Conference semifinals. The 76ers play their first preseason game against the Magic on Monday, Oct. 1.

Dewayne Goforth