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76ers Rumors: Jason Kidd, John Lucas Interested in Vacant Head Coach Position
August 28, 2020
Los Angeles Lakers assistant Jason Kidd and Houston Rockets player development coach John Lucas are reportedly both interested in the Philadelphia 76ers' head coaching job, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Sixers fired Brett Brown this week after Philly was swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs. Brown was the Sixers' head coach for seven seasons, but he was never able to get them past the second round of the playoffs.
Kidd is reportedly a candidate for the Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans head coaching positions, while Lucas was the 76ers' head coach for two seasons from 1994-96.
The 47-year-old Kidd is a Hall of Fame player, and he also has five years of NBA head coaching experience. Kidd led the Nets to a 44-38 record and reached the second round of the playoffs in 2013-14. He then went 139-152 with two playoff appearances in parts of four seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Kidd was fired after a 23-22 start in 2017-18 and sat out a year before joining the Lakers as an assistant this season. With Kidd assisting head coach Frank Vogel, the Lakers posted the best record in the Western Conference this season.
Lucas, 66, has spent parts of six seasons as an NBA head coach during his career. He coached the San Antonio Spurs, Sixers and Cleveland Cavaliers for two seasons each.
His greatest success came with the Spurs in 1992-93 and 1993-94, as he went 94-49 and reached the playoffs twice. Lucas then went just 42-122 in Philly and 37-87 in Cleveland when he coached the Cavs from 2001-03.
Lucas was out of the league for several seasons after departing the Cavs, but he served as an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2009-10 and has been a player development coach in Houston since 2016.
If either Kidd or Lucas land the job in Philadelphia, they will inherit two of the most talented players in the NBA in the form of point guard Ben Simmons and center Joel Embiid.
Simmons and Embiid are both multi-time All-Stars, but they are both injury-prone as well. Embiid has never played in more than 64 games in a single season, and the Sixers were without Simmons for their playoff series against Boston this season due to a knee injury.
The Sixers have a significant amount of money invested in Tobias Harris and Al Horford as the third and fourth options on the team, but they didn't mesh well with Simmons and Embiid this season, which has raised questions regarding whether Philly has the wiggle room needed to reshape its roster and become a contender.
The 76ers likely need some new pieces, but perhaps a new voice on the sidelines could go a long way toward helping the team take the next step after Brown failed to do so during his lengthy tenure.