76ers fans raise money to send Brett Brown a fruit basket
As far as NBA jobs go, Brett Brown's gig is a relatively thankless one. The beleaguered Philadelphia 76ers head coach is in his third year of "Trusting the Process," and nothing seems to be getting any better.
Having won a combined 37 games since Brown took over and they commenced a full-scale rebuild in 2013, the Sixers are in all-too-familiar territory at 0-15, once again threatening to write their names in the book of NBA infamy with the longest-ever losing streak to start a season. A year ago, they started 0-17, coming a single loss short of tying the record. The year before that, they tied a separate record by losing 26 straight games. Going back to last season, they've now dropped 25 straight.
Brown has no choice but to keep coaching as best he can, though his old boss - San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich - said he wouldn't last more than a month on the 76ers' sideline.
Some sympathetic Sixers fans offered a token of appreciation for the coach, who keeps trying to find ways to succeed despite his front office's clear mandate to fail.
From Eric Freeman of Ball Don't Lie:
To make Brown's life a little easier, a group of Sixers fans has decided to extend some holiday cheer his way. The effort was started by Reddit user "Xepa," a season-ticket holder and MBA candidate at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, who just wanted to send Brown a fruit basket. Greater support has led to plans to gift spa materials, a chocolate basket, champagne, and a massage gift card. The campaign is ongoing on the crowdfunding site Tilt and has raised $372.55 from 49 donors as of this writing.
In an interview with Enrico Campitelli of The 700 Level on Tuesday, the progenitor (named Ron) of the crowdfunding effort said: "Money does not matter when you are in the moment and are suffering losses. Money does not shield you from the pain of pouring your entire soul into something only to see constant failure."
As much as he feels for Brown, though, Ron is also apparently a believer in general manager Sam Hinkie's master plan. In his initial Reddit post, titled "Operation Brett Brown Fruit Basket Is Live," he said, "I wrote on the card 'We trust the process.'"