Colangelo to 76ers fans: Hang in there

Jerry Colangelo had a message for 76ers fans: Don't give up the Sixers.

That's what Colangelo, the team's chairman of basketball operations, said during a 2 minute, 7-second video to fans posted Tuesday on the Sixers' website, Sixers.com.

"We have a bright, bright future," he said. "We're watching young players develop. We're anticipating a lot of good things to happen in the very near future.

"If the stars are aligned and you have a little bit of luck, we could turn this thing around much faster, much quicker than people seem to believe it's going to take."

The Sixers took a league-worst 9-65 record and a nine-game losing streak into their home game Tuesday against the Charlotte Hornets. Sacrificing wins to secure top lottery picks, they were 46-192 since the beginning of the 2013-14 season.

At the urging of the league office, Colangelo joined the Sixers staff on Dec. 7.

The Hall of Famer is the chairman of the board of directors for USA basketball. Colangelo, 76, formerly owned the Phoenix Suns, the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, and the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League.

Colangelo was the first general manager of the Suns and was a four-time executive of the year.

"When this opportunity presented itself, I saw it as a challenge," he said in the video. "I saw it as someone who believed that I had something to offer the organization in the way of credibility, in the way of experience. . . .

"And I believe this is a situation that is a lot closer than people think. If you treat people well, you give people room and the ability to make decisions, and you create a team effort - and it starts at the top, and it permeates throughout an organization - I think that's really the way you build a franchise."

He went on to ask fans for their continued support, saying it is "very, very important for us at this critical time."

Colangelo added that he'll do everything in his power to turn things around quickly as possible without jeopardizing the franchise's future.

"I have a personal request," he said. "I am saying to you: Don't give it up. There's one way to go, and that's up, and it's going to be fun building it."