Elton Brand, Sixers hire Ime Udoka, Joseph Blair as assistants
Udoka comes from the Spurs, where he was an assistant to Gregg Popovich. Blair just coached the Rockets' G-League team to the 2019 title.
The 76ers have filled the two assistant-coaching vacancies left by Billy Lange and Monty Williams, hiring Ime Udoka and Joseph Blair to Brett Brown’s staff, the team announced Wednesday.
Udoka was most recently an assistant under Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, a role he had held since 2012. Blair coached the Houston Rockets’ G-League team, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, to a 2019 title before joining Brown’s bench.
Lange was named head coach of St. Joseph’s in late March. Williams was hired as the Phoenix Suns head coach in early May.
Udoka, 41, spent 13 years playing professionally, including seven in the NBA with the Spurs, Kings, Trail Blazers, Knicks and Lakers. He also spent time in the G-League, the USBL, and playing for teams internationally in France, Spain and Argentina. He played for the Nigerian national team in the 2006 World Championships.
Brown was director of player development when Udoka joined the Spurs’ staff in 2012.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to reconnect with Brett in Philadelphia,” Udoka said in a release. “He has done a great job building a respected program and I look forward to joining his staff.”
Blair, 45, was picked 35th overall in the 1996 NBA draft but never played in the league. He began his professional career in Europe, returned to the United States in 1997 to play for the Harlem Globetrotters, then left to play mostly in Italy with stops in Greece, Turkey and Russia.
His coaching career began in 2013 at Arizona, where he helped the Wildcats reach the Final Four in 1994. He joined the G-League Vipers in 2015 before ascending to head coach in 2018.
“I’m honored and excited to work alongside Brett, this staff, and team, as well as being a part of such a historic, respected, and energetic organization,” Blair said. “I look forward to learning, growing, and adding value, all while producing positive results for the city and the organization.”
Sixers general manager Elton Brand said he was “excited and proud” to bring the two coaches on board.
“The depth of basketball knowledge and experience that each brings to our bench will be integral in furthering the success we have enjoyed over the last two seasons," Brand said. “Our players will continue to develop and improve under their direction and they will help me strive to guide our team toward our ultimate goal of winning a championship.”