SMU won 95 games during Larry Brown's four seasons as head coach (Getty)
Larry Brown has coached basketball for over five decades. Needless to say, when he speaks players tend to listen.
Well, unless your name was Allen Iverson. But even the 6-foot guard from Georgetown ultimately heeded Brown’s sage advice (on occasion) and lamented about not listening more after he retired. Brown, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002, coached the Sixers for seven seasons and ranks fourth all-time for wins (255) in franchise history.
The 79-year-old coach recently spoke with The Inquirer‘s Marc Narducci where he addressed a bevy of topics, most notably on Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, and the future of the current Sixers team. Brown said he would “die” if the team ever entertained the idea of trading either superstar, let alone both of them.
He also downplayed the notion that Simmons needs to develop a three-point shot. In fact, Brown admitted that he used to cringe when Iverson would attempt threes.
“I used to get mad when Allen shot threes because I would rather him get a layup or get fouled,” Brown told The Inquirer. “Ben is spectacular, he handles it so well and is so long and sees things other players don’t. And he is such a threat to make other people better and he is really special on defense.”
That being said, Brown did advocate for Simmons learning how to consistently hit a mid-range jumper.
Brown Recruited Shake Milton at Southern Methodist
Larry Brown recruited new Sixers sensation Shake Milton at SMU in Texas. Small world, huh?
Brown served as the head coach at the Dallas school over four seasons and actually handed Milton a basketball scholarship back in 2014. The four-star recruit chose SMU over powerhouse programs like Oklahoma, Indiana and Baylor. He was the 66th-best player in the country, per Rivals.com.
Why SMU over those more well-known schools? Well, for the opportunity to play for a Hall-of-Fame coach.
“I really want to be coached by Coach Brown because he can help me reach all the goals that I have athletically and academically,” Milton told ESPN in 2014. “He has coached and developed so many players plus one day when the ball stops bouncing I want to work in an NBA front office and someday be a general manager.”
Nice two-game stretch for SMU sophomore guard Shake Milton – 25 PTS, 5 REB, 5.5 AST, 7-for-14 from 2, 11-for-17 from 3. Crafty finishes.
The feeling was mutual and the two enjoyed success in their lone season together at SMU. Milton averaged 10.6 points and 2.3 assists in 32 minutes per game as a freshman as the Mustangs went 25-5.
Unfortunately, the team was banned from playing in the NCAA Tournament due to violating NCAA rules. It was a complicated matter and an assistant coach was accused of doing a player’s homework for him.
Whatever the case, Milton clearly left an impression on Brown.
“He is an unbelievably hard worker and he has an unbelievably high IQ,” Brown said of Milton, via The Inquirer. “If you would have told me he would make 13 straight threes and score 39 against the Clippers, I might not have believed it, but I really believed he was an NBA player.”
Larry Brown pleasantly surprised by Shake Milton’s career game, says Sixers shouldn’t trade Ben Simmons or Joel Embiid