Sixers Notes: Brown's team is keeping it simple

The 76ers are plain vanilla.

That wasn't Brett Brown's plan when he became the team's coach in August. The former San Antonio Spurs assistant had hoped to be more detailed in the Sixers' game plan. But at this point, that would only confuse and possibly stunt the maturation process of his young and inexperienced squad.

"It really is basic stuff," Brown said, "the iterations that we experienced at my old team and the level of understanding that veteran players could make and read. But that's not our guys' fault."

The Sixers initially started installing plays before Brown decided to go in a completely different direction.

"We started going simpler on both offense and defense," he said. "So, yeah, we tweaked a lot. We really reduced."

Wednesday's game against Minnesota might have gone a long way toward deciding the 15-man roster. The Sixers must trim from 20 players by 5 p.m. Monday.

Brown hopes to make the cuts before the deadline to be fair to the players who are released. He said that he'll be advised by general manager Sam Hinkie.

"Realistically, you know where you are at," Brown said. "There are a few positions, maybe as few as one, that we are uncertain about. And we will try to learn more about that tonight."

One can only assume that 6-foot-7 swingman Rodney Williams is battling for that last roster spot.

The undrafted rookie missed the first six preseason games with a hamstring injury. He failed to score on 0-for-3 shooting in 19 minutes against Cleveland on Monday. Brown gave him another opportunity to display his skills against the Timberwolves. Williams scored two points on 1-for-3 shooting in 13 minutes.

"He's an athlete, and you always wonder: What if you could combine some skill and an understanding with that body? Brown said. "He sure has an NBA body and an athleticism to go along with it."