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'We don't want sympathy,' Sixers coach Brett Brown says

Brett Brown softly slapped his left cheek, then slapped the right. It is time for everyone to wake up and face reality, the Sixers coach said.

76ers head coach Brett Brown. (Eric Gay/AP)
76ers head coach Brett Brown. (Eric Gay/AP)Read more

Brett Brown softly slapped his left cheek, then slapped the right. It is time for everyone to wake up and face reality, the Sixers coach said.

His young team is winless through 11 games, eight defeats away from the league record for the longest season-opening losing streak. A win on Friday against visiting Phoenix will be a challenge.

"That's where we're at, everybody," he said. "And we're not crying about it. We don't want sympathy. We come to work. I get it."

The Sixers rank near the bottom this season in almost every statistical category. They are last in points scored, field-goal percentage, free-throw shooting, and rebound differential.

For another season, the roster will be a revolving door. The team signed two players in the last 10 days. The 14 players used this season have an average age of 23.3 years old. Just six of the 15 players on the roster were drafted by NBA teams.

"When I first took this job, when [general manager] Sam [Hinkie] took his job, nobody knew that year two was going to play out like this," Brown said after practice Thursday at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

The quick fix was supposed to come last summer. Brown said everyone expected the Sixers to add two first-round draft picks who could help immediately. Instead the team selected center Joel Embiid, who is sidelined with a fractured foot, and forward Dario Saric, who is playing professionally in Turkey.

"We put our big-boy pants on and made a decision that is best for the club long-term," Brown said. "Time will tell. But the year that we are all now living in is a result of those types of decisions. That's why you look on the floor and see a roster like you do and resumés like you do."

The team has used 33 players in the last two seasons. Brown has started nine players this year. Just two of them - Tony Wroten and Michael Carter-Williams - played in the opener last season.

Carter-Williams said he's more competitive than anyone. The losses have built up, but he said he is still happy to be here. "Actually, being here is a blessing," he said. "I'm happy to be a part of this league."

Brown said he is excited to coach his young team. The energetic 53-year-old said he works the Sixers hard in practice and keeps their heads up in defeat.

The coach followed Embiid out of the gym after practice. The two were required to sign autographs for a team function on the third floor. Brown flexed his muscles and shouted that he cannot wait to coach the 20-year-old Embiid. The reality for Brown is that he probably won't be coaching Embiid for a long time.

@matt_breen