Larry Brown talking to SMU, reports say

Former Sixers coach Larry Brown is interviewing today for the coaching vacancy at Southern Methodist, according to multiple reports.

Brown, 71, has been out of coaching since December 2010 when he was with the Charlotte Bobcats, his ninth NBA team in his nomadic coaching career. He has not coached in college since 1988 when he led Kansas to the NCAA title.

SMU is trying to make a splashy hire as it heads into the Big East for the 2013-14 season. The school fired Matt Doherty after six seasons in mid-March. SMU has not made the NCAA Tournament since 1993.

Brown has spent the last few nights working as a studio analyst for NBA-TV. He said he was interested in the position, but declined to offer specifics or reveal that an interview was imminent.

In March, Brown told the Dallas Morning News, ""I'm going to be doing something in basketball, whether it's in the NBA as a coach or a GM or an assistant, whatever, or something in college. I don't know what, but I just feel like I need to stay on and pass along what I've been taught."

He specifically mentioned interest in the SMU job then, saying, " SMU is a great school, it's going into the Big East and Dallas is a great market."

Since firing Doherty, SMU has made runs at a number of coaches, including including Marquette's Buzz Williams, Long Beach State's Dan Monson and Saint Louis' Rick Majerus.

The other reported lead candidate is Marquette associate head coach Tony Benford, who is a Texas native and coached at Texas Tech.

Since coaching the Sixers, Brown has worked for the Detroit Pistons, the New York Knicks and the Bobcats. Brown won the NBA title with the Pistons in 2004. He was with the Sixers from 1997 through 2003, including the team's run to the NBA Finals in 2001.