Brett Brown is a worldly man with a diverse set of interests. How else can his ability to shift seamlessly from talking about hoops to politics be explained?As distinct of a quality as that may be, Brown possesses it.
“It’s always like a back end of some other conversation,” said Hollis Thompson on Friday, following the 76ers’ shootaround in Washington, D.C., where they prepared for a 7:00 PM EST match-up with the Wizards. Thompson, a three-year member of the Sixers, has emerged as one of Brown’s favorite targets when it comes to reviewing news of the day. “It might start off like transition defense, then we’ll end on the war, somewhere,” Thompson explained. As passionately as Brown discusses basketball, which was again the case Friday, when he laid out expectations to see his team compete harder than it did in Wednesday’s 38-point loss to the Atlanta Hawks, the Sixers’ head coach oozes similar enthusiasm when given the chance to analyze current events happening stateside, or overseas. “I’ve always been remotely interested,” said Brown, standing in the gym of a downtown Washington hotel located half a mile from the infamous Watergate Complex in one direction, and a mile from the White House in another. “I think that when [President Barack] Obama burst onto the scene, I felt like it was historic,” said Brown, referring to the run-up of the 2008 United States’ presidential election. “I felt like I was living in a period of time that the first African-American president was about to be named. And I thought that his ability to talk to the public was jaw-dropping, and I just felt like it was clear before he was elected – forget what party you’re most affiliated with – you just sense that something historic was taking place. And so it went into overdrive for me then, and it coincided with my times with [San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich], who was very, very interested in all of this.”Seeking further evidence of Brown’s status as a political junkie? Simply read what he had to say about a trip the Sixers planned to take on Thursday to one of the country’s most important, vital institutions. “When you start studying who’s really in the Pentagon, the branches of our military, the archives of information that is stored there, nobody really knows how many floors there are. There’s evidently 17 and a half miles of circumference of the fence. There is telephone wiring that would go around the circumference of the Earth four and a half times. And so all the secrecy, and the privacy and the United States security is housed there, and we were going to go visit.”Brown’s knowledge and fascination were both palpable. The Sixers, however, were delayed in arriving to the D.C. area on Thursday, and subsequently had to cancel their tour of the Arlington County, Virginia-based facility. The NBA, in partnership with the White House, helped make the arrangements. Throughout his sints with the Spurs and Sixers, Brown has always tried to take advantage of the opportunity to pass through the nation’s capital while on the league circuit.”Holocaust museums, Martin Luther King memorials, Pentagons, White House trips when we won some championships, I think it’s a great city,” said Brown of his past experiences in Washington. A habitual runner, he added, “I think it’s a fantastic running city. There’s just a vibe in this Georgetown area. It’s a great city.”
Hollis Thompson, Brown’s partner in matters of political banter, spent three years at Georgetown University before turning pro in 2012, following his third season. Originally from Los Angeles, Thompson was bitten by the D.C. bug as well. “I think it’s important that you pay attention, because it affects all of us,” Thompson said. “There’s so much going on here, you’d have to actually try to not pay attention to it. I think just part of living here is you get a better idea of what’s going on nationally and globally.”When asked what it’s like when his chats with Brown drift beyond basketball, Thompson replied, “Very interesting. Coach is a wise, passionate, opinionated man, so we always have some good conversations.”The Sixers will make one more stop in the District of Columbia this season, on February 29th.
