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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Entertainment
Joseph Salvador

Fans Push for College Basketball Great to Coach 76ers After Doc Rivers Firing

Doc Rivers 76ers Jay Wright Basketball Mike Budenholzer Mike DAntoni CBS Villanova (Organization) Monty Williams Philadelphia (Organization)

The 76ers announced Tuesday that they fired coach Doc Rivers after the team’s Game 7 loss to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals and, naturally, Philadelphia fans have already made wishlists for who they want their next coach to be. Fans are shooting for the stars—even the retired ones. 

Former Villanova coach Jay Wright started trending Tuesday morning on Twitter due to the surge of 76ers fans trying to manifest the Hall of Fame coach joining the Philadelphia sideline. Wright won two national titles with the Philadelphia university, but retired in 2022. 

He’s now a college basketball analyst for CBS and has never coached in the NBA before. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, coaches with professional pedigree like Mike Budenholzer, Sam Cassell, Mike D’Antoni, Nick Nurse, Frank Vogel and Monty Williams will be considered for the job. 

Here are some of the fans and media members on Twitter calling for Wright to come out of retirement and help lead the 76ers to their first title since 1983:

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