Overview
- Reports say Dallas Mavericks assistant Phil Handy is finalizing an agreement to join Nick Nurse’s staff with the Philadelphia 76ers, but the team has not issued a formal announcement.
- Handy is widely regarded as a top player-development coach who holds three NBA championship rings and worked on teams that reached six straight Finals appearances.
- He has prior coaching ties with Nick Nurse from their time in Manchester and on the Toronto staff, and he previously worked closely with LeBron James in Cleveland and Los Angeles.
- Handy’s skill set—detailed work on footwork, ballhandling and finishing—could directly target growth for guards such as Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe and shape how LeBron fits alongside Joel Embiid and Jaylen Brown.
- If completed, the hire would give Nurse a high-profile development voice and immediate locker-room credibility while raising expectations about how quickly Philadelphia can turn its assembled talent into a cohesive title contender.