Chiefs a players coach. Hes been really good with us. Its been awesome playing for him.NET RESULT: Finally, the Flyers have found their goalie of the

PHILADELPHIA -- Brett Browns thick, New England accent wouldnt have fit well in Philadelphia when the 76ers and Dr. J were one of the NBAs elite teams, consistently battling Larry Birds Boston Celtics for Eastern Conference titles in the early 1980s. Those days are long over. The Sixers havent won it all since Julius Erving and Moses Malone led them to a championship 30 years. So, theyre turning to Brown to build them into a contender again. "To be here is surreal. I can still see Doc and George McGinnis and trying to take their photos (as a kid)," Brown said after he was hired to replace Doug Collins. The deal was completed earlier in the week, and Brown was officially introduced as the 24th head coach in franchise history on Wednesday. Brown is the eighth coach to lead the Sixers since Larry Brown left in 2003. Collins resigned in April after the Sixers went 34-48, a year after advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals. He led the Sixers to the playoffs his first two seasons and left with one year remaining on his original four-year deal. "We went through an exhaustive search to find the right head coach for our organization, one who had a passion for developing talent, a strong work ethic to help create the kind of culture we hope for, and a desire to continually improve," general manager Sam Hinkie said. "Brett has all of that. He also has a wealth of experience as a head coach and a championship pedigree, to boot. We are delighted to welcome him as our coach, and I am invigorated for the two of us to roll up our sleeves and get to work." The 52-year-old Brown was part of three NBA title teams with San Antonio as an assistant and won another with the Spurs when he served in the basketball operations department in 1998-99. He left after that season to become the head coach of the Sydney Kings of the Australian National Basketball League, but rejoined the Spurs in 2002 as the teams assistant coach/director of player development and was moved to the bench as an assistant under Gregg Popovich in 2006. Brown also coached the Australian mens national team from 2009-12, and played a key role in helping Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker develop into All-Stars with the Spurs. "If I was going to leave a situation like San Antonio, it better be for the right one," Brown said. "Its a privilege to be here." Brown inherits a team in total rebuilding mode. Hinkie, who was hired away from Houston, traded All-Star guard Jrue Holiday to New Orleans on draft night for the rights to Kentucky centre Nerlens Noel. Hinkie also drafted Syracuse point guard Michael Carter-Williams with the 11th overall pick in the first round. Evan Turner, Thaddeus Young and Spencer Hawes are Philadelphias main holdovers, giving Brown some talent to develop. "Ive always been a fan of Thaddeus. I see that potential in Evan. You pay attention to Spencer," Brown said. "The pieces that are in place are workable pieces. I look forward to working with them." Asked if he sees any star players on the roster, Brown said: "I dont know enough about the players to give an accurate answer." A year ago, the Sixers were coming off a first-round upset of top-seeded Chicago and were counting on going further in the playoffs after the acquisition of former All-Star centre Andrew Bynum. But things unraveled quickly, and Bynum never played a game in a Sixers uniform because of knee problems. Brown is used to a winning program at San Antonio, so hes not familiar with starting from the bottom. But the Sixers realize its not an overnight process and gave him a four-year contract to turn things around. "You get excited to be a part of the rebuild," Brown said. "We all know the pain of the rebuild is real. There needs to be patience. I have not been a part of a rebuild since I was in the NBA. The rebuild has to be keeping the locker room together." What type of offence will the Sixers have under Brown? That depends on the players and their ability, though Brown has his preference. "We want to go. We want to get out in the open court, and we want to run," he said. "Its easy to say, but its hard to run for 82 games. You have to have a tremendous fitness base." Brown expects his coaching staff in place by Sept. 1. It doesnt appear he has to be concerned with owner Josh Harris moving the team. There had been speculation that Harris may consider taking the team out of Philadelphia after his purchase of the NHLs New Jersey Devils is complete. But Hinkie dismissed that idea. "Josh Harris is more committed than ever to owning the Sixers, the fans of Philadelphia and to keeping the Sixers here forever," Hinkie said. Sebastian Rudy Jersey . The International Ice Hockey Federation says Pavlovs avoided a two-year sanction because he acted "without significant negligence in failing to verify the safety of the supplements he was taking. Patrick Weihrauch Bayern Munich Jersey . He was still a kid, going into his senior year of high school. Thursday, the point guard stood in front of a couple dozen members of the media and spoke with poise about how much hed grown since then, and how hes ready for the next level. http://www.soccerfcbayernshop.com/kids-corentin-tolisso-munich-jersey/ .com) - It appears both the Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls will reach the playoffs, but the two squads are coming off losing efforts. Patrick Weihrauch Jersey .ca Fantasy Editor Scott Cullen, NFL Editor Ben Fisher, and Isaac Owusu discuss three hot fantasy football topics. Ivan Lucic Bayern Munich Jersey . But last years runner-up Jarkko Nieminen crashed out despite winning the first set against Denis Istomin. Istomin fired 10 aces and won 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2 to even his career record against Nieminen at 3-3.PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Flyers are set to hit the big 4-0.Yes, thats 40 years without a Stanley Cup championship.Winning it all this season would erase one of the longest Cup droughts in the NHL, though this years team seems far removed from championship contention.The Flyers were the hit of the NHL in the 1970s thanks to those hard-hitting Broad Street Bullies. Led by Hall of Famers Bobby Clarke and Bill Barber, the Flyers won consecutive Cups in 1974 and 1975 and seemed poised to build a dynasty.The only thing the franchise has a built is a loyal, yet frustrated, fanbase wondering if the orange-and-black will ever celebrate with a championship parade again through the heart of Philadelphia.Only the Toronto Maple Leafs (1966-67) have suffered longer than any other team that has won at least one Stanley Cup. Buffalo, St. Louis, Vancouver and Washington all have longer Cup droughts than the Flyers, though those franchises have never hoisted or sipped from hockeys grandest prize.I just feel like somehow were snakebit and somebodys putting pins in a doll, Flyers chairman Ed Snider said.The Flyers have been close a€” real close: Philadelphia lost in the Stanley Cup finals in 1976, 1980, 1985, 1987, 1997 and 2010.They can get to the finals, they just cant win them. The silver trophy is always the star of some other teams championship parade. For those keeping score at home, thats 14,373 days without winning the championship as of Oct. 1, according to the Twitter feed @SinceFlyersCup.Despite heavy criticism in Philadelphia for failing to win it all, the Flyers have long been considered one of the top NHL franchises. Theyve earned a playoff berth in 39 of their 46 seasons.Seriously, it drives me crazy. It drives me nuts, Snider said. Like were chopped liver. You know how many times I hear they havent won a Cup since 1975? ... I understand we havent.The Flyers will need some career years and a bit of luck to even think about playing in June this season. New York eliminated them in seven games in the first round last season and the Flyers havent advanced past the second round since losing it all to Chicago in 2010.The Flyers went 42-30-10 (94 points) and finished third in the Metropolitan Division last season.I dont know close we are, Snider said.Theyll start to find out when they open the season Oct. 8 at Boston. The home opener is Oct. 9 against New Jersey.Here are some things of note as the Flyers open the season:IN A PINCH: Flyers captain Claude GGiroux returned earlier than expected when he played in Tuesdays preseason game for the first time since he suffered an undisclosed lower-body injury early in the first practice of training camp.ddddddddddddGiroux was selected last season as a Hart Trophy finalist, the leagues MVP award. He matched a career high with 28 goals and finished third in the NHL scoring race (86 points), helping the Flyers rally from a 3-9-0 start. Hell be the key to any success the Flyers have this season. Once dubbed the Best in the World, Giroux will have to live up to that billing for the Flyers to have any shot at playing deep into the post-season.CHIEF AMONG US: The Flyers seem to love for playing coach Craig Berube. Berube, a former Flyers tough guy and part Cree, led the Flyers to the playoffs after he took over Peter Laviolette four games into last season. With a full season and one training camp behind, Berube has earned the respect of his team. Berube had 20 goals and 54 points over parts of seven seasons with the Flyers and his 3,149 penalty minutes are seventh in NHL history.When he gets barking, you dont want to be making eye contact with him too much, Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds said. If hes staring at you, you generally did something wrong. But I can say Chiefs a players coach. Hes been really good with us. Its been awesome playing for him.NET RESULT: Finally, the Flyers have found their goalie of the present and future. Well, maybe. Mason, the NHLs rookie of the year with Columbus in 2008-09, pushed aside the doubts that he could become a No. 1 goalie and blossomed last year. Mason won 33 games, had four shutouts and stopped 92 per cent of his shots in his first full season in Philadelphia. But can he do it again or will he fall back into his inconsistent ways?HEX ON YOU: Former Flyers goalie Ron Hextall will get to prove his worth in his first season as general manager. Hextall was promoted to general manager by the Flyers to replace Paul Holmgren, who was elevated to president. Hextall is Philadelphias all-time winningest goalie and served as assistant GM last year. Hextall preaches patience, something the Flyers have long lacked as they spent years throwing cash at high-price free agents as part of their win-now philosophy. I think Ron has established a philosophy that is probably long overdue, Flyers chairman Ed Snider said. I have probably been a little too anxious to win another Cup. Keep an eye on Hextall around the trade deadline. ' ' '