WEBVTT - The BroadCast: 8/24/2018 ~ Wilson Chandler Chat, Chris Heck Talks Schedule Creation 0:00:01.200 --> 0:00:04.800 Do you know what, Because the podcast was on hiatus 0:00:05.200 --> 0:00:08.680 for a little bit, figured why not do two episodes 0:00:08.840 --> 0:00:11.560 of the pod to get the feeds fired back up 0:00:11.600 --> 0:00:15.280 and revive this week, So here we are once again. 0:00:15.320 --> 0:00:16.880 This is going to kind of be a pote peri 0:00:17.120 --> 0:00:23.040 edition of the broadcast, mixing mashing together some pieces of 0:00:23.120 --> 0:00:27.400 audio content that have been hanging in the queue and 0:00:27.440 --> 0:00:29.319 the hopper for a bit that will bring to you. 0:00:29.320 --> 0:00:31.840 We'll hear from Wilson Chandler, one of the newest seventy 0:00:31.920 --> 0:00:36.080 Sixers acquired via trade with the Denver Nuggets this offseason, 0:00:36.479 --> 0:00:40.400 and we'll also touch base with the president of business 0:00:40.479 --> 0:00:45.080 operations for your Philadelphia seventy Sixers, Chris Hacked, to talk 0:00:45.120 --> 0:00:50.120 about how an NBA team's schedule comes together and the 0:00:50.120 --> 0:00:53.920 sixers upcoming trip to China along with this weekend's final 0:00:54.120 --> 0:00:57.960 short tour events. Before we get into that, of course, 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:02.600 we must remind you that to subscribe to the broadcast 0:01:02.760 --> 0:01:06.520 and our podcast feed if you have not already, you 0:01:06.560 --> 0:01:11.360 can go to Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, SoundCloud, type 0:01:11.400 --> 0:01:14.280 in Sixers Podcast Network that will take you to our 0:01:14.400 --> 0:01:18.240 feeds and you can subscribe right then and there. If 0:01:18.280 --> 0:01:21.119 you haven't done it. We hope you do. So we're 0:01:21.120 --> 0:01:24.520 gonna hear from Chris Heck in just a few moments 0:01:24.560 --> 0:01:29.040 about the logistics required for putting together an NBA schedule. 0:01:29.080 --> 0:01:32.960 We'll also talk about a kind of social media wager 0:01:33.400 --> 0:01:36.240 he made with one of the seventy sixers young stars. 0:01:36.280 --> 0:01:38.880 That's in just a matter of minutes. But first let's 0:01:38.880 --> 0:01:43.720 hear from Wilson Chandler, NBA veterans swingman, a guy who 0:01:43.760 --> 0:01:46.080 the seventy Sixers feel will not only be able to 0:01:46.080 --> 0:01:49.520 add a solid presence on the offensive end of the court, 0:01:49.600 --> 0:01:52.720 but to help add depth on the wing defensively as well. 0:01:52.760 --> 0:01:55.160 He has set for year number eleven in the league. 0:01:55.680 --> 0:02:00.560 The seventy Sixers acquired Chandler from the Nuggets the summer. 0:02:00.600 --> 0:02:03.920 Wilson Chandler was making his first public appearance as a 0:02:04.000 --> 0:02:07.600 member of the seventy Sixers at the Variety Children's charity 0:02:07.600 --> 0:02:11.440 camp just outside of Plymouth. Meeting helped First Trust Bank, 0:02:11.440 --> 0:02:14.359 one of the seventy Sixers partners, present the Variety Children's 0:02:14.400 --> 0:02:18.480 Camp with a twenty five thousand dollar check for future scholarships. 0:02:18.960 --> 0:02:20.760 And it was on that occasion that I had the 0:02:20.840 --> 0:02:24.320 chance to chat briefly with Wilson about the importance of 0:02:24.360 --> 0:02:26.960 getting right out into the community right off the bat 0:02:27.000 --> 0:02:29.120 as a member of a new team, and also some 0:02:29.200 --> 0:02:32.920 of his thoughts looking ahead to the twenty eighteen nineteen season. Wilson, 0:02:32.919 --> 0:02:35.560 you're relatively fresh in town. Why was it important for 0:02:35.560 --> 0:02:38.079 you to come out and be a part of this event? One, 0:02:38.120 --> 0:02:40.920 I think just showing a community. I'm committed to the team, 0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:42.760 you know, and I'm happy to be here. And two, 0:02:42.840 --> 0:02:44.959 it is always good to come out, you know, and 0:02:45.080 --> 0:02:48.480 support everyone, you know, no matter race, special needs, or 0:02:48.480 --> 0:02:51.160 whatever it is. You know, everybody's equal, you know, and 0:02:51.680 --> 0:02:53.120 just want to come out of the part and so to. 0:02:53.639 --> 0:02:56.280 There were lots of smiles on the kids faces, smile 0:02:56.440 --> 0:02:58.560 on your face. Walk us through some of the stuff 0:02:58.600 --> 0:03:02.080 you did with the kids, the kickball stuff, you know, 0:03:02.200 --> 0:03:05.200 some basketball stuff, a couple kids showing their drawings, spoke 0:03:05.200 --> 0:03:07.440 a little bit, so a little bit of everything. You know. 0:03:08.120 --> 0:03:10.240 How much of a responsibility do you take in your 0:03:10.280 --> 0:03:13.200 position as a professional athlete to be a part of 0:03:13.240 --> 0:03:16.040 something like this, Especially now, it seems like, particularly in 0:03:16.080 --> 0:03:18.639 the NBA, there's a real ground swelf support for being out, 0:03:18.720 --> 0:03:20.960 making an impact and making a difference. You know, Um, 0:03:21.160 --> 0:03:23.400 it's always been a big deal, you know to come 0:03:23.400 --> 0:03:25.680 out and you know, show support and just be active 0:03:25.680 --> 0:03:28.680 in communities. But now I think it's an even bigger deal, 0:03:28.720 --> 0:03:31.040 you know, with social media and stuff like that, with 0:03:31.200 --> 0:03:34.320 different platforms and guys like Lebron and you know other 0:03:34.360 --> 0:03:38.560 guys Katie showing U taking initiative and leading like the group. 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:40.480 So you know, it's always good to come out and 0:03:40.520 --> 0:03:43.520 just continue to do work. To see the way these 0:03:43.560 --> 0:03:45.720 kids light up, it's gotta be a pretty powerful emotion 0:03:45.760 --> 0:03:47.480 that you feel. I think, right, yeah, definitely. You know 0:03:47.560 --> 0:03:49.360 you when you're a kid, you go through all these emotions, 0:03:49.360 --> 0:03:52.320 you know, and like I said, with social media and stuff, 0:03:52.400 --> 0:03:54.200 is at an all time high. So I think, you know, 0:03:54.320 --> 0:03:57.720 it's always good to see smiles kid spaces. What was 0:03:57.760 --> 0:03:59.880 the message that you wanted to leave to the group 0:04:00.000 --> 0:04:02.160 when you spoke with them? Just to know that we 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:04.800 all equal, you know, and working together is you know, 0:04:05.000 --> 0:04:08.720 one of the greatest things we can do to bringing 0:04:08.760 --> 0:04:11.440 each other up. Philadelphias, you have to get to know 0:04:11.520 --> 0:04:14.200 you with a new acquisition that you are. Was there 0:04:14.200 --> 0:04:16.240 a positive experience that you had when you think back 0:04:16.279 --> 0:04:19.039 on your youth that you felt put you on course 0:04:19.120 --> 0:04:21.599 affected you in a good way. Yeah, definitely, you know, 0:04:23.240 --> 0:04:25.600 going to school and just being around friends and uh 0:04:25.960 --> 0:04:28.520 playing basketball and being around my teammates all the time. 0:04:28.720 --> 0:04:30.760 Just put things in perspective, you know, and how a 0:04:30.880 --> 0:04:35.000 friendships can lead to being family one day and life longer. 0:04:35.000 --> 0:04:38.360 A friendships that you are no stranger to living life 0:04:38.440 --> 0:04:41.640 and professional basketball. But you haven't changed teams a whole 0:04:41.640 --> 0:04:43.760 lot over the course of your career. How does someone 0:04:43.760 --> 0:04:46.120 in your position adjust to a new surrounding. How do 0:04:46.160 --> 0:04:48.920 you get to learn a new situation like the Sixers. Uh, 0:04:49.640 --> 0:04:51.920 it's tough, but you know one thing I could say 0:04:51.960 --> 0:04:55.160 about this organization and the team from top to bottom. 0:04:55.240 --> 0:04:57.800 You know, the day I got traded, everybody reached out, 0:04:57.839 --> 0:05:00.320 you know, from the owners to the player, as to 0:05:00.400 --> 0:05:03.760 the equipment team. Everybody reached out and made me feel 0:05:03.800 --> 0:05:06.560 at home right away. So they made it easy on you. 0:05:06.600 --> 0:05:08.320 When you were with Denver, had a chance to face 0:05:08.360 --> 0:05:10.400 the Sixers during that march Ron and the team was 0:05:10.400 --> 0:05:12.440 on the winning street or your impressions and the team then, 0:05:12.480 --> 0:05:14.200 did you have a sense that something was building in 0:05:14.279 --> 0:05:16.680 terms of a madam for the seventy Sixers. Yeah, definitely. Um. 0:05:17.560 --> 0:05:20.680 The coach first of all, is doing a great job 0:05:20.720 --> 0:05:23.359 coaching those guys, playing everybody in the right position to 0:05:23.400 --> 0:05:27.080 se see, and the chemistry is amazing. And every guy 0:05:27.120 --> 0:05:30.320 plays hard, you know, you know, first to the last 0:05:30.400 --> 0:05:32.000 name of the bench. You know, everybody comes in do 0:05:32.080 --> 0:05:34.320 the job. Everybody plays hard, and it looks like everybody's 0:05:34.360 --> 0:05:36.920 committed to one another and there's no selfish and just 0:05:37.000 --> 0:05:38.719 on the team at all. So you know, look forward 0:05:38.720 --> 0:05:41.080 to playing with a lot of those guys. Calendars about 0:05:41.080 --> 0:05:43.400 to flip from July to August at this stage of 0:05:43.440 --> 0:05:45.479 the offseason. What's on the to do list for you 0:05:45.480 --> 0:05:48.000 to get ready for training camp. I just I've been 0:05:48.040 --> 0:05:49.760 able a couple of weeks now, just you know, talking 0:05:49.800 --> 0:05:52.520 to a couple of the coaches with the strength team 0:05:52.560 --> 0:05:55.320 and the physical therapy team. Just getting to know myself 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:58.280 and my body and how things work also with the team. 0:05:58.320 --> 0:06:01.119 So you know, I just being around and just getting 0:06:01.200 --> 0:06:03.800 used to everything. And I think, on my end, just 0:06:04.279 --> 0:06:07.240 keep doing what I've been doing, standing shape and I'm 0:06:07.240 --> 0:06:10.559 working on different things I think on my weaknesses. All right, Wilson, 0:06:10.560 --> 0:06:15.760 good to see, Thanks so much. A brief conversation with 0:06:15.920 --> 0:06:19.160 Wilson Chandler trade pick up this summer for the seventy 0:06:19.200 --> 0:06:24.040 Sixers at the Variety Children's Camp, a just really phenomenal 0:06:24.160 --> 0:06:29.119 and important, powerful operation out in the Plymouth Meeting area, 0:06:29.160 --> 0:06:31.480 where Chandler made an appearance earlier this summer to hang 0:06:31.520 --> 0:06:34.800 out with the kids, played some kickball, shot some hoops, 0:06:35.000 --> 0:06:38.919 and presented Variety Camp with a twenty five thousand dollars 0:06:39.040 --> 0:06:42.240 check on behalf of seventy six Ers partner First Trust Bank, 0:06:43.440 --> 0:06:48.719 Chris Heck, the ubiquitous on brand president of the seventy 0:06:48.720 --> 0:06:52.960 Sixers business Operations. A lot going on for the franchise, 0:06:53.520 --> 0:06:55.400 so we decided to sit down and talk about it 0:06:55.640 --> 0:06:58.839 earlier this week. I was talking to a colleague, Chris, 0:06:59.120 --> 0:07:00.800 a few weeks ago at the beginning of the month, 0:07:01.040 --> 0:07:04.039 and I remember her saying with her veteran wisdom that 0:07:04.160 --> 0:07:07.039 she considers August, which many people may view as the 0:07:07.080 --> 0:07:10.560 real lull in the NBA schedule, to actually be by contrast, 0:07:11.040 --> 0:07:13.640 arguably one of the busiest months of the year in 0:07:13.720 --> 0:07:16.640 NBA circles. Would you agree with that theory, that view 0:07:16.960 --> 0:07:22.160 that stands. I'm fighting against that theory every year. I 0:07:22.200 --> 0:07:25.320 think this is going to be an easy month and 0:07:25.360 --> 0:07:29.080 then we get crushed, all in a good way. It 0:07:29.280 --> 0:07:36.760 is as the popularity grows, as the attention grows. We 0:07:36.880 --> 0:07:40.000 have so much to do to prepare for the season, 0:07:40.080 --> 0:07:44.240 and the season never ends. This is the one month 0:07:44.400 --> 0:07:48.960 where coaches and players aren't around as much, but they're 0:07:49.000 --> 0:07:51.320 even still here and they're still playing at twelve months 0:07:51.360 --> 0:07:55.640 a year, so it's it's it's the calm before the 0:07:55.680 --> 0:07:58.720 storm in many sense, but we're also run around crazy 0:07:59.400 --> 0:08:03.360 trying to get our work done before September and training 0:08:03.360 --> 0:08:06.080 camp hits. For me personally, the answer to this next 0:08:06.120 --> 0:08:08.640 question that'll ask you is yes, but did you feel 0:08:08.640 --> 0:08:11.720 like the bio rhythms of the NBA calendar you're changed 0:08:11.760 --> 0:08:15.680 just because the team went for an extra month. You know, 0:08:15.760 --> 0:08:18.720 we always tease our friends at other teams that have 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:21.920 had great success, and I have some good buddies that 0:08:21.960 --> 0:08:25.520 are at the Golden State Warriors and the Miami Heat, 0:08:25.640 --> 0:08:31.600 and I always have mentioned to them with complete sarcasm, um, 0:08:31.640 --> 0:08:34.040 you know, what a shame that you had to work 0:08:34.080 --> 0:08:38.960 all the way until the summertime. And it is true though, 0:08:39.000 --> 0:08:42.720 like our our season extended a whole other month and 0:08:43.000 --> 0:08:46.760 it was fantastic. It was awesome. It was also exhausting, 0:08:47.440 --> 0:08:49.720 and that's for the people that don't even play on 0:08:49.760 --> 0:08:54.120 the court. So the front office and all of the 0:08:54.160 --> 0:08:57.960 people the staff here um really worked hard during the 0:08:57.960 --> 0:09:01.040 playoff run and that was it was a real gift, 0:09:01.120 --> 0:09:03.400 and this team was a gift this past year of 0:09:03.400 --> 0:09:08.720 winning fifty two games. But it shortens your summer and 0:09:08.840 --> 0:09:12.880 it gets all your summer work condensed. And then on 0:09:12.920 --> 0:09:15.360 top of that, when your team has success, all of 0:09:15.360 --> 0:09:18.120 a sudden, people want you to play in China and 0:09:19.400 --> 0:09:23.480 leave the homeland for nine days and in the thick 0:09:23.520 --> 0:09:26.360 of it. And that's a great thing too. So it's 0:09:26.400 --> 0:09:31.960 a real treat to work for this team that has 0:09:32.000 --> 0:09:35.120 having so much success on the court. Definitely want to 0:09:35.120 --> 0:09:37.480 get to China. Definitely want to talk about the final 0:09:37.520 --> 0:09:40.000 Short Tour events this weekend. But because I was on 0:09:40.200 --> 0:09:43.679 vacation last week, I'm now going to inconvenience you by 0:09:43.720 --> 0:09:45.199 bringing up something that happened about a week and a 0:09:45.240 --> 0:09:47.760 half ago, the schedule coming out, and you worked at 0:09:47.800 --> 0:09:50.199 the league for a long time, you were exposed to 0:09:50.280 --> 0:09:53.199 different teams and just how this works and really discussing 0:09:53.240 --> 0:09:57.120 how a schedule comes together. Because between thirty teams in 0:09:57.160 --> 0:10:00.720 the league, a building you share with another professional sports 0:10:00.800 --> 0:10:03.960 franchise and that draws concert after concert and other events 0:10:04.000 --> 0:10:06.079 you know, Disney and all that stuff. There has to 0:10:06.120 --> 0:10:08.680 be so much that goes into the making of a schedule. 0:10:08.720 --> 0:10:11.199 So I kind of wanted to explore that a little bit. 0:10:11.480 --> 0:10:13.319 You said it. I mean, I think there's a lot 0:10:13.320 --> 0:10:17.920 of people in Q to m to see where they fall. 0:10:19.000 --> 0:10:23.640 The television networks have a heavy influence with the matchups, 0:10:23.840 --> 0:10:27.800 the travel in the league office does a really good 0:10:27.880 --> 0:10:31.079 job of trying to avoid back to back games and 0:10:31.640 --> 0:10:34.920 home and away and home and away, back and forth. 0:10:35.960 --> 0:10:39.600 So they've done a really good job of of making 0:10:39.640 --> 0:10:44.000 this schedule. But you're right, we are We actually are 0:10:44.040 --> 0:10:46.800 a tenant in a building, um where that is owned 0:10:46.800 --> 0:10:49.959 by a hockey team, and um it's their building and 0:10:50.800 --> 0:10:56.079 they have, um their own preferences of when they want 0:10:56.120 --> 0:10:59.040 to play and uh, and that's part of the game. 0:10:59.160 --> 0:11:05.920 So we we respect the process and we definitely are 0:11:05.960 --> 0:11:09.920 pushing for certain games for our fans and times, but 0:11:10.080 --> 0:11:12.920 a lot of times TV dictates that. So what goes 0:11:12.960 --> 0:11:15.800 into formulating what you guys think would be ideal times 0:11:15.800 --> 0:11:17.600 for fans that sort of thing. What do you pull 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:21.240 data from that whole deal? Yeah, yeah, we try to 0:11:21.240 --> 0:11:24.360 balance it out a little bit. We like seven o'clock 0:11:24.400 --> 0:11:28.560 games for the most part. National TV all oftentimes drives 0:11:28.559 --> 0:11:32.679 it to seven thirty or eight o'clock, but so seven 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:37.320 o'clock is our standard. We also like weekend games during 0:11:37.360 --> 0:11:41.560 the day to give kids and families a chance to 0:11:42.040 --> 0:11:45.079 experience our games, even though we're sold out for every game. 0:11:45.720 --> 0:11:50.720 It's such a world now of secondary ticketing market and StubHub, 0:11:51.160 --> 0:11:53.160 and so StubHub is a great partner of ours, and 0:11:53.920 --> 0:11:58.320 we like to give people an opportunity to purchase tickets 0:11:58.400 --> 0:12:02.600 on an individual basis, in addition to our very loyal 0:12:03.000 --> 0:12:09.080 UH season um ticket members that are backing us once 0:12:09.120 --> 0:12:14.160 again UH in a robust fashion this year. Now, you 0:12:14.200 --> 0:12:17.679 were on the best practices marketing business outside when you 0:12:17.720 --> 0:12:19.760 were at the league office. But when does the planning 0:12:20.400 --> 0:12:23.800 um really start for formulating the league wide schedule? And 0:12:23.880 --> 0:12:26.880 like this is just in the most basic ways, how 0:12:26.920 --> 0:12:28.720 do they do it? Yeah? Like how much is manual? 0:12:28.800 --> 0:12:33.640 How much is using Uh, I'm sure plenty of permutations 0:12:33.679 --> 0:12:37.000 with computer program Yeah, yeah, that you would think that 0:12:37.080 --> 0:12:39.840 they would just like throw a bunch of numbers in 0:12:39.920 --> 0:12:42.080 there into a computer and they would spit out a 0:12:42.559 --> 0:12:47.280 optimal um calendar. But it really it's it's this crazy 0:12:47.400 --> 0:12:52.240 algorithm that just is evolving all all the time. And 0:12:52.240 --> 0:12:55.160 and you have you only have so many arenas, right 0:12:55.200 --> 0:12:58.680 and you have so many events and concerts and college 0:12:58.720 --> 0:13:04.880 sports and tournaments in ncuble A, you know, March Madness 0:13:04.960 --> 0:13:09.600 and Circus that comes in down and Disney on ice like, 0:13:09.760 --> 0:13:14.240 all these things come into play, and ultimately it is 0:13:14.240 --> 0:13:19.600 a business, but a teams like ourselves, we are always 0:13:19.640 --> 0:13:22.440 looking for the interest of our fans and our own 0:13:22.440 --> 0:13:26.000 interest too of what's going to give us a competitive edge. 0:13:26.559 --> 0:13:29.800 So it's really important to us to not have the 0:13:29.840 --> 0:13:31.840 whole month of April on the road as we're trying 0:13:31.880 --> 0:13:34.400 to finish up and get ready for the playoffs. You know, 0:13:34.440 --> 0:13:37.000 there's all these different things that come into play, and 0:13:37.840 --> 0:13:42.280 we try to avoid those tough swings to be too 0:13:42.360 --> 0:13:46.080 lengthy or back to back games, and the league is 0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:49.880 very good with doing everything they can to accommodate us. 0:13:50.280 --> 0:13:52.400 The final version of the schedule that is released a 0:13:52.480 --> 0:13:54.800 fans is not the first version that you guys see, 0:13:55.520 --> 0:13:58.319 what type of interfacing is there any with basketball operations 0:13:58.320 --> 0:14:01.360 who from the team side that these different drafts and 0:14:01.440 --> 0:14:04.520 decides where it might make sense to lobby for some 0:14:04.600 --> 0:14:07.200 other type of tweak or change the schedule that that 0:14:07.280 --> 0:14:10.960 type of thing. Yeah, yeah, And Ned Cohen's very influential 0:14:11.040 --> 0:14:16.000 on the schedule, as is Laura Price our COO And 0:14:16.160 --> 0:14:19.400 she's really the one that kind of leads to charge 0:14:19.440 --> 0:14:22.640 And she said many years of experience of seeing teams 0:14:22.640 --> 0:14:25.040 that have had great success on the court and teams 0:14:25.080 --> 0:14:28.400 not so much. And you know, the good news is 0:14:28.440 --> 0:14:32.040 we're in the bucket of the ladder and we have 0:14:33.480 --> 0:14:37.760 when you have two superstar players and you have two 0:14:37.960 --> 0:14:41.400 players that are which usually is indicated by jersey sales, 0:14:41.800 --> 0:14:44.640 it's actually the most fascinating thing if you look at 0:14:44.640 --> 0:14:48.760 the jersey sales and the top ten, I guarantee you 0:14:49.560 --> 0:14:54.760 those are the teams represented for the most national TV games. 0:14:55.880 --> 0:14:59.440 So you could almost follow back on jersey sales in 0:14:59.480 --> 0:15:03.360 popular what the networks are going to choose to be 0:15:03.440 --> 0:15:07.520 their marquee matchups. So if you look right now, the 0:15:07.600 --> 0:15:11.280 teams that have the most national TV game schedule are 0:15:11.480 --> 0:15:17.320 the Golden State Warriors, them the Lakers with Lebron. Now 0:15:18.320 --> 0:15:23.880 you got UM Houston and their dynamic team, and the 0:15:23.880 --> 0:15:28.200 Philadelphia seventy six Ers. So those four teams are probably 0:15:28.280 --> 0:15:30.720 at the very top of the pecking order, and then 0:15:30.720 --> 0:15:32.880 you got the next year, which is probably like a 0:15:33.040 --> 0:15:37.120 Boston and Oklahoma City, really interesting and good teams. So 0:15:37.760 --> 0:15:41.680 but we're right now in the top echelon. And you 0:15:41.800 --> 0:15:45.800 get that also Jersey sales indication. When you hit the 0:15:46.000 --> 0:15:50.040 Christmas Day game, it's almost like you've arrived, right unless 0:15:50.040 --> 0:15:51.920 you're in New York and you just get it all 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:56.640 here anyway, so when one day it'll all work out 0:15:56.680 --> 0:15:59.080 for them. The Sixers are kicking off the entire I 0:15:59.080 --> 0:16:02.240 should probably say tip and the entire NBA regular season 0:16:02.280 --> 0:16:04.480 with that opening night game against the Boston Celtics, which 0:16:04.560 --> 0:16:07.520 is pretty telling of where the league views this franchise 0:16:07.600 --> 0:16:09.720 being at right now. Oh it's nuts. I mean, we're 0:16:09.760 --> 0:16:17.080 on national TV every week of the season. It's it's 0:16:17.160 --> 0:16:20.880 unparalleled actually from from our history of how many times 0:16:21.240 --> 0:16:24.760 and how often we're on throughout the country, but also 0:16:24.840 --> 0:16:28.040 globally and the pickup that we're going to get from 0:16:28.080 --> 0:16:31.440 everywhere from Europe to China to everywhere in between. It 0:16:31.600 --> 0:16:34.200 is really really a fun time to be a part 0:16:34.240 --> 0:16:37.760 of the organization and be a fan of the seventy Sixers. 0:16:38.320 --> 0:16:41.920 With this popularity and this growth, use the word interesting 0:16:42.000 --> 0:16:44.160 describe some of these teams, and yeah, you can look 0:16:44.160 --> 0:16:46.480 at a lot of good, successful teams and say they're interesting. 0:16:46.920 --> 0:16:48.840 But for the seventy Sixers, like some of those other 0:16:48.920 --> 0:16:50.880 you know, you look at the Warriors and the Rockets, 0:16:51.840 --> 0:16:54.160 it seems like they're relevant too. It's not just interesting, 0:16:54.160 --> 0:16:57.120 the relevant, they're like compelling people and figures that are 0:16:57.240 --> 0:16:59.480 part of what the Sixers have building here, which I 0:16:59.480 --> 0:17:01.280 think from your standpoint, it's just got to make it 0:17:01.360 --> 0:17:03.960 that much more fun and fascinating for how you try 0:17:04.000 --> 0:17:07.080 and put everything together and bring the franchise out in 0:17:07.160 --> 0:17:10.280 the public. Yeah, it is. You know, you always want 0:17:10.280 --> 0:17:13.600 to balance, but you also want to win early, you know, 0:17:13.720 --> 0:17:18.159 sometimes like our schedule this year is heavy front, heavy 0:17:19.200 --> 0:17:23.200 on the less competitive teams unlike the previous season. Unlike 0:17:23.200 --> 0:17:25.760 the previous season, and I think that's where we caught 0:17:25.760 --> 0:17:29.919 everyone by surprise, particularly at the end with the winning 0:17:29.960 --> 0:17:34.080 streak to finish off the season and so and that 0:17:34.200 --> 0:17:37.440 was like that extra gift at the end. But we're 0:17:37.640 --> 0:17:42.399 always tracking where we think our record will be on 0:17:42.480 --> 0:17:45.960 a particular time wins and losses and so forth, and 0:17:46.080 --> 0:17:50.080 basketball ops. Alex Rucker, I go visit him all the 0:17:50.119 --> 0:17:53.080 time of like where do you think will be when 0:17:53.119 --> 0:17:56.760 we're doing the scheduling, as well as even on where 0:17:56.800 --> 0:18:01.879 we value certain games. So it's really it's fun. It's fun. 0:18:02.040 --> 0:18:07.720 It's we're fans too. We're following everybody else, and we're 0:18:08.200 --> 0:18:12.919 super proud of what the team that Brett Brown and 0:18:13.000 --> 0:18:18.840 his staff have created on the court, and we think 0:18:18.880 --> 0:18:24.080 that Philadelphia is responding exactly how we expected, which is 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:29.240 in a epic fashion of support. In a perfect world, 0:18:29.240 --> 0:18:31.480 I'm sure we'd love to have eighty two regular season 0:18:31.480 --> 0:18:34.240 games played in South Philadelphia. But if you had to 0:18:34.240 --> 0:18:36.320 go on the road, what is the Chris Heck ideal 0:18:36.440 --> 0:18:38.119 NBA road trip? If you had to put together a 0:18:38.640 --> 0:18:40.800 you know, from a personal interest point, like a four 0:18:40.880 --> 0:18:43.440 or five gamer. Okay, So so you have to take 0:18:43.480 --> 0:18:46.600 a couple of things in consideration time of year, Tommy 0:18:46.640 --> 0:18:50.639 woodmonth it is, and let's go like the standard and 0:18:50.760 --> 0:18:53.040 in December at some point maybe either in a December 0:18:53.040 --> 0:18:55.919 middle of March when some of the longer trips usually happen. 0:18:56.240 --> 0:18:58.720 All right, Okay, it's the holiday trip, because that's like 0:18:58.760 --> 0:19:02.399 the bankable long road trip, right right, right? What? Um 0:19:03.200 --> 0:19:08.320 I think that the flight time is uh is important, 0:19:08.560 --> 0:19:11.840 so um I don't. I would not go West Coast. 0:19:12.680 --> 0:19:16.280 I think Miami is always a win, right Yes, maybe 0:19:16.280 --> 0:19:19.800 not on the court, but hopefully on the court holistic 0:19:20.040 --> 0:19:23.880 entire experience, Miami's fantastic. In the wintertime, it's it's perfect 0:19:23.920 --> 0:19:27.960 every day. Um So I do enjoy the weather um 0:19:28.480 --> 0:19:31.760 on on some of the travel. Um But I also 0:19:32.240 --> 0:19:36.359 I love going to Boston when we win. When we 0:19:36.480 --> 0:19:38.919 lose in Boston, it is the most miserable place on 0:19:38.960 --> 0:19:42.520 the planet. But when we win, it's pretty awesome. It's 0:19:42.520 --> 0:19:44.960 a good town. And when we win, I think the 0:19:45.000 --> 0:19:47.000 city that took me by the biggest surprise. It's maybe 0:19:47.040 --> 0:19:49.680 a reflection of how uncultured I was before I came 0:19:49.720 --> 0:19:52.480 to work here. But Toronto to me is like, at 0:19:52.480 --> 0:19:54.680 worst the top three city, and it's a great It 0:19:54.880 --> 0:19:58.480 is h outstand But don't go in January or February. 0:19:58.520 --> 0:20:00.639 I mean it's too cold. It's a when it seems 0:20:00.680 --> 0:20:03.440 like at least one of the games are yeah sixers 0:20:03.520 --> 0:20:05.240 up there in the dead winner. It's a quick trip 0:20:05.280 --> 0:20:07.400 though it's an easy flight. It's a quick trip. That's 0:20:07.440 --> 0:20:10.480 kind of why I like Boston as well. Chicago is 0:20:10.480 --> 0:20:14.120 another town. Like if you get Chicago on a mild day, Um, 0:20:14.160 --> 0:20:17.080 it's an awesome town, but it gets really gold there too. 0:20:18.080 --> 0:20:24.440 Uh Milwaukee Pass, Detroit pass, Cleveland pass, Uh DC, I 0:20:24.560 --> 0:20:27.520 take the train down easy. I love it. Yeah. DC 0:20:27.680 --> 0:20:31.760 is a good town. And uh Charlotte maybe the nicest, 0:20:32.160 --> 0:20:37.560 uh nicest people that you'll ever find working out an arena. Friendly, 0:20:37.720 --> 0:20:41.679 They're great, they're the best. Um and uh you know, 0:20:41.760 --> 0:20:46.879 so there's um Atlanta doesn't do much for me and 0:20:46.960 --> 0:20:54.080 the nice people down there, but uh, Orlando whatever, you know. Yeah, yeah, 0:20:54.119 --> 0:20:55.719 that's kind of mine. I like to stay on there 0:20:56.160 --> 0:21:02.480 a good idea. Yeah, Indiana pass that way. Yeah, were 0:21:02.480 --> 0:21:05.960 you guys expecting thirty nine nationally televise games because right 0:21:06.000 --> 0:21:07.400 now we're in the phase of the summer. I feel 0:21:07.400 --> 0:21:09.240 like we're seeing a lot of power rankings and looking 0:21:09.280 --> 0:21:12.600 ahead and forecasting into me, Like thirty nine national TV 0:21:12.720 --> 0:21:15.600 games total between ABC, ESPN, t N t NBA TV, 0:21:15.840 --> 0:21:17.960 like that is as big of a power rating indicator 0:21:18.359 --> 0:21:21.679 as anything of what people might perceive a team to be. Yeah. No, 0:21:21.920 --> 0:21:25.959 I'm super excited about that. And I think it's really 0:21:26.000 --> 0:21:29.680 really fun to show the rest of the country and 0:21:29.760 --> 0:21:33.920 the world of what a special thing we have in Philadelphia. 0:21:34.000 --> 0:21:36.800 And I also think it's our obligation to show Philadelphia 0:21:36.840 --> 0:21:41.000 in the best light, because I do think this town 0:21:41.040 --> 0:21:46.720 gets an unfair rap of maybe how things were in 0:21:46.760 --> 0:21:50.320 the decades ago. So this is a great town, this 0:21:50.359 --> 0:21:52.639 is a great sports city. It's the best sports city, 0:21:53.240 --> 0:21:56.400 and it's really fun that we get to show it off. 0:21:57.280 --> 0:22:01.000 A couple other miscellaneous items before we wrap this up 0:22:01.600 --> 0:22:03.919 short tour culminating this weekend. You guys really turn this 0:22:03.960 --> 0:22:06.800 into a tour, which I think is so cool because 0:22:06.800 --> 0:22:09.160 there's so there are many great four points. Some may 0:22:09.160 --> 0:22:11.280 say that they have their own preference in favorites, but 0:22:11.520 --> 0:22:14.720 you're like hitting it all pretty much. Five stops, five stops, 0:22:14.760 --> 0:22:19.000 and uh, you know it is um it's really fun 0:22:19.080 --> 0:22:22.560 to to go to the shore, no matter what beach 0:22:22.640 --> 0:22:26.040 you go to, and see all the Sixers gear, you know, 0:22:26.160 --> 0:22:30.240 kids wearing the jerseys and the T shirts out there 0:22:30.280 --> 0:22:33.359 and the adults wearing It's awesome like that. It really 0:22:33.400 --> 0:22:37.399 gets me going. It's really exciting time for us, and 0:22:37.400 --> 0:22:40.280 and and people are living it down in the Shore 0:22:40.640 --> 0:22:42.520 and we're giving them a little bit of taste of 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:46.679 the team UM from our legends to some of our 0:22:46.800 --> 0:22:51.400 rookies and and all the games and interactive UM functions 0:22:51.440 --> 0:22:53.920 that we have. It's really fun for us to share 0:22:53.920 --> 0:22:57.160 it with the Jersey Shore UM and Duncan Don. It's 0:22:57.200 --> 0:23:02.520 does an awesome job of making their product a part 0:23:02.640 --> 0:23:06.760