CAMDEN, N.J. -- If there is one person who will certainly benefit from having LeBron James on the Philadelphia 76ers, it's coach Nick Nurse.
While Nurse is certainly in the process of getting everybody on the same page and doing his best to get his players up to speed, he has the benefit of having somebody like James out on the floor to direct his teammates. Even in the early days of camp, James is out there teaching and making sure everybody knows what needs to be done on defense.
"I will say this: you guys wouldn't be any surprised," Nurse began on Thursday. "Like we'll go through a set and he’ll stop it and he’ll say ‘This right here is the angle. Right here on board. This is the angle.‘ He’s fine tuning the switches. I'm just trying to get
guys to run to the next spot right now to learn the new stuff. He's fine-tuning stuff. That’s just his IQ."
James has, obviously, seen a ton throughout his 23 years in the league. As he enters year 24, and his first in Philadelphia, his high IQ and understanding of the game will make him a perfect fit for this group. Nurse is somebody who wants to focus on the defense first and make sure everybody is on the same page. That is how the Sixers are going to move forward.
The fact that James is already picking things up and being an extension of Nurse is going to be beneficial for the group.
"Most really good teams have had the accountability factor on the floor," Nurse explained. "The players know what they’re doing. They’re holding guys accountable. There's just too much going on out there. They're the ones out there doing this thing all the stuff and communication. I said a lot of times. I don't really mind if you run it scheme A or scheme B. The two guys that are in it and talking out and communicate, both are going to work. Either one's going to work, and whichever one you think is working better at that point in the game, you do it. That's all I want."
Nurse has always been a coach who believes in getting the input of his players. This isn't just a James thing. This is something Nurse wants to do with all of his players. It just so happens that James has one of the highest basketball IQs in the history of the game.
"I think that, for me, I would like, and kind of my philosophy or what I would really believe in, it doesn't always happen, but I would like to have a collaborative situation here," Nurse finished. "So when just about anything that's on the table, he can say, ‘What are you thinking about doing?’ Any thoughts. Any ideas. And not just with him. I actually did it with five of the players this morning before practice."
As long as James continues to have a say in things, one can assume the Sixers will be in a great position.
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Nick Nurse discusses LeBron James benefiting Sixers in training camp
