By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly Staff 
Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown told reporters on Tuesday that the organization's general manager vacancy would be filled prior to the start of the season. What we didn't know is that the reveal would be so soon.
Per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Sixers have chosen Elton Brand to be their next general manager.
Philadelphia has hired Elton Brand as general manager, league sources tell ESPN. Brand will be elevated from VP of Basketball Operations. He made strong impression on ownership and Brett Brown in process, beating out several inside and outside candidates.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 18, 2018
When speaking with the media, Brett Brown mentioned that he wanted the next GM to be a consistent partner. Brown and Brand have had a good relationship since Elton returned to the Sixers as a player in 2016. After retiring for a second time, Brand was named as a player development consultant for the Sixers. In August 2017, Brand was elevated to the general manager role for Philadelphia's G-League team in Wilmington, Delaware and he was recently promoted to vice president of basketball operations.
While Brand becoming the new GM may be shocking to some, he's been a phenomenal locker room leader as a player and was a member of the Sixers during the process. In his time with the Sixers and G-League squad, player development was always a focus and something he should excel at moving forward. He knows the NBA culture and his experience both as a player and as an executive should serve the Sixers well.
Wojnarowski reports that the Sixers are elevating Alex Rucker to Executive VP of Basketball Operations while Ned Cohen stays assistant GM and Marc Eversley SVP of Player Personnel.
The Sixers will introduce Brand as their next GM at a press conference on Thursday, September 20.
