Following a frustrating Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics in this year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Philadelphia 76ers chose to go in a different direction.
The team parted ways with coach Doc Rivers, who spent three seasons with the team and fell in the conference semifinals all three seasons. Now, they’ll be swapping one coach who won an NBA championship with a conference rival for another.
On Monday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the team had agreed to a deal with former Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse. In five years in Toronto, Nurse won an NBA championship in 2019 and the league’s Coach of the Year award in 2020.
ESPN Sources: Nick Nurse has reached an agreement to become the next coach of the Philadelphia 76ers. Nurse — who won an NBA championship and a coach of year award with Toronto — now gets to coach the 2023 MVP Joel Embiid. pic.twitter.com/SrsXhzx7Y3
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 29, 2023
While Nurse is certainly a solid hire for the team, it also opened the door for fans to make the most obvious joke of all time.
And boy, did they take advantage.
Swapped a doc for a nurse.
— nba paint (@nba_paint) May 29, 2023
From a Doc to a Nurse pic.twitter.com/kj6tH6coaU
— NY Punk (@NYPunk) May 29, 2023
so you went from a Doc to a Nurse….
— Held the Door…Heldor (@c23peeezy) May 29, 2023
Replaced a Doc with a Nurse
— Tubby Sports (@TubbySports) May 29, 2023
Doc to Nurse feels like a step down, right? https://t.co/L91V7M3Iay
— B.W. Carlin (@BaileyCarlin) May 29, 2023
The Sixers went from a Doc to a Nurse ahaha
— Nekias (Nuh-KY-us) Duncan (@NekiasNBA) May 29, 2023
The 76ers traded a Doc for a Nurse 😳 pic.twitter.com/Un4meReAii
— SportsNation (@SportsNation) May 29, 2023
Given Embiid's medical history, not to sure about going from a Doc to a Nurse https://t.co/RRgbHoAvbj
— Anthony F. Irwin (@AnthonyIrwinLA) May 29, 2023
Doc couldn't fix em, what would a nurse do
— Zohaib Ahmed Majeed (@zohaib6891) May 29, 2023
WE FIRED A DOC TO HIRE A NURSE pic.twitter.com/bEs6An9lTB
— Justin Lever ❤️⚾️ (@JustinLever3) May 29, 2023
already over all your ‘nurse is replacing a doc’ jokes KNOCK IT OFF
— Devan Kaney (@Devan_Kaney) May 29, 2023
did you guys know that the Sixers went from a coach named Doc to a coach named Nurse? pic.twitter.com/VitT7MKtmO
— all my teams want me dead (@PanasonicDX4500) May 29, 2023
They fired a Doc and hired a Nurse https://t.co/qLoJVvVqwb pic.twitter.com/N3e1u3Z3y6
— bag (@mookiebag) May 29, 2023
The Doc is out… but the Nurse will see you now https://t.co/gfCo0X80vi
— Grace Marlowe (@graceofthecurls) May 29, 2023
I’ll take a Nurse over a Doc any day
— Dan Wilson (@dan_wilson4) May 29, 2023