ESPN yesterday announced that former 76ers coach Doug Collins "has been signed to a multiyear deal to join" Magic Johnson, Jalen Rose and Bill Simmons on “NBA Countdown," according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. In addition to his work on "NBA Countdown," Collins will "serve in his more familiar role as a game analyst on a handful of ESPN broadcasts." Collins said, "I’m going to do 10 ESPN Wednesday night games and then I’m going to do 10 ESPN Friday night studio shows and then I’ll do all nine national games (in the) ABC studio during the regular season. Then come playoff time I’ll do all studio. And then I’m going to do the draft and the World Championships. Most of my work has been done as an analyst, but I have done some studio work in the past." He added, "I think the big thing is just getting everybody together and creating a chemistry with one another on the set. I think the one thing we want is for the show to have more of a national perspective rather than (focus on) the particular game that night. ... Hopefully the one thing I can bring to the discussion is the coaching side." Collins said of 76ers Majority Owner Josh Harris, "Josh and I have such a great relationship, so when we sat down and talked, I told him: 'I know where you’re heading. I know you’re going to be hiring a new GM -- that would have been my fourth GM in four years -- so I just feel like at this point in time there would be a better coach for you than me.'” Collins said of his future, "I'm through coaching. I said it when I went to Philly. That was my last spot" (ESPN.com, 10/8).
