Basketball took a back seat in Brett Brown's life Thursday night, despite his team playing its worst exhibition game of the preseason.
The Sixers lost, 111-91, to the Celtics at home.
Brown did not coach the game, and he saw very little of it. He had a far more pressing need. He was comforting Joel Embiid, his rookie center from Cameroon, who was mourning the sudden death of his teenage brother Arthur.
"It is a horrific tragedy for his family," Brown said. "For him to be away from his country and be away from his family at a time like this, you just try to do your best to help him get through this. Only time will have a chance to heal. It was a long day."
Joining Brown was general manager Sam Hinkie, teammate Luc Mbah a Moute and Embiid's younger sister, Muriel. They gathered at Embiid's apartment in Philadelphia.
"She was going to Rochester University," Brown said of Embiid's sister. "We were able to get her on a direct flight last night here into Philadelphia and bring her to Joel's apartment in the city. We had a lot of people around him but to see her walk through the door and be with him, you felt a little bit of relief that he had more comfort and support."
Thomas and Christine Embiid had three children. Joel is the oldest. Arthur, the youngest, was living in Cameroon with his parents.
According to Philadelphia Daily News Sixers beat writer Bob Cooney, Arthur's death was an accident.
How long Embiid will be in Africa is unknown, but he has the full support of the entire Sixers organization to be with his family through this devastating time.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Joel and the Embiid family," Hinkie said in a statement. "To learn that you have lost a sibling or a child is unfathomable. We are poorly designed for that kind of loss. To receive that news while 6,000 miles away from your family is more than any of us are equipped to handle alone. Joel is not alone. Joel's sister was able to travel to Philadelphia last night, and the two of them are currently on their way to Cameroon."
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The Sixers had an unusually short practice Friday, and that was understandable given the events of the previous 24 hours.
"There is no road map how it should or shouldn't be handled," Brown said. "But everyone on their own terms needs to find a way to reach out to a friend and a teammate. It is part of growing a program, and the program does stand for — do the right thing — and the right thing is respect his privacy and support where we can."
The Sixers will host the Magic Saturday night in a game that will be played in Allentown.