Brand deal might be Coach K calling in a favor

When I picked up Tuesday ’s edition of the Daily Times, I read with great interest that my more veteran and learned colleague, Terry Toohey, wrote approvingly of the 76ers’ signing of Elton Brand to mentor the team’s big men.

Know ing Terry ’s sense of humor, I had to assume that at least some of what he said was in jest. But the more I thought about the move and the individuals involved, I felt compelled to author a rebuttal.

A while back, I read Ja hlil Okafor’s comments about how he had wanted to be drafted by Minnesota with the first overall pick last June — mainly so he could be tutored by an accomplished veteran like Kevin Garnett.

When he slid to Philly in the third slot, Okafor wound up with a damaged team with a history of damaged big men … and most importantly, no one to teach him the ways of the NBA or the dangers that come with the money, fame and sense of entitlement.

Education, nur turing or whatever you want to call it, doesn’t seem as much as a priority as collecting draft picks in general manager Sam Hinkie’s grand plan of tanking.

The arrival of Jerry Colangelo has brought some sanity to the franchise, but at the same time the Brand deal smells of a favor owed to Mike Krzyzewski — who coached the power forward at Duke and provided Colangelo a rock on which to build the USA men’s program.

While this move isn’t the equivalent of bringing in Andrew Bynum to school Joel Embiid in how to take root on the bench and collect a paycheck with a clear conscience, what happens if Brand doesn’t work out?

Maybe you hire a medium to conduct a séance to channel the spirits of the franchise’s great big men.

Moses’ ghost and four guys off the street might be an improvement.