Doug Collins

EVANSTON, Ill. - Even when Chris Collins was a ball boy at long-gone Chicago Stadium, wiping up the sweat of Michael Jordan, his father, who was the Bulls coach at the time, sensed that coaching was in his future. That belief became a reality on Tuesday. "I know that sounds crazy, but I've always felt Chris had that about him," 76ers coach Doug Collins said. With the elder Collins watching in the front row with his arm draped around his granddaughter Kate, Chris Collins was introduced as the new men's basketball coach at Northwestern, a program seeking its first NCAA tournament bid. He comes to Northwestern after 13 seasons on the staff at Duke, under Mike Krzyzewski.

TO ANYONE who will listen - or even doesn't want to - Sixers guard Jeremy Pargo will talk endlessly about his proud college, Gonzaga University. Naturally he was a little chirpy Monday after his Zags had locked up the top seed in the West. Teammates Lavoy Allen (Temple) and Evan Turner (Ohio State) were the only others in the locker room who could join in the conversation of their colleges attending the Big Dance. Coach Doug Collins has just as much interest, probably more so, than any of his players, however.

BOSTON - When Doug Collins and Doc Rivers left the TD Garden after morning shootarounds Friday, there were 30 NBA head coaches. When they returned for the game later in the day, there were 29. The Los Angeles Lakers, off to a 1-4 start, fired Mike Brown during the day and named Bernie Bickerstaff as interim coach. Both Collins and Rivers have been down that road before. Rivers was fired by Orlando before getting the Boston Celtics job, and Collins has been fired by Detroit, Chicago, and Washington.

WASHINGTON - While 76ers coach Doug Collins has not addressed a column in Thursday's Inquirer that indicated ownership wants him to resign, there are others in front offices around the league that are willing to talk about it. Such was the case Friday when an Atlantic Division general manager, speaking anonymously, addressed the situation. "Doug has gotten them to the playoffs in the last two seasons, so he's got that going for him," the general manager said. "Everyone knows he's an excellent coach.

TORONTO - The 76ers will play 12 of their next 13 games at the Wells Fargo Center, but coach Doug Collins doesn't see that as a positive. Collins feels the unbalanced schedule is too extreme. The Sixers completed an eight-game road trip over the holidays. Earlier this season they played eight of nine at home, and in April they will finish with seven of their final nine games on the road. "I hate the schedule that is so top-heavy home and on the road," Collins said before Wednesday's game against the Toronto Raptors.

Doug Collins returned to 76ers practice Friday after missing the final two games of the preseason so he could get medical treatment. Collins, 59, had tests and was treated for what neurologists determined was vertigo stemming from a concussion he suffered on Memorial Day. The Sixers coach said he was in a coffee shop in Phoenix when he fainted, hitting a table and a chair as he fell. Collins said he cracked his head on the concrete and shattered three ribs. He was in Cincinnati on Tuesday for the team's exhibition game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, but he left before it started when he experienced symptoms from the head injury.

OKLAHOMA CITY - When the Oklahoma City Thunder made the deal that sent James Harden to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Kevin Martin, it brought home to 76ers coach Doug Collins how much money plays a role in building an NBA team these days. The main reason Oklahoma City made the deal - which hasn't worked out too badly for them considering that they entered Friday's game 24-7 - was that the Thunder wanted to protect cap space rather than give Harden a maxed out contract. Harden eventually signed an $80 million deal with the Rockets.

According to several sources with knowledge of the situation, 76ers coach Doug Collins and the team's ownership are working on a buyout agreement and Collins will not return as the coach next season. "He's not coming back," a team source said. "This is something that both sides have been thinking about for some time. It looks like they are going to part ways. I'm certain Doug will be looking for a buyout. From what I understand, both sides want to make it an amicable parting of the ways.

New Eagles coach Chip Kelly paid a visit to the 76ers on Monday night before the team's game with the Brooklyn Nets. Sixers coach Doug Collins, who developed a friendship with former Eagles coach Andy Reid, said that he and Kelly exchanged a few words before the game. "Coach Kelly stopped in, and it was nice to meet him," Collins said. "I'm excited to see the team he puts out on the field. I know he's very excited, and so it's good to say hello. We'll be able to get together when the season is over.

He was calm and composed, not ranting, but deeply hurt by what he had seen. Doug Collins bared his soul after his 76ers team couldn't find their heart during Tuesday's 98-84 loss to the Orlando Magic at the Wells Fargo Center. Collins is as passionate about basketball as anybody, and he expects his players to take that same enthusiasm onto the court. On Tuesday, when the Sixers were thoroughly outplayed by a Magic team that had lost 17 of its previous 18 games, Collins had seen enough.