Passion For The Game: Philadelphia 76ers Scout Frank DiLeo

The life of a scout, from NBA summer league to the NBA Draft, in the eyes of the Philadelphia 76ers’ Frank DiLeo

Every NBA job is important. From the ball boy to the general manager, and from the guy who wipes up liquid off the court to the team’s analytics guru. Every person employed by an NBA organization is valuable in their own different and unique way. One position that might be looked at as more important than other jobs such as ball boy and court cleaner is being a scout. Being an NBA scout means that an individual is responsible for gathering information on college and/or international players throughout the basketball season.

Just ask Philadelphia 76ers head scout Frank DiLeo, brother of former Sixers head coach, Vice President, assistant general manager and general manager Tony DiLeo. Some background on Frank is that he played professional basketball overseas and attended training camp for the Utah Jazz (1975) and Washington Bullets (1977). After his playing days concluded, he became a scout inside and outside of the United States for more than twenty years. His final pit-stop as a coach was at the University of Iowa from 1993-1999 as an assistant behind head coach Tom Davis.

“I was coaching at the University of Iowa and our head coach retired so I needed to find another job. I was fortunate enough to get a job with the Nets right away,” DiLeo said on why he transitioned from coaching to scouting.

More from Sir Charles In Charge

DiLeo spent one season with the New Jersey Nets (now Brooklyn Nets) which was for the 1999-00 season. That season the Nets went a horrid 31-51 at the conclusion of the season and earned themselves a luxurious spot in the lottery. The Nets would go on to win the lottery and draft Kenyon Martin out of Cincinnati. Recruiting there might not have been hard as someone who had a late pick. Yes, there’s more to a player than his on-court production. There’s his potential, the way he interacts with teammates and the media, off-the-court interests and more.

“I was looking for a job as I mentioned above so I went to the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago and I asked John Nash, a GM that I had known from Philadelphia, if he had any openings on his staff,” he said on how he got his start as a scout.” He was working with the Nets and was putting together a scouting team. It was good timing and knowing the right person. The following season I switched to the 76ers since they had a new opening.

After being in New Jersey, DiLeo was off to Philadelphia for the 2000-01 season, and has been in the city of brotherly love ever since Allen “The Answer” Iverson was revolutionizing the game of basketball off the court with his cornrows, baggy apparel, do-rags and everything else urban that’s hip-hop related. Iverson was different, and for his small size he was the toughest guy on the court. DiLeo’s favorite moment as an employee for the Sixers in his fifteen seasons with the team is a place where Iverson brought the team for the first time since Julius “The Doctor” Erving.

More from Philadelphia 76ers

“My favorite moment was when the Sixers played in the NBA Finals against the Lakers. There have been other great moments and I am sure there will many more in the future.”

The 2000 Finals was a great one, as it was the battle of David vs. Goliath. A one-man band going up against one of the most dangerous duos in league history. The hometown kid in Kobe Bryant going bonkers against the team he wanted to select him No. 1 overall back in 1996. “Kobe” going toe-for-toe with his draft mate in Iverson. Glamor vs. hard work; Struggle vs. the good life. An organization accustomed to winning championships vs. a team that finds it as a rarity… I don’t even think the WWE could’ve written a storyline just as good.

Since that Finals matchup at the start of the millennium, the Sixers went from fun to average to now mediocre. DiLeo has had the opportunity to scout some of the highest prospects on NBA mock drafts. He’s seen all the talent, and enjoys it more when the talent he scouts aggressively dawns a Sixer jersey.

“I have had a lot of good moments as a scout,” he began to say on his most rewarding moment.” It is always rewarding when a player that you like is available for you to draft and then he becomes a very good player. I would say that happened with Jrue Holiday and Andre Iguodala and others.”

Holiday was selected No. 17 overall back in 2009 by the team and would become an All-Star guard in 2013, arguably by default because many Eastern Conference guards were hurt. The team traded Holiday during the summer of that year to the New Orleans Pelicans, and has been a shell of himself ever since due to injuries such as stress fractures reappearing.

As for Iguodala, he became the face of the franchise after Iverson was dealt away to the Denver Nuggets in 2006. The franchise’s new A.I. played like he was a mini-LeBron James. He was versatile, athletic, elite on defense, and a walking triple-double. “Flight 9” showed All-Star potential but could never take that next step to actually be selected. Iguodala’s reign in Philly ended in 2012 when he was traded to the Nuggets. After one season there he was off to Golden State where he won a ring and Finals MVP during the 2014-15 season.

What’s more rewarding for a scout is believing in prospect that nobody else is very high on. I’m not talking about the guys drafted in the middle or late first-round per say. What I’m alluding to are the guys drafted in the second-round and the ones who become un-drafted free agents. DiLeo has been there and done that finding gems deep in a draft.

It is interesting scouting the summer league because it is the next step in a player’s career. It gives us feedback on how well we did scouting them up to that point

“I scouted LeBron James and Kevin Durant and they turned out pretty good. I also scouted Lou Williams and Kyle Korver and they may have surprised some people with how well they turned out.”

Williams was selected by the organization as a recent high school graduate back in 2005 with the 45th overall pick. Ten years later and Williams is a high producing guard who was the recipient of the 2014-15 sixth man of the year award. He’s gained a reputation as one of the best shot-creators, and being one of those guys that becomes unstoppable once their jump-shot starts going in consistently. Williams is also the subject to Canadian rapper Drake’s “6 God” in his mixtape “If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late.”

Korver, once mainly known as looking like Ashton Kutcher, was selected 51st overall back in 2003 by the Nets but was traded to Philly for draft considerations. Unlike Williams, Korver went to college for four-years and graduated Creighton with a bachelor’s degree in Visual Communications. The high-socked assassin is a one-dimensional player as one of the sharpest shooters the league has seen. He’s evolved from bench warmer to role player, and starter to All-Star. Nobody seen him becoming an All-Star or expecting him to be entering his 13th season back in ’03.

Next: NBA Fantasy Timeout: Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

DiLeo had a keen eye for Iguodala, Holiday, Williams and Korver. There success in the league has helped him gain more credibility and respectability around the association. His accuracy also, most likely, led to him keeping the same job that is now older than the freshmen who entering high school this past fall. It’s quite commendable that he’s been able to keep the same job for a decade and a half through different regimes in the organization, it just shows you the type of work he puts in. A night in which a lot of work is being put-in is draft week and night. It’s when franchises are reviewing the notes their scouts have made from the past year on the newest NBA freshmen.

“It is exciting and suspenseful. It can get hectic at times but most of our work is done before the draft.”

Philadelphia has entered a rebuilding stage in which we all need to “trust the process.” With the team looking for the next franchise star along with complimentary players and specialists with potential, scouting reports become more valuable. Some of the notable players the team has drafted the past few years include Michael Carter-Williams (No. 11, 2013), Joel Embiid (No. 3, 2014), and Jahlil Okafor (No. 3, 2015).

More from Sir Charles In Charge

After the draft is the summer league. It’s where the latest draft picks, overseas products, old draft picks, guys looking to return to the NBA and more go in order to catch the eye of NBA personnel. Men from all over the world with different backgrounds come to the summer league with one goal in mind: sign an NBA contract. Scouts like DiLeo take the NBA’s summer basketball league to compare and contrast their theories regarding a player.

“It is interesting scouting the summer league because it is the next step in a player’s career. It gives us feedback on how well we did scouting them up to that point. It is also deceptive because a player can play poorly in the summer league yet become a very good pro.”

DiLeo was very occupied this past summer with the Summer League and Nike Global Challenge. He’s had to work on hundreds of reports throughout the hottest season of the year. The thing with him though is that he’s a veteran and knows his way around the profession. Doing the same job comes with new things learned such as time management. He’s been through it all. The veteran scout has also seen a lot of NBA players as he claims to “have scouted most of the players in the NBA today.”

Not many guys can actually have the bragging rights to say they’ve scouted just about every player in the league. Another cool distinction might have is knowing most, if not all, of the scouts in the association. Constantly being at games to scout the same prospects, relationships are made. It could be with a scouting neophyte or an old-head. Just how players bond from being around each other at a consistent basis and sharing many things, the same goes for the scouts.

“Most of the scouts are really good people. I have become friends with many of them. The scouts get to know each other from being at the games together. We often share rides and travel together. They understand what it is like to be a scout and how lonely it can get at times.”

Live Feed

Washington Wizards: Can Poole or Kuzma make the All-Star game next season? /

Wiz of Awes

Will the Charlotte Hornets be in the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery?Swarm and Sting

NBA Center Tier List: Where does Zach Collins rank?Air Alamo

Why Team USA's World Cup failure will lead to a new Dream Team in 2024Hoops Habit

Battle For Banner 18: Will Boston Celtics battle historical foe in 2024 Finals?Hardwood Houdini

The "what if" moment that changed every NBA team foreverHoops Habit

You, the reader, might dislike the profession of being a scout. Mainly because it involves constantly traveling to write reports about prospects who most likely won’t be apart of that organization. Well, every good job has its negatives and the key to being successful is not letting those negatives override the positives. Is being a scout hard? Yes. What makes it great for DiLeo is that he genuinely loves his job and doesn’t make the things he doesn’t like a major problem.

“It is great being a scout. I really enjoy watching basketball games and evaluating players. I also enjoy traveling but sometimes it can be very difficult. The hardest part of being a scout is being away from my family.”

Being away from a close knit family is the hardest part for anyone in a consistent traveling job. The ambiance of family warms the heart, creates memories and makes a person genuinely happy. What makes a father happy is seeing their kids succeed and be happy. DiLeo’s son, David, is known as one the best players in Iowa with thanks to his long-distance shooting.

As a key part of Iowa City West High’s success, he’s helped be apart of the schools 100-4 record the past four years and having an impressive 53-0 home record. The younger DiLeo was a two-year starter and three-time varsity letterwinner. In his last season as a high school basketball player, the 6-foot-7 forward averaged 15.3 with a slash-line of 50-44.5-86. The former West High swingman received Division-2 college scholarship offers from Missouri Western and Truman State, according to prephoopsiowa.com. He also received an offer from Colgate University, according to this father.

“It was exciting watching my son develop as a player and to have so much success. I am looking forward to watching him progress to the next level. He will be attending the New Hampton School in New Hampshire. It is a very good prep school and he will maximize his talents. He is a 6’7″ forward that can really knock in the 3 point shot. Every level needs a 3 point shooter.”

His son is the epitome of the transformation going on in the NBA today: an emphasis on three-point shooting. The three-point barrage that’s going on in the league today is also coupled with more teams playing “small-ball” and speeding the court. Teams playing “small-ball” and jacking up a bevy of three-pointers has been around since the “seven seconds or less” Phoenix Suns and the “live by the three die by the three” Orlando Magic and the mid-2000’s Golden State Warriors. The 2015 NBA Champion Warriors combined every thing together and proved that a championship can be won playing that way. Everybody still has their different opinions on it; but who better to ask than a scout?

Next: NBA Power Rankings: Let's Not Forget About The Spurs

“Players are so skilled these days that they can play many positions,” DiLeo said on the “small-ball” perception.” Also they are so strong and athletic that they can play against taller players. It looks like teams can play “small ball” for periods of time in the NBA but I don’t think the role of the big man will disappear. The traditional low post center is becoming scarce but there are still some good ones out there. There is a trend to not putting players into a specific position. So many players are combo players or hybrid players now. I think it makes for a more exciting brand of basketball and the future of the NBA is on the rise.”

The NBA is continuing to change with point guards and small forwards becoming more important positions. DiLeo has witnessed everything in his scouting career and has been around for 2-3 generations of NBA basketball. He has the sage everyone wants to know and an impressive resume that proves to his credibility. The questions now are: how long will he remain a scout? How will the NBA continue to change? Where will his soon go to college? Will the Sixers become a true contender this decade?