TORONTO - Brett Brown is eager for the end, but not because of the past.



The 76ers have just two games remaining on their schedule. Tuesday night’s tilt in Toronto, followed by Wednesday’s visit to Chicago for the regular season finale.



Brown’s outlook on the final 48 hours of his third year with the Sixers has little to do with the circumstances surrounding their previous 80 contests. Instead, Brown’s emotions are based on what lies ahead.



“I can’t wait to get into my desk for Thursday morning. I cannot wait,” said Brown following Tuesday’s shoot-around at Air Canada Centre. “You take a deep breath, you can see what can happen. It’s not so much the excitement of having our next two games be over. It’s not that at all. I just feel like I see daylight.”



Brown’s enthusiasm is fueled by the position the Sixers find themselves in as they approach the doorstep of an off-season in which a different tone is expected to be set.



"We're going to try and establish a culture of winning." -- Bryan Colangelo — SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) April 12, 2016

To achieve the above goal that Bryan Colangelo referenced in an interview on SiriusXM NBA Radio, the Sixers have several options to leverage.



There’s the possibility of four first round draft picks, with two that could be slotted in the lottery. There’s the financial flexibility that has resulted from a prudent plan installed three years ago. There’s the soon-to-be completed cutting edge training complex rising in Camden.



There’s also Colangelo, who on Sunday was tapped to helm the Sixers’ basketball operations department, given his experience, connections, and success.



Brown said on Tuesday that he and Colangelo have already started to sink their teeth into planning.



“This is how it works,” outlined Brown. “We have to grow our defense. We have to build a program that guards. We have to build a program that fights in the city of Philadelphia. We need the pieces to do that. Ultimately, you’re going to need two-way players, people that can make shots and support our bigs and so-on. But we need to grow our defense. End of story, in my view.”



Colangelo has accompanied the Sixers on their trek to Toronto, where he served as general manager and president from February 2006 through June 2013.



“There has to be a critical assessment of how we’re doing things, whether it’s sports science, whether it’s development, whether it’s travel, whether it’s pre-game video, whether it’s a weight room,” Brown said. “We will have a critical assessment of where we are at, and what we all have to do better.



The head coach acknowledged that using seasoned pros - both bigs and guards - to bolster an otherwise youthful squad remains an important focus.



“Elton [Brand] confirms that,” said Brown of the impact that the 17-year power forward has had inside the locker room, and on the court. “He’s great with our guys. I’m sure there’ll be some backcourt veterans that we look at to help guide some of our young guys, possible draft picks.”



“There’s a responsibility also where we want leadership, we want skilled people, we want greatness all around us to help grow us. I think we have a lot of great people around us.”



Brown, during the 12 years he spent as an assistant in San Antonio, was certainly surrounded by a lot of greatness. His old boss, Gregg Popovich, is a multi-time NBA Coach of the Year recipient. The Spurs’ roster was and continues to be a collection of selfless All-Stars and impact role players. How San Antonio managed to foster such a productive setting is wisdom that Colangelo is aiming to acquire from Brown.



“I want to know more about that San Antonio, perhaps we can call it that ‘secret sauce,’” Colangelo said Sunday during his introductory news conference at The Center. “People want to win. It’s not just about money anymore. Players want to know that they’ve got a chance to win in an environment.”



Brown shared some of his own insight Tuesday, saying, “The ‘secret sauce’ is the discipline to follow our convictions. The day-to-day discipline to follow our convictions and not waver. You know what’s right and wrong. You know how the program should be grown, so you need the discipline and strength to do that, in all pieces of our program.”



Now that the Sixers have brought Colangelo into the fold, the earliest of early rounds of fresh evaluations have begun, and there are still two games to go. But even the demands of a long NBA season, which will be punctuated by a late flight home from Chicago on Wednesday, won’t slow down Brown from getting to his office early the next day.



“You see what can be,” Brown said. “I very much look forward to Thursday, more for the excitement of what’s around the corner, than to end this.”