Josh Harris’ Commanders to-do list is long. Here’s how he went about the early days of 76ers, Devils

Once his agreement in principle with Dan Snyder becomes finalized, Josh Harris will have a long to-do list whenever he takes over the Washington Commanders. 

From earning back the trust of a disgruntled fanbase to evaluating Washington’s command structure to building a new stadium, there are complicated issues to resolve. On Snyder’s watch, the team went from one of the NFL’s most prestigious and successful franchises to a league afterthought that ranks last in league attendance. 

“I’d argue Dan Snyder has done more damage to his franchise’s brand than any single person has done to any team in US sports history,” Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer tweeted Thursday, when Snyder reached a nonexclusive agreement to sell the Commanders. 

But as a private equity executive — and the managing owner of two other professional sports teams — Harris has a track record of turning around distressed assets.

In the NBA, Harris’ Philadelphia 76ers have made six straight postseasons and have the MVP front-runner in center Joel Embiid. And in the NHL, Harris’ New Jersey Devils finished the regular season last week with a franchise-record 112 points.

It took time, of course, for Harris — who still has to sign a contract and receive approval from the NFL for the sale to be completed — to turn his teams around. The Devils, for instance, will only be making their second playoff appearance in Harris’ 10 years of ownership, while the 76ers underwent a famous, multi-year tanking strategy to now become annual contenders. 

Harris, though, has historically wasted no time in making changes — even if the impact doesn’t translate into immediate success. 

In 2011, when he purchased the 76ers for $280 million, Harris came in and fired general manager Ed Stefanski — who had been with the team since 2007. As part of Stefanski’s dismissal, Harris gave team president Rod Thorn more authority over day-to-day basketball operations and hired a new CEO in Adam Aron.  

Harris also appeared to make a gesture to fans by lowering prices for nearly 9,000 seats and launched a website, NewSixersOwner.com, to solicit feedback. 

Upon taking over the Devils in 2013, Harris announced that Scott O’Neil would be New Jersey’s new CEO. Months earlier, Harris had tapped O’Neil to serve in the same role for the 76ers as the executive replaced Aron after only two years at the helm. 

Notably in both cases, Harris kept the existing coach in place — and gave them time to work. Doug Collins, then with the 76ers, and Peter DeBoer, then with the Devils, were both retained even after the first season under Harris. 

In Harris’ first year at the helm of Philadelphia and New Jersey, the 76ers went 35-31 in a lockout-shortened season that saw them upset the first-seed Chicago Bulls in Round 1, while the Devils missed the postseason with a 35-29-18 record. 

Collins kept his job in part because of that surprising playoff run, whereas DeBoer was likely retained because he had taken the Devils to the Stanley Cup Final just two years earlier. 

Neither coach, however, saw a third year under Harris. 

Collins, citing a desire to spend more time with his family, stepped down after a disappointing 34-48 season in 2013. Collins’ resignation set the stage for Harris to hire general manager Sam Hinkie, who instituted a complete roster teardown. Hinkie replaced Thorn and then general manager Tony DiLeo. 

DeBoer was fired 36 games into Harris’ second NHL season (2014-15) — when New Jersey then deployed an unconventional coaching situation in which general manager Lou Mamoriello named Adam Oates and Scott Stevens as co-coaches who would both be in charge. (Mamoriello also served as a “supervisor” from behind the bench that year.) 

With the Commanders, Harris will have to make a call on coach Ron Rivera and team President Jason Wright. Rivera appears ready to pitch his vision to Washington’s new ownership, while Wright has said he would like to stay on. Both men are entering their fourth seasons with the franchise.

The unsolved nature of Washington’s future stadium, meanwhile, also presents a wrinkle from past teams that Harris has purchased. The 76ers and Devils had stable stadium situations at the time of purchase, though Harris has recently explored building a new venue for Philadelphia in Chinatown. That project, it should be noted, has met resistance and is far from a done deal. 

Harris’ familiarity with the sports world could help with his transition in taking over the Commanders since he already oversees two teams.

Still, the NFL is entirely its own entity — one that Harris will have to learn the ins and outs of as he tries to transform the franchise he’s agreed to purchase for $6.05 billion.

“He’s actually a great listener,” 76ers co-owner David Blitzer, a longtime business partner of Harris, told reporters in 2011. “He’ll take in lots of great opinions. But at the end of the day, Josh gets to make the call.”