(Associated Press)

BOSTON --- The 76ers need a shooter. They need a guy who can consistently knock down shots.

In the offseason, they brought in three of those gun-shy guys, players who not only have a track record of pulling the trigger from long range but also those who have shown a proficiency for hitting them, too.

Without Jason Richardson, who might be able to return from a sprained left ankle Monday, the Sixers have entrusted Dorell Wright with that responsibility.

Wright got the start Wednesday in New Orleans. He's also more than likely going to start tonight at TD Garden against the Celtics in a rematch of last season's Eastern Conference semifinal series.

While no one seems to be hitting shots with regularity (considering they rank dead last in the NBA in field-goal percentage), Wright can be that guy.

"Getting confidence," Wright said in an interview posted today to the team's Web site, is the key to getting on track. Wright, who owns a .298 field-goal percentage, would rank last in the NBA if he had taken enough shots to qualify ... which makes it an interesting decision on Sixers coach Doug Collins' part to continue starting Wright.

But here's the deal: Shooters are streaky. Wright's still the same guy who hit a league-best 194 3-pointers in the 2010-11 season. And this might only be a mere bump in the season for Wright, who's 7-for-27 from 3-point range and 14-for-47 overall this season.

The Sixers need Wright to right his shot. Tonight could represent the start of that.

* * * *

On a non-Sixers note, the Los Angeles Lakers today did something kind of unprecedented: They fired their coach five games into the season.

Los Angeles canned Mike Brown, who directed the Lakers -- who carry a payroll exceeding $100 million -- to a 1-4 record. (For the record, ESPN Stats reports that no team has every won the NBA Finals after starting with a 1-4 mark.)

It's a safe bet that Brown suffered the repercussions of putting so much faith in former 76ers coach Eddie Jordan and his not-so-vaunted version of the Princeton offense. See, the thing about the Princeton is you need constant player movement, cuts, picks and communication to pull it off. Not even the most star-laden roster can play the Princeton without chemistry. And it's difficult to develop chemistry when your point guard (Steve Nash) and center (Dwight Howard) have either missed time due to injury or are playing through pain.

That's not to make any excuses, because Jordan's numbers speak for themselves. I'm not sure why you'd put a guy whose teams own a .428 winning percentage in charge of installing an offensive system for the team expected by everyone to win the title, but -- hey -- that's just me.