That is the question for the night.
How can the Sixers lose this game?
We have one thing going for us. Thad is out with a fractured thumb. Speights is still out, although I think it can be argued that him playing actually helps the Sixes lose considering he was posted up by 6-5 Trenton Hassell and laid up twice. And Lou is a game-time-decision.
What we don’t have going for us is the fact that the Nets also have injuries. Devin Harris and Yi are both out.
So how can the Sixers possibly lose this game?
And if they do lose, how would you feel about it putting draft aspirations aside?
This is your game thread.
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{ 52 comments… read them below or add one }
I want the Sixers to win, or rather the Nets to lose simply because its a step in the direction of getting the (dis)honor of our franchise holding the worst record in NBA history removed.
Jimbo – Can’t agree with that. No one talks about this specific dishonor of our franchise every year. Only when someone else approaches that record. More importantly that has nothing at all to with the current dishonor of this franchise we watch every night now.
Losing helps us get out of the current situation. Could care less about that 9 win team.
i definitely didn’t want them to win tonight. i didn’t watch; the boycott continues.
Jrue!s numbers thru March; 10 games 14.4 pts., 5.3 ass., 3.9 reb., 3.1 turn., 52% f.g., 56 % 3pt., 80% f.t.; and best of all he is making 2 3!s a game, which is just about what the league leaders do. Hopefully he gets his turnovers down and can become a solid p.g. that can take over games for short stretches. K. Love doesn!t seem to like Rambis!s triangle and Minn. is said to want a solid s.f. . Maybe an Iggy for K. Love deal over the summer works, they will have cap room so salaries don!t have to match.
I agree suede, Jrue has done very well in March. Amazing what solid playing time will do for a guys confidence and abilities. I would love for Jrue’s assists per game to go up to around 7 or so but I am certainly not complaining at all.
Glad to see Lou getting less minutes, I really can’t stand the guy but whatever.
It is just me or does the fact that Eddie Jordan used the phrase “magical touch” in reference to beating the Net’s just show how absolutely clueless the guy is? “Magical Touch”…he does know the Net’s were 7-60 going into the game right? They aren’t, what’s the word….good, so beating them isn’t magical but expected.
Why do WE want Kevin Love?
Really needed that loss last night. We fell back to 8th. 2 games out of 4th worse record and 4 and a half out of third worse.
Can’t get a break! We have not played the Nets once with their full compliment of players.
Dannie, I have wanted him since his freshman year at U.C.L.A. . He is an old school, smart player a team can build around and we have the perfect defensive compliment for him here, Sammy, and I feel going forward Elton may be better served rotating in off the bench. I am getting tired of dumb basketball and he and Jrue would be a nice foundation to build around. What do you feel his ceiling is? I think 20 and 10 is a possibility, granted, like Amare, the right piece IS needed next to him.
I am convinced this team is destined for a pick in the 8-10 range.
Suede – You’d be better off talking to Pete about Kevin Love he is obsessed with him. I am not that big a fan. Certainly do not at all think he is someone you build around.
I feel the same as Pete Dannie, love the hard screens and feel he is smart enough on defense to be in proper position, similar to how Bird survived, and the fact that he buries the 3 now is an added bonus. Question, I agree with Ed R. that we probably don!t get a top 5 pick; After Wall/ Turner, Favors, Cousins and Johnson, how does your next 5 look. Davis, to me, shouldn!t go till after 10 but what do you think?
Kevin Love is too soft if you ask me.
I think Love is a really strong rebounder. Marginal-to-weak defender in all aspects defensively.
So far for a power forward he doesn’t score from the floor as efficiently (sub 48% FG in first two seasons) as I would like for my starting PF. That is especially so if I have to pair a weaker offensive, defensive center with him.
But if he becomes a legit (consistently good, with enough volume) three point shooter that could change because it would lift his eFG%. I don’t think he scores well against other PFs with size and length, particularly back to basket. But I don’t watch the dude every game either. I feel like he is similar to Brand in that respect. He isn’t very athletic and needs to use brute force or crafty to score effectively and he is only going to get worse as he ages.
Do we have any real concept of what the Sixers are looking for in the draft? Honestly, someone I would love to see them take, if he comes out a year early, which I doubt is Jimmer Fredette from BYU. Guy would be an excellent 2 guard to put along side Jrue.
I’m still hoping they lose enough and get enough luck to land a franchise changing pick. But assuming that does not happen…
Whicg pieces seem like they can fit together long term? Does Jrue/Iguodala fit as your PG/SF on a winner?
Initially I had doubts because Jrue was supposed to have a weak jumper. But hopefully he is proving people wrong. I do like how they both can defend, rebound, pass ahead and efficiently run the break. It seems like they are a quality shooting guard away from a strong backcourt. Not sure if that guy is in the draft (Henry is slipping), but there will be lots of player movement this summer.
Of course its hard to evaluate any of these pieces when the finished product is so bad. Also, I’m trying to temper my enthusiasm since Thad and Speights also both showed such promise as rookies. And Iguodalal may not be a Sixer next Fall anyway.
I worry we reach for a Whiteside or Alabi and they end up a bust. D.Bodner seems to think J.Anderson won!t be a good defender at the next level. If we end up 7 to 10 it keeps coming back to Monroe or Henry to me, not sure if either ever becomes an all star.
Davis shouldn’t even come out, he isn’t read to play in the NBA. I’d like to see him return to UNC for a couple reasons:
After those guys I don’t know. I guess the Sixers just have to take the most talented player on the board and hope they get lucky OR don’t settle and fucking trade up!
I agree, the Sixers will most likely try and grab a high ceiling guy, much like they did with Jrue and hope it pans out. Then again, if Ed S. is gone then maybe not. Maybe we get a GM in here with an actual plan. I am not a fan of Monroe much at all and Henry…I am still trying to figure him out.
I hope they target somebody and go all in, offer our pick, Thad, Marreese and Lou if they have to, get Favors or whomever it is but like you keep saying, tk, will E.S., if he is here, take that risk?
Trading up is what Philadelphia franchises love to do…Sixers and Eagles seem to do it every draft. Flyers trade all of their draft picks away so they have nothing to trade up and then the Phillies…they at least seem to get it right.
Jimmer Fredette – haha. He is a 6-2 point guard and you want him to be our starting shooting guard? Huh?
Kevin Love is clearly and unquestionably the greatest basketball player of all time.
OK, maybe not, but yes, he and Steph Curry are my favorite non-sixer, non-nova/st joes players right now.
And Ed, if we had a backcourt of guys named Jrue and Jimmer I don’t know what I would do.
Monroe would be very good on a good team, very bad on a bad team. He’ll need to be the 3rd best guy on an NBA team to be effective
Fredette, is pretty much projected as an early second round pick this year. If he has a strong tourney that may boost him to a very late 1st round spot if he comes out…However(correct me if i’m wrong) the Sixers currently don’t have any other picks than what they’ll get in the lottery. Traded that early second round pick to Milwaukee.
I still like Henry a lot if we want a shooting guard and he is on the board between 7-10.
I think he will be able to shoot the NBA three well. Has great size. And while he isn’t super athletic, that is okay. He is long and a willing defender. I don’t think he would be a weak pick for us at all. Also you start to solidify positions on this team. Jrue is your point, Henry is your legit shooter at SG and isn’t undersized. Iguodala is your athletic, versatile wing player. I am good with that. Both Iguodala and Jrue like to drive and kick, they just don’t have anyone to dish too right now. Henry fits and I don’t think you give up much upside talent-wise if any at all.
Also is it a possibility that if a lot of underclassmen come out that Johnson could drop to 8 or so?
“Both Iguodala and Jrue like to drive and kick, they just don’t have anyone to dish too right now.”
What about Willie and Kapono?
Ed R. wrote:
“Trading up is what Philadelphia franchises love to do…Sixers and Eagles seem to do it every draft.”
When have the Sixers ever traded up in the 1st round? They traded down from 13 to 16 to get Carney. They traded down one pick to get Jason Smith. They traded away the #1 overall to get Hinson. the traded down from the #2 overall to get Tim Thomas. And they traded away their #1’s for Moiso and Kenny Thomas.
I’d write more but this list is making me ill…
And we wonder why the Sixers are no longer a premiere franchise in the NBA?
I guess it’s a matter of semantics…when I said trade up I meant they trade a lower pick for a higher pick. I guess I do it a little backwards.
TK - I have a feeling Ed was being sarcastic.
Yeah I kinda was…
Saw Love up close when Wolves came in last month. I like him as a player but he can’t shoot off dribble, a fact of life which limits his O-effectiveness. Body is a little soft, weight room could help. Good
rebounding instincts, good passer for a big man. A little California casual in his approach (based on that short viewing); could be an offshoot of playing 82 games for a crummy team. Hope Kevin fulfills his promise, lives up to college plaudits, but I can’t shake his father Stan’s playing limitations from my mind when assessing him. A projection: solid, contributing forward for awhile but greatness will escape him. That said, Sixers need beef & court IQ: I’ll take him here.
Sory Ed R. Sarcasm does not always come across on a message board.
And the Eagles do trade up to the mid 1st round all the time- with mixed results.
jjg, are you considering getting onto the Holiday bandwagon? Or do you need to see a larger body of work (on a more relevant team?)
Sixers don’t need beef. Elton has plenty of beef he can’t seem to move around very well. Love is in the same boat and he is only 21 years old. Needs to slim down and work on his body and ability to move.
Sixers need uber talent with some basketball smarts OR at least the willingness to take and execute direction from a smart coach. We don’t need any more middling players. It’s that simple.
Dannie, that is truth, but odds are the team will not add that type of talent this summer. Unless they get very lucky.
I doubt they trade up, and chances teams 4-10 in the lottery have at landing a top 3 pick:
4th – 38%5th – 29%6th – 22%7th – 15%8th – 10%9th – 6%10th – 4%
It’s all good tk. I totally understand what you mean.
Sixers DO need quality beef (Fred Sanford has scheduled an EB pickup for June). Love, a grade above middling, an asset towards winning if well-incorporated.
tk76, Jrue – sizzlin’, but I don’t believe it. Has come O-alive when rest of team checked out. I give him credit for “producing” w/AI leaving opportunity. Still too manic, too Hollywood for my taste. His birthday & ambition, biggest plusses. Jiminy Crickett/Aaron McKie has helped “Pinnochio” w/steady stream of whispers. When you wish upon a “star” …
TK - Yeah I know.
So here is the rub, do you keep adding middling talent and stay in the middle of the pack. Or do you just figure out a way to suck even worse and go the get worse to get better route?
The only reason I even say that is because as our ownership and management is now I don’t think they are smart enough to improve this team any other way. At least if you are getting top 3 pick, after top 3 pick you are adding better talent and decrease your chance of making a mistake.
I don’t know, this team is frustrating.
I just think they over complicate things.
Build via the draft. Via free agency. Via trades. Ideally some combination.
The draft is the easiest and safest way based on risk vs. reward. Your mistakes are smaller because of the rookie pay scale and the payoff can be ginormous. Stockpile picks and increase your chance of getting lucky with a diamond in the rough.
Free agency is simple as well. Don’t sign older players if you aren’t already a fringe contender or have a plan to be a contender in the first year or two of that players deal (i.e. the Celtics and Detroit). Be honest in your evaluation of the team. Go for younger free agents. Pay attention not just to production but fit, production decline due to age, style of play, injuries, coach and chemistry.
Trades are hard and big winners are so infrequent. But smaller deals can have a good risk vs. reward ratio and big impact. Save trades for when you need to acquire picks, tweak, dump or looking for a complete style change.
The Sixers screwed themselves so horribly. Stefanski fucked this thing up so bad. It’s one thing to suck. It’s another entirely different thing to suck and not be able to really evaluate the roster.
Does Jrue and Iggy fit together?
Iggy and Thad?
Is Thad and Speights even keepers?
Where does Lou fit on a good team, if anywhere at all?
Can any of those questions really be answered at this point? We are and have wasted so much time.
I liked the Brand move , the Kapono trade and the Carney signing at the time they happened and other than taking Spieghts over R.Lopez, I thought our G.M. was addressing this teams needs. But this coaching hire went against everything our g.m. has professed, defense and running. Last year at this time we were 5 games over 500 and getting ready for the playoffs. I just don!t like the odds of starting from scratch. By the way, do we start thinking of Thad as being injury prone?
I’m sure that most everyone is watching Nova-Robert Morris. I’m at work though and have only been checking in here and there.
Nova down 8 with 4 minutes to play. 33% from the field, 5-21 from 3-pt. Not looking good at all.
The “teaching points” Wright had to make with Reynolds and Fisher, holding them out for the first 4:00 and 4:30 respectively, was a bad omen.
Hopefully they’ll pull it out, but it sure doesn’t inspire confidence that they will last much longer.
Man did Nova get lucky to get that game to overtime… the officiating the last four minutes was horrific with Reynolds pushing defenders off with his off hand and flopping and flailing all over getting one call after another… good luck winning another game.. it aint happening my friends
Chuck – Save the hating. I am pretty sure their first round game was just like this last year and didn’t they make the Final Four? Calm down.
http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/john_canzano/index.ssf/2010/03/canzano_vulcans_are_hovering_a.html
Talks about Pritchard possibly being fired.
Pritchard is not an Ed..
tk76– I am glad you brought that up. That is certainly a backup plan in the fold.
GO SIXERS!! (FOR BETTER AND WORSE (But mostly better!)!!
I had Tom Penn as a possible GM replacement in my “fix the Sixers post” even before all this nonsense started in Portland.
Unfortunately (IMO) returning seems more likely based on reports:
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/sixerville/Jordan_Wants_Brown_To_Stay_But____.html
With LB, when there is smoke there almost always is fire.
Peter Vecsey Sixers rumors.
Greg Monroe said he was returning for his senior year. Then his coach said don’t take much out of it because he was asked after he lost an NCAA tourney game.
Huh?
Does that mean the coach knows what Monroe is or should do already?
I would think Philly would be one of the least desirable NBA jobs right now. Especially if Stefanski (a lame duck) is making the hire. This franchise has been a killing field for head coaches.
This would change dramatically if the Sixers win the lottery- but that is a looking extremely unlikely IMO.
Not that big a fan of Wright. Rather look elsewhere. Don’t think he’s proven that he would be successful at the next level but what do I know.