- All Star game should be between old guard and new guard.  Not sure where you’d draw the line, age or number of games played?  I’d love to see teammates play against each other, like Tony Parker trying to take on Ginobilli.

- About Stefansky’s “fantasy basketball” quote – one way to take it is that he has no imagination when it comes to trades.  OR, other GMs have become so conditioned to ripping off the Sixers in trades that when Stefansky proposes something that’s not lopsided in their favor it’s shot down instinctively; he has no choice but to defend the trade deadline inactivity somehow.

Isn’t the T-Mac-for-Vince discussions “fantasy basketball”?  How is Tom Moore’s Andre Miller for Turkoglu idea “fantasy basketball”, but the NJ-HOU proposed trade isn’t?  The “fantasy basketball” line is bulls—.

- Dannie, Pete: if he isn’t traded by the trade deadline, can I do a “guest post” defending Jason Smith?  Like I’ve said, I hate repeating myself, so I’d like to have my say once and then move on.  But it’s a pretty lengthy defense.

- The real reason the Sixers don’t have an All-Star, and won’t have one in the foreseeable future: they take turns scoring in the half-court game, and it’s hard for one player to amass a ton of a certain stat if a lot of your team’s offense comes from fastbreaks.  Andre Miller doesn’t lead the fastbreak every time – one time it will be Iggy, and another time it will be Willie, etc.  Same goes for the finishing of the break.  So Miller doesn’t accumulate all these assists, and it’s hard for one of our guys to get 30+.

So I don’t get why DiLeo was fluffing Iguodala up for the All-Star game – the Sixers are one of the few teams in the NBA that win as a group and lose as one.  When Thad has a bad game, someone else will pick up for his lack of output.  I don’t like that DiLeo put Iguodala above his teammates in that way, because it’s not like Iguodala shoulders most of the load for this team.

When you gameplan against the Sixers, you don’t focus on one particular player, because you could argue that this team is just a bunch of really, really good role players – can you argue with what Dannie said here (under “Looking at the Sixers Roster”)?  Coaches don’t come in here fearing Iguodala, or Andre Miller – they wanna put the brakes on our fastbreak game.

The real dunk contests each year:  …are in college. The NCAA dunk contest is shockingly underrated.  You take away all the stupid glamor glitz and spectacle of the NBA, and then take 6-8 guys that can usually jump through the friggin roof…no gimmicks, no costumes, just, as Dannie said, “The ball and the basket.”…and you have the NCAA dunk contest.  Usually has a handful of players everyone knows from benches or starting 5’s of major teams, and then another 3-4 from smaller schools most people aren’t aware of.   Very under-marketed, and always entertaining. 

Andre Iguodala’s dunks: I’m still pissed Nate Robinson’s stupid 80th try dunk won over Iggy.  I mean…damn.  That from behind the basket, off the backboard, self pass, raise it to his chin and THROWING IT DOWN dunk? We need some more of that.  Two of Iguodala’s dunks were jaw dropping 10/10’s that became more impressive on repeat watchings. 

Thad Young & aggression: The point about aggressiveness, for now, IS true.  You can’t “teach” to have cajones of steel in your genetics, and to take over a game…some people just have those genes, and Thad isnt one of them.  But I REALLY disagree with people saying you cannot learn to improve in this area. 

Some players are just flat out tentative and don’t know how to use their full arsenal yet, and take longer to blossom; some players have a psychological block that can be taken down; some players find a drive and hunger they never knew they had as their career takes off; etc, etc. 

Remember, people in Boston weren’t exactly raving about Joe Johnson’s ability to just put a team on his back and take over a game, and be a future top 3-4 dominant SG in the game…ditto in Phoenix, even when he started to look good.  The knock on him was that he had the talent but was soft, hesitant, didnt have the nuts, the fire, the will, etc.  Well, look at him now.  Danny Granger would be a more recent comparison…he’s gone from an undersized college PF to someone that is turning into a real killer with every game that goes by. 

The one trait that Thad Young possesses, which The Greek mentioned and I absolutely agree, is Thad’s DRIVE.  This kid has one of the best work ethics in the NBA.  He might not be hungry on the court yet, in the sense that he doesn’t yet 110% trusts his ability and wants to kill people out there…but he has a WILL to freaking IMPROVE that is top rate in the NBA.  You hear him in interviews…he is more of a professional at age 20 than many NBA guys are at age 27+. Poised, composed, just seems so dedicated to always improving and seems damn near like a workoholic.  He is not flashy, doesn’t care about style, and has a love and respect for the game most teams would kill for in a youngster. 

This kid is going to learn his craft at an alarmingly quick rate in off seasons…and when the skills are better in place, I have a feeling the “on the court” hunger is going to erupt.  High schoolers, freshman and soph’s that leave early tend to take 3-5 years to develop.  He is in year two, and IMO, has been impressive as hell.  Plenty of flaws, but he has the character and drive to work them out.