Between Pacers games
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Between Pacers games
At the Indianapolis Airport waiting for a return flight to Philly. And one of the few not wearing a Colts jersey.
Now that it's a few hours removed from last night's win over the Indiana Pacers, and now that there's some legitimate time to deconstruct the game and the game before it (that win over the Dallas Mavericks), let's attempt to do so.
The biggest thing about these two games was the lineup switch: In with Jrue Holiday and Elton Brand, out with Lou Williams and Thaddeus Young. This was a risky, mostly smart, dangerous move by Sixers coach Eddie Jordan. He alluded to the risk after the win over the Mavericks. The risk was losing Williams and Young -- forcing them to the bench and taking a chance on how they'll respond. This starting lineup is about as close to ideal as Jordan is going to get. Some people feel the starting backcourt should be Lou and Jrue (that opinion is held by me and, believe it or not, some others), while other folks feel the backcourt of Iverson and Jrue is ideal. There's not a huge difference in the pairings, only that Williams has a long-term contract with this team and earned the opportunity. But as for that opinion, we'll have to agree to disagree (just like Will Ferrell says in Anchorman) and move forward.
For anyone that watched the first few minutes of last night's game -- before Holiday went to the training room and got 12 stitches -- it was clear how effective the rookie is guarding the ball. Indiana's point guard Earl Watson couldn't go anywhere with Holiday guarding him. That's exactly why Jordan is starting Holiday. And it's helpful, almost like Holiday's playing defense for Iverson, too, because Watson couldn't even pass the ball with ease.
As for the move to re-insert Brand into the starting lineup ... as Brand said after the Dallas game: He's been playing well enough to start and he felt he deserved to start. Brand still seems a little frustrated at how Jordan has used him so far this year, always confused about starting vs. non-starting, playing in the fourth quarter vs. not playing in the fourth quarter. Even last night when he was sitting a chunk of the fourth quarter before Jordan re-inserted him, you could look at Brand and tell he was wondering if he might not check back in. With the way Brand was struggling in the first 20 games, it made sense to limit his minutes. With the way he's playing now (and 4 assists last night, what what), he deserves to play. And let's not overlook how Brand's play has taken a load of weight off Jordan's shoulders. He's making things much easier for Jordan because there's a guy to give the ball to and expect a score.
Jordan said something last night, before the game, about how the team has played 'decent' in the second third of the season. Let's say since that 12-game losing streak. Looking up the numbers, the team is 10-10, with a number of good wins and a number of really bad losses (Washington Wizards, Minnesota Timberwolves, Clippers, Knicks). That's what's making it tough to say they've turned a corner. If you looked at those 20 games and saw 8 wins over the teams they should have beaten and a couple of surprise, good wins, you'd really be sold that the team was back on track. You could look at tomorrow night's game against Indiana and be confident they'd win, then again at Milwaukee on Wednesday. Right now, it feels a little better, you'd be surprised if they lost tomorrow night, but until they put together a solid stretch of 10-15 games where this play is consistent (and maybe it started against Dallas), there's going to be some skepticism. And rightly so.
Last night, Conseco Fieldhouse puts media right along the baseline, about 10 feet from the Sixers bench. It's a nice view to try to understand how this team is reacting to Jordan, the game, everything. The lineup change is good, but it's still dangerous. You can tell from Williams, he's willing to let it roll as long as the team wins, but if it proves to just be a quick burst and then back to struggling, guys are not going to be pleased. The frustration is already there, and these two wins have brought the boil down, but in watching the bench last night, it's not far from the surface. When the Pacers cut the lead to 88-83 in the fourth quarter, you could see some guys sitting farther away from the huddle, towels over their heads.
Last night when Jordan removed Rodney Carney from the game in the second half (he played about 2 minutes, 30 seconds on the night), Carney walked about as slowly as you can to the bench, the look on his face was like why'd I even go in? His teammates watched him, some smiling. Maybe they knew the feeling.
Regardless, if this lineup continues to produce results, over a decent period of time, the Sixers have the talent to quickly pull themselves back into the playoff mix (not a difficult thing in the Eastern Conference). Here are some things to watch going forward.
1.) Brand's play. The Sixers have come to rely on getting him the ball on the block. He needs to continue to make that mid-range jump shot and be effective in his post-up moves. If he struggles, the Sixers half-court offense is going to become a lot of perimeter dribbling by Iverson and some difficult pull-up jumpers from the outside.
2.) The pick-and-roll defense. It must be said: The Sixers have improved significantly on this aspect of the defense. Opponents are struggling to get the ball quickly out of the guard's hands (because of the effective trap), limiting quick ball movement to the open shooter. It's not perfect. Last night the Pacers got about a dozen wide-open three pointers (and they missed too many to win the game), but they're having to work quite hard to get open shots. That wasn't the case earlier in the season.
3.) Andre Iguodala. He's become less and less involved in the offense recently. And while the Sixers don't need him to be the go-to guy all the time on the offense, you can tell Iguodala is frustrated. And while they don't need 20-plus points from him, they do need him for 40-plus minutes. He can't check out.
Time to board the flight; sorry for any grammatical mistakes. No time to proof read.
--Kate
The best thing here is if Elton Brand starts to light it up consistently. If so, Stefanski has to take advantage of it and move Elton along with either Lou or Thad and maybe a 2011 or 2012 #1 pick for an expiring salary. No team is taking Brand's salary / years by itself. And, let's not fool ourselves here. This team is nowhere close to the top echelon of teams / talent in the East (Boston, Cleveland, Orlando, Atlanta). The goal needs to be showcasing Elton Brand before the trade deadline; anything else is just fool's gold and sets the organization back even further in its quest to build a contender. If Stefanski cannot swing a deal to move Elton, then he should be replaced immediately. Quite frankly, Stefanski should be replaced either way.— Dean1- Dean1, I don't know what free agent you would expect to attract, and please don't tell me Bron, Wade or Bosh...more like what Detroit did with Villaneuva I suspect. Sixers have 3 big contracts - Elton, Sam and Andre. If I had the choice, I would keep Brand and Sam. Brand is only 30 and is the only Sixer who can defend AND score consistently AND draw double-teams. Sam and Holiday bring defense. Lou, Thad and Maurice give you "potential". Then I would try to trade for or sign the best scoring 2 or 3 I could get.— JBP
- Jrue and Iggy are the Sixers best two defenders. Problem is that Iggy thinks because he was the main guy on mediocre teams that makes him a superstar. A legitimate star shooting guard who plays "D" would help immensely. (Lance Stephenson?) Bringing Lou and Thad off the bench for energy seems right rather than starting them. Sam & Speights playing equal time at center works also. The lynchpin is Brand, if he can put up 20 & 10 consistently the Sixers will be good.— bsmart
- As long as it works, keep the same lineup. JBP: agree with you on who to move and who to get. Dean1: not sure that right now the Sixers are that far behind Atlanta and Orlando, both barely above .500 on the road. Obviously, Cleveland with James and the Celtics, with depth, are superior to them. If Jordan keeps the same starting lineup and tighter rotation, and if Brand and Iverson continue to play well as starters, then the Sixers are more dangerous than many posters give them credit for.— chuckw
- Dangerous now that's some funny stuff. Please don't win any more games, ping pong balls, ping pong balls and more ping pong balls!— paris4053
- Risky??! They have 15 wins. The only risk would have been NOT shaking up the lineup.— derrickwh
- Bsmart, I agree with your comments about Iguodala, and that he thinks of himself as better than he is. Even though Clarence Weatherspoon was a different kind of player, he too thought of himself as a superstar(which he wasn't) and the 76ers didn't get better until they moved Spoon. The Sixers should move Iguodala for a guy who is more skilled, even if he is less athletic, and who makes smarter decisions with the ball. When Iguodala, Green, and Williams have been on the floor at the same time, there have been a lot of turnovers, a lot of bad shots, and that has to change.— 76erfn
- Tired of hearing guys whining about starting. Total minutes, amount of time at the end of the game and total touches are important...but whether you start is not. The NBA guys have turned into a bunch of babies. They pout if they don't start. They complain about every call that goes against them on the court. They whine if they have to come out of the game. Can you imagine Bobby Jones or Kevin McHale saying that they are only willing to come off the bench if the team is winning...there will be trouble if the team is losing and they aren't in the starting line-up.— JimG
- JimG, you make a great point. Too many of the guys who whine about starting haven't heard, or absorbed, enough constructive criticism about their games; they've just been told how wonderful they are, and that their athleticism will be all that they will ever need to get a $50-$100 million contract. Even though they have won their last 2 games, the 76ers still need a roster shakeup, not just to address need areas or provide some cap flexibility, but also to let the players know that losing has consequences(besides just firing coach after coach).— 76erfn
- I agree with the lineup shakeup because you have to try somthing different I like the team as is no trades and im sorry paris4035 we dont need no ping pong balls the best lottery pick we had EVER came 14yrs ago an he is still the superstar he was back then (Ai) we need to win games there is no player in college that came make us better then we are now with wins over dallas,denver,boston and portland on the road we have a very good team that just need to put all the right players on the floor at the right time and we are gonna be in the playoffs and might beat somebody who knows anything is possable when Ai and Brand start playing good and Dre gets off that high horse he's on and realize if he were a superstar he would have gotten us out the first round! Kate you can say what you want about Ai but he took us to the playoffs and in the finals in his first five years here with BAD teams that makes you a superstar in this league i think Ai an Ai2 need to spend more time together and maybe what Ai got will rub off on him thats why he be looking like that when things arent going his way..Lou is going to be the man for us he just needs to do it weather a stater or coming off the bench. I love jru starting with Ai its like Esnow and Ai back together again but with a better jumper..OH yeah we gonna BEAT the LAKERS this Friday to...Go Sixers Ai for President!— cousindannyjr
- Iggy has all the demeanor of a super-star. He just isn't one, and his swagger can't make him one. Let him go, and let him take his skills with him. Remember this guy came to the Sixerss with a lable of a non-scorer. What makes him think he is a pure shooter or go to man? Yep, his false swagger.— starbird
- I like the starting lineup the Sixers had the last two game with AI, Holiday, Iggy, Brand, & Dalembert. This gives this team balance on both ends of the floor, with some good young role players to come in & get the job done when their numbers is called...Other than that i'd trade Lou (or W.Green) & Kapono immediately for Kings SG K.Martin or K.Hinrich maybe for size & stability at either guard position....Great article KATE, except for one thing!..."It's time to let our 2010 ALL-STAR GUARD..ALLEN THE ANSWER IVERSON OFF THE LEASH & GET OUT HIS WAY"!..& DIS "DA TRUTH"!..Happy New years to all..lol & go Sixers!— datruth
- Playoffs! You want the playoffs even though they won't win a game. It's all about championships, playoffs are just a step in the process, I'll take anybody out of college over these slugs!— paris4053
- Those who want to keep Elton Brand and his escalating contract in a declining cap environment have no clue about the NBA or its cap situation. Brand's cap number by 2013 will take over 30% of the Sixers' total cap space. Wake up...this team has no shot at competing with the top 4 teams in the East over a 7 game series. NO SHOT. And, it's not about getting a top free agent this offseason - that just won't happen no matter how favorable the situation. It's about clearing Brand's contract by the end of the 2011 season; with his contract gone, Sam, Willie, and Kapono set to expire, the Sixers have a real shot at making noise in the 2011 free agent market and have major cap flexibility to maneuver all different sorts of trade scenarios. And, they'll still have Iggs, Lou, Thad (if re-signed), Holiday, and Speights as the core. If Brand is kept until his contract runs out, this team is screwed until 2013 - zero cap flexibility and average talent.— Dean1
"""datruth I like the starting lineup the Sixers had the last two game with AI, Holiday, Iggy, Brand, & Dalembert. This gives this team balance on both ends of the floor"""Well said "datruth"AI has played with all but Elton and DRU---How about AI and Brand -at their peaks-instead of CW and the others--they seem to mesh real well-plus with AI a little hobbled-it gives-EB time to catch up.AI makes Sam much better.So will see if Ed tinkers with the lineup-Thad my feel bad that he is coming off the bench-but he woke up pretty quick.If i recall correctly-DeLeo said last year that no/not many sets/plays were called for THAD--HE IS AN OPPORTUNIST-and to come in against the other teams 2nd group-is a great thing-as he is as good or better then most of them.........Same with Lou- and i agree--he is treating Rodney like a yo-yo.— HO HUM
John Mitchell is in his second year covering the 76ers for the Inquirer after joining the paper in November 2011. He covered the Washington Wizards for the Washington Times from 1998 to 2008. He's also worked at the Philadelphia Tribune, the Wilmington News Journal, Courier-Post, Trenton Times and Elmira Star-Gazette.Born and raised in West Philadelphia - not too far from Will Smith - he graduated from Overbrook High School the same year the 76ers won their last championship. He's a proud graduate of Howard University and the proud father of two sons, Jared and Jordan.
ABOUT MARC NARDUCCI
Marc Narducci has served in a variety of roles with the Inquirer since beginning in 1983. He has covered the 76ers as a backup and a beat writer. In addition, Narducci has covered everything from the Super Bowl to the World Series and a lot in between. Narducci also has a true passion for South Jersey scholastic sports, which he has covered for many years.
