This Is The Game
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This Is The Game
If the 76ers want want to avoid the following: 1.) An 0-7 finish to the season, 2.) The 7th playoff spot, 3.) Fan frustration ... tonight's game against the Toronto Raptors is a must-win.
After tonight, there are two games left: a back-to-back against the Boston Celtics (thought to be the return of Kevin Garnett) and at the Cleveland Cavaliers (who will be going for a 40-1 home record since they're beating the Celtics today). Those are long odds.
Here's how the playoff picture looks (after the first four teams): 5. Miami Heat, 6. Sixers (1 game back of Miami). 7. Chicago Bulls (1/2 game back of Sixers) 8.) Detroit Pistons (1 game back of Bulls). But the Heat own the tiebreaker (conference record) over the Sixers, so technically the Sixers are two games back of the Heat. Chicago has the Pistons tomorrow and the Raptors on Wednesday.
If the Sixers finish in 6th, they will play the Orlando Magic. If they finish in 7th, they will play the Boston Celtics.
All right, with the number logistics out of the way, let's look at this game. Sixers (40-39) vs. the Raptors (30-49). There is no excuse to lose this game. The Raptors are the second to worst team in the Eastern Conference with pretty much nothing for which to play. The Sixers aren't on a back-to-back, they didn't practice yesterday, they should be rested.
Here are a couple of things that might come into play:
1.) Toronto's outside shooting: In the opening game of the season, a Toronto win at the Wachovia Center, Jason K. made too many outside shots. And considering the Sixers have been leaving shooters all season, and especially of late (39 three-pointers allowed in this 0-4 stretch) they need to be focused on limiting open shots. Toronto shoots 37.4 percent from three, compared to 31.8 percent for the Sixers. The Sixers try to close the gap with extra free throws, but recently have left a lot of points on the board from the free throw line. Tonight they need a combination of stronger three-point defense and solid free throw shooting. Nothing spectacular: limit Toronto to around five threes, and make 75 percent of their free throws.
2.) Andre Miller. His assists have been down during this 0-4 stretch. That might be because of Thaddeus Young's absence, because he might be trying to do more of the scoring. That makes sense. If he has 7-plus assists, that would mean some of the role players -- Willie Green, Marreese Speights, etc -- are involved.
3.) The mental thing. I just spoke to Miller and he said tonight's game is the most important of the season. The Sixers played well on Friday night against the Cavs, well enough that it should inspire some confidence for tonight's game. But a lot comes into play. Like I said earlier, you would think the Raptors have nothing for which to play. But it's their final home game, and if they have some self-respect, they would want to close the home season with a win. And with the Sixers, knowing the games they played before this one, and the two that remain, this game isn't tricky: You have to win it.
4.) Andre Iguodala. As always, this is his team. It's hard for this team to win if he isn't contributing in all the ways he usually contributes. And some shameless self promotion, if you haven't read it, this Sunday story: Iguodala Profile.
Should be an interesting game. If the Sixers can't win this game, there will be a lot of Sixers fans shaking their heads.
--Kate
p.s. 127: Your photo. FYI, I've been trying to post photos all the time, but there is this size limit and unless I lower the quality of the photo (I know, hard to believe my photos can become even lower quality), it won't upload. I took about 10 more, including one of the Air Canada Centre, but none of the files were small enough. So here is one of the Sixers locker room ... on 5 times zoom.
The Sixers actually might win these last two games because the games will mean nothing for the Celtics and probably nothing for the Cavs. Although I could see the Cavs second unit beating the Sixers for sure. This loss to the Raptors was horrible but really not surprising at all. Any team that penetrates and kicks gives them nightmares.— brannigan73- Like I have said before this team never laid down on Cheeks, so obviously part of the problem is Dileo, he is in way over his head, this team continually makes the same mistakes over & over again, they are learning nothing and getting no better. Before you bring in better players you must bring in a better coach, hopefully one with NBA experience, not women's bball in Germany !!!!!!— lalleva
- [RIP Harry Kalas. I left my tribute on the High Cheese blog.] doctorj: I was very much in favor of not trading Andre Miller this year because I was not ready to give up on the year, and he is the only pure point guard on the club. But as the year has progressed, I've become less enamored of his game, to the point that I think it would be better for them to go another direction next year. As you note, his inability to stop dribble penetration often starts the Sixers scrambling and trying to rotate, which they don't do well. It's really reminiscent of Iverson's last couple years here, though Miller does play better post defense. But what convinces me Miller is not the long term answer is his offensive game, believe it or not. He's a good post player - for a guard. He's a decent mid-range jump-shooter (around 41% on 2-point jump shots), but the Sixers' highest percentage play is Iguodala or Young finishing at the rim. But other than lobs (where Miller is the best in the game -- but how often does that come into play?), when does Miller ever set up his teammates to score in the halfcourt? When is the last time Miller penetrated and kicked, making a crisp pass to an open shooter? I can't remember more than 5 times the whole year when that happened. When Miller penetrates, he looks to set up himself, then throws it back out if he has no shot. Worse, his mindset on the break is too often "shoot first," even though Iguodala and Young are much better finishers. So, while Miller is more pass-oriented than Iverson (anyone would be), he's still not a classic point guard. For the next point guard, I'm thinking someone with the defense of Hinrich or the penetration/kick ability of Calderon (not that either of those two guys are available - I wouldn't know). One or the other would be an improvement over Miller, for this team as constructed. Thoughts?— Statman
- Statman, I've written basically that same post several times over the last couple days, only to delete it before posting because i didn't want to open the door to that before the season was over. But since the cat is out of the bag, I agree. Lord knows i would love to have Calderon here, but I'm not really into all the intricacies of NBA contracts. I will say that we need to draft either the best true point guard on the board, or failing that the best 3 point shooter. Steph curry figures to be in our range, as does Tyreke Evans, Jonny Flynn, & Eric Maynor. So we have some options there. Assuming no miller, that's a decent chunk of change to go out and sign someone as well. I don't claim to have answers, but the bottom line is we have some tough decisions to make at both guard positions, IMO.— K,M
- sad day for baseball yesterday with the passing of kalas and the bird. as for the sixers, the issue of what to do with miller has been around almost since the iverson trade. he has provided many positives during his tenure, but this season has shown his limitations for this particular sixers club. we certainly don't have a legit/traditional pg but it is time for a change. the question is where to find a replacement and it may not be in the draft if we don't make a move. i'm a huge syracuse fan and think flynn is an excellent college pg but am not convinced he will enjoy the same success in the nba. my draft philosophy (and i'm an nfl draftnik), is to take the best player available and work out other issues later. ultimately, good players should usually be able to mesh (see the celtics of the last two years)-and the same should be true for brand/iguodala/young/new pg.— 127sixer59
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.
