MUST BE DREAMING: TEMPLE IS 9-2?
Upon further review … the call stands.
Ed Stefanski, president and general manager of the 76ers, said today he had been in contact with Stu Jackson, the NBA’s executive vice president of basketball operations, to see if there was any grounds to protest the ending of yesterday’s 98-96 loss at New Jersey, which the Nets won on a 48-foot desperation heave by Devin Harris that beat the buzzer by the slimmest fraction of a second. The three-pointer - New Jersey’s 12th trey of the night - erased a 96-95 Sixer lead in about the time it takes to blink your eyes.
“Stu went through the procedure on such a call,” Stefanski said. “They went through the tape, freezing each frame, and (the shot) was taken within allowable limits. There was no clock malfunction. All three officials went over the replay and ruled the basket was good. They got it right. The ball was clearly out of his hands.”
Official Violet Palmer originally waved off the basket before lead referee Derrick Stafford brought Palmer and Pat Fraher together to look at the tape.
To satisfy himself that the league ruling was indeed correct, Stefanski got confirmation from two outside sources, both of which confirmed that Harris had let fly with under a tenth of a second remaining.
“We did it internally with Comcast (SportsNet) and they also confirmed (the ruling), as did ESPN, which did something we also took a look at. There was nothing more we could do with the league, no procedure we could take to protest the game and come out with a better conclusion that we did. All we can say is that the kid made a great shot to win the game.”
Sixers forward Elton Brand underwent successful surgery on the torn labrum in his right shoulder this afternoon.
The one-hour procedure was performed by Dr. Craig Morgan at the Christiana Surgery Center in Wilmington, Del.
Brand suffered a dislocated right shoulder against the Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 17. He will miss the rest of the season.
The 76ers insist the availability of Elton Brand tonight against the Indiana pacers remains a game-time decision, but . . .
ComcastSportsNet is reporting on its website that Brand will not play.
Clearly, both stances could turn out to be correct.
''We've said it's a game-time decision, and that's what it still is,'' Sixers spokesperson Mike Preston said. ''We have yet to get any further report.''
Brand, recovering from a dislocated right shoulder suffered Dec. 17, was unable to play in the second half of Tuesday night's loss to the Boston Celtics. He was on the court for 8:40 of the first half, wearing--for the first time--a brace that included a thick pad. He said afterward that he felt pain, that he felt restricted in his normal movement and felt it was ''a setback.''
Brand visited Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine during the team's morning shootaround today, then left for Wilmington, Del. where he was to be examined by Dr. Craig Morgan, his personal orthopedic surgeon; he was also expected to be examined by Dr. JacMcPhilemy, the team's orthopedic specialist.
At the same time, David Falk, Brand's agent, was scheduled to meet with Sixers president/general manager Ed Stefanski to help determine the best course of action. Brand has appeared in six games, all as a reserve, since missing 16. The major decision appears to be whether it is in the best interests of all parties for Brand to continue trying to play through this, or to take additional time to rest and rehabilitate the shoulder.
The 76ers shut Elton Brand down for the second half of last night's 100-99 loss to the Boston Celtics, but apparently not for any longer than that. At least not right now.
The power forward, recovering from a dislocated right shoulder suffered Dec. 17 against the Milwaukee Bucks, underwent a magnetic resonance imaging scan today, which the Sixers say showed that the injury is healing as expected. Brand is scheduled to visit Dr. Craig Morgan, his personal surgeon, tomorrow in Wilmington, De. He is being listed as day-to-day, but is expected to be available to play tomorrow night against the Indiana Pacers.
Although it would seem, from a layman's point of view, to make sense to give Brand more time to heal without the demands of practices and games, coach Tony DiLeo said ''We're not thinking about Elton shutting down or (that we) have to replace him somehow.''
''We're just going with our plan,'' DiLeo said. "I think we're close in the healing process.''
Brand played 8:40 of the first half against the Celtics, wearing a protective brace fortified by a thick pad. He said after the game that he felt pain and felt restricted, unable to fully straighten his arm to reach for rebounds or to naturally take shots. He termed it ''a setback.''
DiLeo today called in ''a natural process'' and said ''there's been no setback.''
Phil Jasner joined the staff of the Daily News in 1972. He has covered the 76ers and the NBA on a full-time basis since 1981. He won the 2004 Curt Gowdy Media Award, presented by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame for outstanding contributions to the sport during his career; he was a finalist for the award in 2001, when he also received a lifetime achievement award from the Professional Basketball Writers Association during the NBA Finals. He is a past president of the Professional Basketball Writers Association and the Philadelphia College Basketball Writers Association. Along the way, he has covered high school sports, the Big 5, the Eagles and the NFL, the World Football League, the North American Soccer League and what was then the Major Indoor Soccer League. He is a proud graduate of Temple University, and spent his early professional days at the Pottstown (Pa.) Mercury, Montgomery Newspapers (Fort Washington, Pa.), the Norristown (Pa.) Times-Herald and the Trentonian.
Bob Cooney has been at the Daily News for almost 20 years, working in the sports department the past 12 years. This is his first season on the Sixers beat. He has covered just about everything, but mostly college basketball, where he has been the La Salle beat writer for the past six seasons.
