1/26 Vs. The Raptors

I'm going to leave out any entries that are not much more than play-by-play. For those that actually read this stuff, feel free to drop a line and give your opinion on the column, how it reads and how to improve it.

Pregame- First off, we can not lose three straight games to a team as poor as the Raptors. The Sixers have looked good lately, which makes me worry that they have one of their meltdowns in store tonight. The pregame show has the guys talking about Elton Brand, referring to him as Mr. Reliable, I am not so high on Elton at the moment. I was digging into the numbers in an attempt to support my theory that Brand disappears after the 1st quarter. Ultimately, Brand’s production dips in the middle of games which makes sense since his minutes also wane during the 2nd and 3rd quarters, but Elton is damn near nonexistent in the 4th quarter. Just 2.3 points per game in the fourth quarter for Brand, a distressing number considering how many tight contests the Sixers have been in, and how many of those they have lost.

1st Quarter-

12:00- Same starting lineup as always, I’m so sick of Hawes. What happened to him, where is the guy from the first half of December? Although what does it say about Mo Speights, that in spite of Hawes’ consistently disappointing play Mo can’t get himself into the starting five.

10:00- Iggy with a steal and a powerful dunk. If we’re going to make Iguodala into the NBA’s Darrelle Revis, then we should steal the nickname as well. Iguodala Island?

9:00- Jrue and Elton collide while trying to secure a rebound, Raptors regain possession. This game is being played very sloppily and with a very frantic pace.

6:00- The Sixers are flying these past few minutes. Hawes, Jrue, and Brand all with big dunks. In fact we aren’t doing much on offense aside from the handful of slams.

3:00- The Sixers look like shit. Aside from a few nice assists on those slam dunks, the team isn’t defending well or executing anything resembling an offensive play.

1:00- This game sucks, this is no fun to watch at all.

End of the 1st- Just a god awful quarter for the Sixers. After the great victory over Phoenix on Monday, they come out tonight with an absolute turd of a 1st quarter. Anyway, it stands 29-20, Toronto is up after 12 minutes.

2nd Quarter-

12:00- The Sixers have been pounding the front of the rim tonight, almost all of their misses have been short.

10:00- Jrue with a nice runner, ET to Mo for an easy 2, the Sixers look MUCH better, but I’m still going to be pissy.

9:00- Speights with an offensive rebound, and a three-point play on the putback! Iggy sets up Mo for 2 more, and Speights has 9 in less than 5 minutes.

7:00- Sixers are on a 13-2 run to open the quarter, and take the lead. Where was this team in the 1st quarter.

6:00- More for Mo Speights! 13 now! My boy looks crazy good! Btw, Brand's best quarter this season was good for 14 points. As long as I decided to rip on Brand, why let up now?

4:00- Speights with a pair of free throws, and then a putback. 17 points for Mo, all in this quarter!

3:00- I think the Raptors just had someone stab Mo Speights to slow him down. Mo off to the locker room to treat his bloody arm, not sure how that actually happened.

2:00- WTF? DeMar DeRozan has 15 points tonight. What is it about mediocre guards that torments this team? Put his ass on Iguodala Island!

1:00- A few good hard fouls by the Sixers, not all of them called, I love to see hard physical play like that. Brand shows his tough streak by flat out shoving a man aside with both hands to grab a board.

Halftime- Half ends tied up at 50-50.

3rd Quarter-

10:00- Jrue Holiday comes out shooting this half and now has 14 points.

8:00- Iguodala with a pair a baskets, one of them a badass dunk. Iguodala is now up to 13, which he has done with a mix a powerful dunks and a few long jumpers.

7:00- Now its Brand with back to back buckets, one of them after a sweet behind the back pass from Iggy at the top of the key down to Brand in the low post.

5:00- Iggy with a steal and he pushes up court into a possession that eventually ends with Hawes at the foul line. After Spencer hits 1 of 2, the Sixers are up 6. I feel like that lead should be bigger, I’m afraid this one could tighten up and then who knows how this one ends.

4:00- The Sixers are on a 9-0 run to push the lead up to 10, a pair of Lou Williams three pointers in the heart of that run.

2:00- Iggy with a strong rebound, that leads to another Lou three pointer, that makes it 78-68 Sixers.

End of 3rd Quarter- ET and Mo return and each hit a jumper. Turner with 4 points, Mo has 19. Lou and DeRozan both hit jumpers in the final 7 seconds to take us into the 4th quarter with the Sixers up 84-76.

4th Quarter-

12:00- Mo has 6 boards to go with the 19 points,, I’m rooting for a double-double. Lineup to start the 4th is Lou, ET, Mo, Thad, and Meeks.

10:00- ET is playing great right now, he has recently nailed a short jumper, threw an alley oop pass to Speights, and then ended up at the line for 2 free throws. 8 points for Turner.

9:00- DeRozan hit’s a jumper that gives him 27 points. Holy hell that’s an insane amount.

6:00- Mo now has 23 points and 9 boards, just one more and he’ll have his first double double of the season.

5:00- The Sixers are up 12, yet they miss back to back three point attempts. I’m not sure those are the shots you want to be shooting with your team up big.

4:00- Brand scores a deuce, I guess that takes care of him for the night since he only scores 2 points a game in the 4th.

3:00- Brand now with 14 points, including 4 in this quarter. I like Elton, but he has been held scoreless in 14 of 43 4th quarters so far this year. That's a third of the Sixers' games.

2:00- Raptors cut the lead to 8, and I can feel my butthole begin to pucker.

1:00- Jrue eases my fears. He gets his 11th assist, then picks Calderon’s pocket forcing a clear path foul. Great sequence by Jrue.

End of the 4th- ET just got punched in the face grabbing a board, but no matter since this game is over. What a great job by the Sixers, 1st quarter aside, they looked as good as they did against Phoenix. Doug Collins only used nine guys tonight, which isn't surprising given how well his reserves played. Speaking of, the Sixers reserves outplayed the starters for a second straight game, over the past two games the bench has scored 116 points in 211 minutes while the starters have given the team 96 points in 270 minutes. The Sixers are now 20-25, and are close to getting to .500. The next three games are certainly winnable, home against Memphis and Denver, and then a road game at the Nets. After that the Sixers would need to sweep a home-and-home with the Knicks and they would be back to .500, of course if that happens then they may even have the 6th seed.

48 in 48, or, more accurately 35 in the 35 they showed during the replay.

I had to work late tonight, so I avoided any news of the game and figured I could write this while I watched the replay at 11pm. I did pretty good, although one text weaseled through my defenses at 8:48, it read “Sorry, but… TURNER!!!” from my buddy Tim who knew I was avoiding the results. I wonder what happens in the late 3rd/early 4th, I guess we’ll see. I will admit it actually makes me excited for this one, since it appears Turner is about to have a big game.


Pregame thoughts- I’ve been very down on Hawes, but he needs to play some semblance of defense if we’re going to stop Howard. Personally, I prefer that we run the ball right at Howard and try to get him in foul trouble early.

1st Quarter-

12:00- The usual starting five for the Sixers. Why doesn’t Gilbert start for Orlando? I liked the trades they made because they got Gilbert, a scorer with some balls. Its weird he comes off the bench, but the again the Magic have been playing great, so I guess its working.

11:00- Brand with a couple of quick bricks, which is unusual for him. Elton typically comes out in an early rhythm.

10:00- Dwight Howard just bulls right through Elton Brand for 2. That is a bit of a mismatch, we might want to avoid that switch in the future.

9:00- Iggy with a great lob pass to Hawes. Alley-oops are for pussies, a real man, Hawes in this case, catches, lands, then dunks.

8:00- Jodie Meeks is 0 for 2 early, Elton Brand 0 for 2 early, Sixers have just 2 points through 4 minutes.

7:00- Hedo with a monster dunk, and the Magic are up 8-2. Surprised that Collins didn’t call a timeout there.

6:00- Ugh, this has been terrible game, I can’t believe I waited all night for this crapfest. 2 points for the Sixers in 5 and a half minutes. Lou checks in, lets try and get him the ball fellas. Btw, crapfest is not a recognized word by Microsoft Word.

5:00- Jrue for 3! The shot rattles around and it hit the rim four or so times before falling. That is about the third or fourth straight game which Jrue’s had a three like that. Btw, what ever happened to Jrue stealing the dribbling under the basket without looking up play that he stole from Nash? We play Phoenix next week, I hope he remembers it watching Nash and puts it back in his repertoire.

4:00- ET in, somehow the Sixers are only down one, despite looking like utter horseshit thus far.

3:00- ET with a rebound and a beautiful outlet pass to Lou, Williams gets hacked and heads to the line. He makes the first to give the Sixers double digits, and the second shot falls to give the Sixers the lead.

2:00- Second foul on Brand, he sits down for Thad Young. And a second foul on Hawes, here comes… Battie? WTF? Put Mo in there. Speights better see some time once Howard goes to the bench for rest.

1:00- ET for 3? Hell yeah, kid. Now a foul is called on Battie, we’d better pace ourselves or else ET is going to end up having to play center tonight. Ugh, a stupid second foul on Holiday.

End of 1st- ET with a drive, and he gets to the line. (10 FT a game is our goal for Turner) Last possession….LOU! STOP DRIBBLING! Well the Magic had us scouted because they doubled Lou Williams when he started to move in for his long jumper at the buzzer, so Lou kicked it to ET for a rushed long three-point attempt.

AHHH!!! WTF????


Due to time constraints we’re rejoining the action with 7minutes left in the 3rd quarter. This is gay.

3rd quarter-

6:00- Hawes gets his 4th foul.

5:00- Lou dribbles out the shot clock, turnover by the Sixers. Great play by Battie on the next trip down the court, with just two seconds on the shot clock Battie pumped and got Howard in the air, then drew the foul which is Howard’s 4th.

4:00- Sweet ass reverse by ET! He has 8 points and 7 rebounds so far.

3:00- Baseline dunk for Turner! Lou then drives for two on a lay-up. The magic have ZERO inside defense with Howard on the bench. Big hustle play by Jrue diving on a ball ET poked free.

2:00- ET is guarding Orlando PF Ryan Anderson, nobody is guarding Jameer Nelson apparently as he walks down the lane for an easy 2.

1:00- Lou and Jrue with back to back lay-ups. Btw, Orlando is going to get bounced in the playoffs quickly if this is their defense without Howard, they might be a tough match-up for Miami, but I think Atlanta and especially Boston could eliminate them. Even New York in the first round if Amare can get Howard to the bench early.

End of 3rd- Another easy lay-up by Nelson is answered by a Thaddeus Young lay-up on the other end, and now I’m told Thad is 6 for 6, although I didn’t see the first 5. And Lou Williams WASTES THE FINAL POSSESSION by jacking a 30-foot jumper. This is like some bad joke, every game with these terrible buzzer beaters.

4th Quarter-

12:00- Are we really up 7? That’s nuts, although we tend to melt down in the 4th on the road, so we’ll see. The quarter starts with Mo Speights drawing the foul by smacking Howard right in the elbow with his face twice! Come on Mo, you gotta be smarter than that! ET commits another foul, making it 2 in the first 15 seconds of the quarter, I have a hunch this may end up costing the Sixers later in this 4th quarter.

11:00- Thad with a bucket, he’s now 7 for 7.

10:00- 5 quick points for Ryan Anderson, the lead is cut to 3. Wait, a dunk by J-Rich makes it just 1.

9:00- Mo fouls Howard, and the lead is gone. The Sixers then blow a 3 on 1 fastbreak.

8:00- Jrue gets Howard to commit foul #5. Howard to the bench! Sixers are up 1, and Jrue is sniffing at a triple-double.

7:00- I was about to start bitching about Iggy not playing offense, but there he goes with a bucket. Which the announcers tell me is his first.

6:00- Ryan Anderson, or “White Jordan” as I think we should start calling him based on tonight, now has 20 points. Back to back turnovers by Philly.

***Quick note: Why do the cable listings say this goes until 1:00am, its 12:10 and there’s only half a quarter left. Is OT coming? It better be, because If they cut a quarter and a half so they could fit in the post-game show I’ll be pissed.

5:00- Brand gets his 5th foul, and Lou pushes the team’s consecutive turnover streak to 3.

4:00- Brand and Howard are both playing with 5 fouls. Everybody go attack Howard!

3:00- And now the cable has gone all Sopranos. Ugh, I’m gonna flick as long as CN8 is broken.

3:00- We are back from technical difficulties, the score is Magic 82- Sixers 80, Brand has fouled out, and there is 2:40 to go.

2:00- Wow! Jrue ties it up with a tough baseline jumpshot.

1:00- And now Jrue gives the Sixers the lead, a beautiful floater there by Holiday, Hedo quickly ties the game back up.

End of 4th- Iggy takes the lead back! Howard fouls out! And a Tech! (Sorry for all the exclamation points, but this is pretty exciting) Uh-oh, Lou is in dribble mode… Iggy gets the ball and gets to the line. The Sixers are up 5 with 28.6 left on the clock. How is OT possible? We’re not gonna win, are we? Redick blows by Lou for an easy lay-up. Lou hit’\s a foul shot, and the lead is 4 with 21.8 to go. How can this go to OT? Oh, because of a mother-fucking four point play!!!!!!!! I am angry, and think I want to mock Iguodala’s claim that he is the best defender in the league after that four-point play. There is time for a final play, but you already know what play the Sixers run. I do have a few comments on Lou’s barely missed three pointer at the buzzer.

1. Why a three pointer, the game is tied.
2. There were four seconds left when you shot and your defender was in the air, drive the damn ball!
3. Or lean into the guy, that’s Lou’s move for crying out loud!
4. Why the fade on that shot? Is it because you don’t want to make Sportscenter unless you can look badass doing it?
5. How did that shot (flawed as it was) not fall? That ball hit the rim three times, and then rolled in and out. Damn that was close.

So after White Jordan misses a desperation three, we are heading to overtime.

Overtime-

5:00- Thad is taking the jumpball, where is Mo at? We have a tiny line-up out there.

4:00- Iggy airball, Bass misses too, no score for the first minute.

3:00- Redick with another lay-up, maybe he should be White Jordan instead. Iggy comes back and ties it up, but a Nelson 3 breaks that tie.

2:00- Brilliant play here by Iggy. First a vicious dunk, then nice help D on Bass who was bullying the smaller Young by the basket, then Iggy grabs the board, and finishes this mini-run by dropping a jumper! Wow!

1:00- That was the Magic’s second, yes second, four point play of the game, this time by new white Jordan, JJ Redick. I have written a haiku to hoping poetry can channel my rage after that play:

Fucking four point play?
Oh my God, not another
Fucking four point play.

End of the OT- An ugly, but effective play cuts the lead to 1. The Sixers will have the final possession….Iggy drives, but it rolls in and out, ET grabs the board and chucks up an ugly shot that misses! How is that not a foul???!!!?? That’s it, Sixers lose. Damn it.

Sixer Player Power Rankings

New idea, every Monday I’m going to post Power Rankings for the Sixers roster. It will take the whole season into account, but recent play will be the most important factor.


1. Elton Brand- The vet has been the most productive and consistent player on the team. Brand is healthy (finally, I should probably go knock on wood) this season and his play has been tremendous. Brand has already posted 14 double doubles this season, something he only did 17 times the two injury-plagued seasons previous. Brand is playing so well, he may actually be tradable if the team decides to go in that direction. Although, if the team is serious about making a playoff push, trading Brand will probably derail your playoff hopes.

2. Lou Williams- Before this season I did not have a very high opinion of Lou Williams, but his play has been great so far this year. Lou’s game is built around scoring the basketball, and his per 36 minute averages of 20.4 points and 5.4 assists are tremendous. Lou is the most aggressive Sixer on offense by far, and somehow leads the team in free throw attempts despite only playing 22.5 minutes per game. Lou gets to the line by both attacking the rim, and with his uncanny ability to draws contact while taking jumpers. If he could teach our other guards to draw contact like he does he would be the team’s MVP. A little of Lou’s swagger is exactly what Jrue and ET need to advance their games.

3. Jrue Holiday- The youngest player on the 76ers might be their best by years end. Jrue’s numbers continue to rise, in six January games he has averaged 16.8 points and 7.3 assists. The only regret is that his turnovers are going up as well. Jrue needs to do a better job of taking care of the basketball before he or the team can get to the next level. It also would be nice to see Jrue take a page from Lou Williams and get to the line more often. I do realize that I just wrote that Jrue needs to be more careful and more aggressive in back-to-back sentences, but if Jrue will ever become a star in this league then that is the case.

4. Thad Young- I guess it explains why this team struggles so much when two of the teams’ four best players are coming off the bench. That’s not Thaddeus Young’s fault. Thad has been great so far this season, and he ranks 9th overall in FG%. Thad has some nice per 36 numbers, racking up 16.4 points and 7 rebounds. Thad and Lou both probably have earned more minutes with their play. While Lou’s can come at Jodie Meeks’ expense, with Iggy’s return from the DL Thad may actually be looking at less minutes.

5. Andre Iguodala- Iggy has missed significant playing with injury for the first time in his career this season, in fact this is only the second time in seven seasons that Dre won’t play and start all 82 games. Andre’s time on the DL is the only reason that he isn’t at the top of the list. Iggy is an all-world defender, a versatile offensive player, and the team’s emotional leader. Andre doesn’t fit the classic mold of a team’s best player, because he isn’t a high volume scorer, but he is, in fact, the 76ers best player.

6. (Tie) Mo Speights and Spencer Hawes- Both guys are good offensive players and weak defenders. That separation is much more exaggerated with Mo, who is a very nice offensive player. Speights however commits too many fouls, and doesn’t play quality man or help defense. Hawes is more balanced, but isn’t exactly Bill Russell on the defensive end. Combined they form a league average center, their combined numbers per game: 33 mins, 12.4 pts, 9 rebs, 2 asts, .4 stls, 1.1 blks, 2 to’s, 4.5 fls, with 48.2% shooting.
Those number would put our center combo in the top 10 of all the offensive categories among centers, and in the bottom half of all centers in the defensive columns.

8. Evan Turner- I like ET, despite his offensive struggles he has continued to plug away, and now is a part of the defensive rotation late in games. ET needs to continue to grow his offensive game, and the best way to consistently score would be to, like Jrue, get to the line more often.

9. Jodie Meeks- Jodie’s ability to shoot from the outside gave him, pardon the pun, a shot at joining the starting lineup. Since then, Jodie has taken the chance and done a nice job with it. Jodie is in a tough spot since he is the team’s 4th best guard, and probably doesn’t fit into the team’s long term plans, unless they dump Lou for some reason and he assumes the role of third guard.

10. Andres Nocioni- My son’s favorite player rounds out our top 10. Nocioni plays hard, defends with vigor, and will occasionally knock down a few threes for you. He is not a star, but a nice piece off the bench, even if Doug Collins seems to play him a bit too much for my tastes.

No need to go any further, Happy Martin Luther King day everybody, I’ll be back Tuesday with Sixers-Bobcats.

So that happened....

A couple of thoughts:

1. Oh, you don't know American Sign Language? Well Iggy just said, "Shut the fuck up rookie, don't make excuses when you turn the ball over."

2. Andre Iguodala is the leader of this team, without question.

3. How disliked is Evan Turner? How much whining does this guy do? There's no way Iggy hits him in the chest if this is a first or second offense. ET might be a perpetual whiner.

4. This makes me wonder about ET's personality. There were reports of him not getting along with teammates right away at Ohio State that gave you pause, but this makes me think he doesn't have many friends yet at the pro level either. ET may be the Larry David of pro basketballers; extremely talented, but struggles with interpersonal relationships and frequently pisses off the people he is supposed to work with. He shouldn't have said anything to Hawes should've just given him the eye...
GIFSoup

The Blueprint

The 76ers suffered their worst loss of the season Wednesday night, falling to the lowly Toronto Raptors at home. If the Sixers are unable to handle the Raptors at home, then I think we can agree they are incapable of winning 30 games this year. A return to the lottery is not necessarily a bad thing, it is a chance for your team to add a piece that can get them into contention in the future. The future for this team could be a bright one if the team can makes the right front-office decisions, the problem with that notion is that there are a ton of options and enigmas associated with the current roster. What members of this rosters are building blocks, which are trade chips, which are deadwood to be excised? What can we hope for in the upcoming draft, should we jettison that pick now in an attempt to sweeten a trade proposal? The team has 14 players under contract and a top-5 lotto pick looming, lets break down how they all fit in the 76ers future plans. The Blueprint


The Keepers:
The one thing about a team that is on pace to win 16 games, is that there probably isn’t a ton of sure fire, can’t miss type guys that need to be retained in order to become a contender. By my count there are only 2.

Jrue Holiday PG: I am very high on Jrue Holiday, and while he still commits too many turnovers, he is definitely a special player and a keeper. Since a shaky start, Jrue has come on to average 16 points and 9 assists in the month of November. Jrue is very young at 20, so you can expect that he will mature both mentally and physically. The physical maturity is especially exciting, because as his 6’4” frame fills out over the next few years Jrue will become a monster of a point guard that can abuse other points with his size. Jrue could become a Deron Williams type mismatch for smaller guards if things go the right way for him. His keeper status shouldn’t be a surprise, and I wouldn’t move him unless I was getting one of the top 5 point guards in return (Rose, Rondo, Wall, Paul, and Deron.)

Evan Turner SG: The number two pick in the 2010 drat is a keeper for obvious reasons. Turner is young, big, smart, and hustles on the court. Turner needs to develop a scoring touch in order to become an all-star, but you can expect him to have a long successful NBA career. Turner leads all guards in rebounding, snatching nearly 7 per contest. That type of production on the boards is going to lead to Turner dropping triple-doubles on his opponents several times a year. Also, with Turner and Holiday the 76ers will have the biggest backcourt in basketball, which if the frontcourt is ever properly developed could help the Sixers become an elite defensive team, which all champions must be.

I hesitate to say the Sixers have to keep anybody else, not that there isn’t talent, but everybody else on the roster has questions about their skills, position, age, or money. Turner and Jrue are young, big, talented, and cheap (for now) everybody else is lacking in one of the areas if not several. The majority of the roster can be debated about, so before we get there, lets cover the guys who can go away without affecting the future.

The Deadwood:
Nothing personal here, this section is simply the guys who have limitations based on age/ money/ skill that don’t fit into any possible future plans for the Sixers.

Jason Kapono SF, Tony Battie C, Darius Songaila PF: Three vets in the final years of their contract who are either past their prime, or never really had a prime. (looking your way, Darius) These guy can be dumped and they wouldn’t be missed, although it should be noted that Kapono and Songaila make a combined $11.4 million, so although they are not a part of the future they still could be considered assets as they could end up being used to acquire talent in a trade.

Andres Nocioni SF: Andres is a good player, but he is about to turn 31 on November 30, so to count on him to contribute two or three years from now would be foolish. Andres also is a little overpaid for my tastes, so I’d prefer they trade him now rather than let him walk away after playing out his contract. I believe at the trade deadline a contender will absolutely pick up a scrappy SF who can shoot a little and defend. Also, and I’ll cover this later, Craig Brackins is a raw 6’10” SF who can shoot and was drafted in 21st overall in the 2010 draft, let’s clear out guys like Kapono and Nocioni and see what the kid has.

Elton Brand PF: I am not by any means a Brand hater, but Elton will be 34 when his contract ends in the summer of 2013, and at that point it will be near over for the former all-star. Elton is certainly overpaid, so if an opportunity to trade Brand comes along I’d jump at it. Trading Brand may seem like a long-shot now, but Brand has been giving you quality minutes, and with a lockout looming the team that acquires Brand this year may get to skip next season and then have Elton as a big ol’ expiring contract. In theory, this means Brand contributes 25 or so bench minutes to a contender this year, then becomes a trade chip again after not getting paid for 2011-12.


The Maybes:
Here is where it gets difficult, lose the wrong guys and you end up with a roster full of holes, but sign the wrong guy for too much money and you end up crippling your franchise for years. (I am extremely proud that I wrote that previous line without stopping and swearing about Billy King, Willie Green, Sam Dalembert, or Elton Brand.)

Craig Brackins SF, Jodie Meeks SG: These two are linked for obvious reasons, they both have potential to be successful rotation guys, but they both need to be given minutes to determine if they fit in with the future. Jodie was a talented scorer in college and could end up as the third guard in the Sixers rotation behind Jrue and Evan one day. Meeks’ ability to shoot from three-point range and get points in bunches will determine if he ends up as a role player or as the Sixers sixth man of the future. Brackins on the other hand is blocked by Iggy, Nocioni, and Kapono, so he won’t see minutes this season unless moves are made. Brackins is 6‘10“, which means if he ever develops into a starter it would give the Sixers another oversized player to go with their giant backcourt. He also has nice range and shoots well from outside, which will be required since he probably will get his minutes at Kapono and Nocioni’s expense and they are among our best outside shooters. Brackins needs to be more aggressive defensively to make it in the league, being tall just isn’t enough at the pro level. Still, when he was acquired from the Hornets he was regarded as the player with the highest ceiling involved in that deal.

Marreese Speights C/PF, Thaddeus Young F: This pair is linked based on the fact that both players have looked tremendous for stretches and then lost for even longer stretches. Young seems to be finding a groove lately as a reserve, and sits in the top 10 in FG percentage. Thaddeus was horrendous in 2009-10 under Eddie Jordan and appears to be on the way back to relevance under new coach Doug Collins. At just 22, it seems like there is a lot of room for Thaddeus to grow, but I can’t call him a keeper because of his financial situation. Young will be a restricted free agent after the season, and I feel like it may end up in the teams best interests to let him go. Amir Johnson, an inferior PF, just got a 5 year $35 million contract from Toronto, which kind of sets the minimum Thaddeus could get offered on the open market. Now if a team had stars to build around I’d be ok with paying Thaddeus that kind of money, but to do it and hamper your ability to fill needs seems counter productive. Let’s not forget that Thaddeus doesn’t shoot well enough to be the starting 3 next to Turner, and he doesn’t have the body to be a starting 4. You can not pay a man without a position that kind of money unless you already have stars to build around. Ultimately I need more time to determine what to do with Thaddeus, if the Sixers end up at the top of the lottery and end up drafting somebody who projects as a star, then I am more likely to keep Thad around as a backup. If they don’t get a top pick, I think you may have to let him go in an attempt to get under the cap once Brand’s deal expires in 2013 so we can land a star via free agency. I feel Speights deserves a similar holding pattern. Marreese is signed through 2012, so we have time to figure out what he can do in the league, but I can’t commit any type of big money to him unless I have my superstar-type centerpiece in place.

Spencer Hawes C: How does a 22-Year old, 7’1” center with shooting range nearly end up in the deadwood category? Hawes is big and young which I love, but he just doesn’t produce. Hawes doesn’t score a ton (just 8.6 points per game for his career), he can’t rebound (5.4 rpg), and his defense is suspect. On top of it all the Kings traded him for Sam Dalembert, which says more about his potential then anything I could write. Still, he is 7 feet tall and you can‘t teach size, or underestimate its value. There are 70 games left this year for the big guy to show something, if there’s any hope there I say keep him around with a two or three year deal and see if anything develops. Just remember to keep it cheap, we overspent on Dalembert waiting for him to develop and it never happened.

Lou Williams G: I like Lou a lot, and he is way too good and affordable to go in the deadwood category, but I’m not sure he fits as a long term option. First of all, Lou is blocked from big minutes by your two best young players in Jrue and Evan. The fact that he is undersized is ok, because he has a big PG next to him in Holiday. I just think I’d rather trade Lou to somebody that needs bench scoring and try get shooting/youth/picks. I also wouldn’t mind seeing Jodie Meeks get more minutes, but Lou’s presence blocks that from happening. The timing of Lou’s contract also doesn’t help, it expires after 2012-13, just as you expect to be turning the corner, so if Lou is going to be around when you are good then its going to be a much higher price tag, losing a lot of Williams’ appeal to me. This isn’t a knock on Lou, I just think if you can get a young big, a sniper, or a high pick for him, it is something you need to move on.

Andre Iguodala SG/SF: The sentiment seems to be that we should dump Iggy just to get his contract off the books, and I have to disagree. Trade offers like Iggy for Peja Stojakovic, or Iggy for Tayshaun Prince have been floated around, but I don’t see the logic. Why get worse now without gaining any long-term assets? I think Iggy should only be traded if it brings back a long term piece, ideally a young big man. For example, I’m ok with the Prince deal if the Pistons include Greg Monroe, the young center they drafted this spring. I’d also be thrilled if they could revive the talks of a three team deal centered on Iguodala, Carmelo, and Favors. (Especially if we could also get sharp shooter Anthony Morrow from NJ) It seems to be forgotten sometimes that Iguodala is a dynamic player miscast as the centerpiece of a team. What we really need is a superstar to lead the team, because Iguodala could absolutely be the second best player on a contender. So I say keep him and see where the draft takes you, maybe you end up with a quality big man for Iggy to partner with. Then again, maybe you end up with North Carolina’s Harrison Barnes, and Iggy really does have to go.

So what’s the blueprint?
Ultimately, the plan has to be an effort to free up money and to stockpile draft picks in hopes of landing a true #1 superstar. You do not win championships without a legitimate superstar (except Detroit) so acquiring that player is the top priority. Maybe you can draft one, Harrison Barnes has all the buzz currently among the college kids. Maybe you can shed salary and sign one from somebody else, my dream would be Dwight Howard in summer of 2012, but that’s the longest of long shots. Dwight aside, you do need a strong big man to compete in this league, and I‘d give a long look at Tyson Chandler, Kendrick Perkins and Yao Ming this off season. I would listen to offers for anybody other than Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner, I would give Hawes, Meeks, and Brackins more minutes and see what these guys can give us long term. I would refuse to give out any contract that commits big money past the expiration of Brand’s current deal, except for locking up the backcourt.

Ultimately the biggest tool needed for a Sixers resurgence is patience. We need to avoid being overaggressive in the trade market, so we can maximize the return we get on our assets. We need to see what our young players can really bring to the table, but we can‘t spend too much to keep role players or we‘ll paint ourselves into a corner. First and foremost, we have to be focused on attaining that true superstar and leader, so attaining cap space and high draft picks are definitely the priority.