Deep Sixer

Their style of out of control run and gun and push the ball lends itself to a lot of TOs, especially with this many young players.

Good teams won't let them get away with that kind of sloppiness.

Good blog, Marc.

The knee jerk answer is to say they won't make it, based on the schedule and how bad their record already is. But I was just looking again at the standings, and the thing is... the East really does suck.

Barring a collapse, Boston, Detroit, Orlando, Cleveland, Toronto, and Washington are in. When healthy, those 6 are head and shoulders above everyone else in the East.

That leaves 2 spots.

First let's make some eliminations. Miami, New York, and Charlotte have no chance. Milwaukee and Indiana? Both are sub .400 right now and 3-7 in their last 10. Milwaukee is dead last in defensive efficiency and Jermaine O'Neal looks like he's done for the year. I'm going to throw them out too.

That leaves NJ, Philly, Atlanta, and Chicago.

You'd probably give Atlanta some points for picking up Bibby even though they're just 1-3 since the trade. Chicago has a mess of a roster but they've made the playoffs the last few years and have a habit of playing better after the All-Star break. Who knows what NJ has once Harris comes back, but maybe they come together.

Or all of these teams could totally suck.

The most interesting thing about the rest of the year is that Philly plays NJ, Atlanta, and Chicago twice, which will have a big impact on playoff seeding.

Not sure if the Sixers will make it, but honestly... anything seems possible in this conference.

And thanks for getting us refocused here Marc.

The obvious question that nobody wants to consider is What does this team stand to gain from making the playoffs?

This would literally be a Rocky type scenario where a bunch of han and eggers are going up against Creed. The only difference here is that there is no Sly Stallone to write the script in favor of the Sixers.

In other sports, teams make the playoffs or the tournament, and they have a puncher's chance. Football and NCAAB - one game and you move on. Baseball, a hot team can make a run at any time. Hockey is so unpredictable that a hot goalie can take a team to the cup just about on his own. Pro basketball is the one sport where the playoffs will expose you.

Still say have a shot for the playoffs with 10 games left, those 10 games will show how the young guys handle pressure. then we can miss the playoffs and get a shot in the lottery, best of 2 worlds!!

In a playoff series I think the Sixers could beat Atlanta, Possibly Toronto...nah nevermind...Definately Washington or if the Bulls make it...Maybe compete with Boston and lose because they play such a tight halfcourt game...But Cleveland Orlando Toronto Boston because of their 3 point shooting would give us problems...Everybody else is fair game..And we will make the playoffs...

Detriot neither

If Bibby plays well they pass us. I think Chicago!s roster is way ahead of us in talent, what do you guys think?

Optimistically speaking the only teams I think we would have no chance of beating is Cleveland and Orlando

Be carefull what you wish for.Hugh, Last time we made the playoffs who benefitted the most?Can you say 10 million a year.Sammy DDDDD!!!

Chicago is scary because of that late trade...They definately have all of the horses..Hopefully it is too late for them to regroup...I'm not worried about Atlanta, they have a whole bunch of pieces that dont match and a coach that just seems lost...That Mike bibby trade for them wasnt all that good...They needed more of a distributor type point to make their effective enough for consistent cohesion

Zeru, lets not kid ourselves, come playoff time the defense intensifies; what team in the east is less equipped than us to play in a 1/2 court offense. The answer is [0]

all we need is memhet the turkish bath okur..andrew bogut and nazis...not muhahmmed just guys in SS uniforms...then a little dose of brandon haywood..BOOM confrence finals....im drinking the cool aid baby !!!!!!

Thats very true...I was hoping the refs would allow us to play our brand of basketball in the postseason...a big if...If not we get blown out by everyone

If so it will be the andre miller show...co-starring Iggy with Timely clutch shots

Marc,
First off, you are the best- this Blog and its interactive setup, is tops. Props again to ya.

And I appreciate your willingness to tackle 2 sides of every perspective. Am gonna go off on slight tangent, now. lol. Related though.

First, I think its premature, although understandably provoking, to micro-analyze each game yet- from a playoff implication standpoint. This is not the Varsity Conference, where ea gamr might matter. lol, But more, its too early in an inferior Conference. Who knows. With 10 games remaining, fine. These kids have no idea, and the experience only, is great.

Here is my question, and its disturbing how the Phila media has ignored it. Miami, on a Saturday nite, vs the Sixers, reportedly drew 20,000 fans to that game. I have lived there, and believe me, there are tons as many, if not many more options, to choose to do on a Sat night than go see your 9-55? Heat tangle the Sixers, regardless of seats prepaid.

So, the Question is- why is the media in Philly dodging the attendance fiasco issue? Its not as if the players are not disgusted by Phila fans non-attendance, either. Its the first observation made on NBA League Pass broadcasters visiting; "the place feels, sounds like a morgue, etc. Why cant the media address this?

Its also not as if visiting players, some of the FA variety, inquire" What the heck is wrong with these fans?"

Dont wanna hear the We need a Winner BS if the Heat, w 9 wins, can draw a full house against our Sixers. thats BS. Maybe the team oughta move to Boise!! lol

This is more serious than anything related to winning, or Iverson. What does the Inquire think?

And if Comcast, as Owner, impedes the Inquirer response, then shame on them. Better yet, sell the dang team

lol you are crazy man

No low post threat, no outside shooting, no go to guy, all young guys that won!t get any calls; I!M GETTING DEPRESSED, WHERE!S BILL WALTON WITH THE MAGIC MUSHROOMS!!!

If the Sixers do make it in, it will be as the 8th seed. Maybe the 7th.

That means hypothetical matchups against Toronto, Atlanta, etc. are just that... hypothetical.

It will be Boston or Detroit in the first round.

Which brings us to Hugh's point.

There's no way the Sixers beat Boston or Detroit in a 7 game series. Maybe they steal a game at home, but more likely they get swept.

On the plus side, a solid showing in the playoffs could increase some of the players' value (would love to see Dalembert average 15/15/3 against Boston, then get shipped out for something good).

But it's hard to get too excited about a playoff run.

Joshua, we had the best show in N.B.A. history with McGinnis and Erving and had trouble drawing.There are too many basketball options in the area. Does Miami U. draw at all. The Heat may be their only basketball fix.

Heck, reading this Blog's respondents, more than would expect, NOTHING would excite them. Not a nite with Jessica Alba, Simpson, et al. Are you all lobotimized or broke?

And u expect a FA to wanna come to PHILLY? Spoiked brat fans, it appears. Too many, that is, sickening

Zara., we talk about the playoff experience for the players, I wonder how Mo handles it. Would love to see him throw caution to the wind and play a small lineup and run, run, run.

Here"s a tip.

STOP LIVING IN THE PAST. GROW UP

U think MIA people ...never mind....MIA has options that u would not understand.

Philly is just a chitty sportfan town, full of excuses. Like Villanova is some sone gate attraction? U are nutz

Joshua, I don!t know if your from this area but we have knowledgeable basketball fans, not just N.B.A. but basketball in general.The tradition of the big 5 is probably greater than our pro team. If you were in this city in 2001 it was an unbelieveable experience, and we didn!t even win. If you want to call me spoiled, well I agree.Ived been spoiled by watching some of the greatest players ever.Wilt,Barkley,Doc, Andrew,Billy C. and many more. As far as free agents, if you think money and winning will not outway a few empty seats I think you are being a bit naive.

The Big 5 had juice when all games were played in the Palestra.

Next excuse, please. Whose next?

Most fans in Phully are pathetic. Where is Bill Walton, dammit? hah

Zeru will have to fill in. He at least is candid, and objective. And he and Frank Beans were entertaining.

GROW UP AND GO TO THE GAMES, WILL YA?

The attendence question is simple. The Heat probably sold out all of their games before the season. Fans were buying tix to see Shaq and DWade and the team that won the NBA title two years ago. I'm sure the announced attendence was 20K, not the actual attendence.

It's like down at the Wachovia Center on a Wedensday night when they announce the attendence at 14K, but there is more like 9K in the building. Paid attendence, not actual attendence is what is announced.

Heat had 20,000 bodies at the GAME. And, they go by choice, regardless of prepaid season tix. Lotta wealth there. They dont go unless they feel like going

Anyone else? 5 mins left.

whatthehell is back - I will take Zaza Pachullia too over Samuel Dalembert. Throw in Chris Wilcox.

I agree Zara - that would be a positive to making the playoffs - Sammy posts good numbers and he elevates his value for a trade - hopefully to a division team, so we can take advantage of his $10M deficiencies 4 times a year.

Joshua, The reason nobody is going to these games is because the fans in this city are not stupid, despite what I read on this blog from certain posters. They know not to waste their time and hard earned money with a team/organization like this who is trying to sell us Sam Dalembert and 3 young SFs who can't shoot (Iggy is coming around but he is still streaky at best). We are not enamored with a sloppy team who turns the ball over and misses open jump shots and has 2 quality wins this season. We know that the run and gun or whatever you want to call it is just a guise for a lack of talent. Athleticism is a part of the game, but basketball fans in this city know that you don't win championships with just athleticism. You have to develop a jump hook when you are 7 ft tall and get paid more money in one year than most of us will make in our lifetimes by far. We do not get impressed with a 40 point win over a NYK team that has the biggest compilation of malcontents and paycheck players ever assembled. I don't know about you guys, but I am not going to rally my friends together to head down to the Wachovia center to spend time in the corporate filled arena just so we can meet some Sixers dancers after a Sixers - Knicks game (by the way, the WORST marketing ploy of all time). I think we are better than this.

I was at the Indiana game on MLK day (free tix of course) and we made Kareem Rush look like Reggie Miller. There was no life in the arena - granted it was a 2pm game - but it was kind of sad. I counted and Willie Green took 4 shots (missed them all if I remember correctly) before he passed the ball in that game. I think that this city is one of the most basketball intelligent cities in the country. As one of the posters said a week or two ago - why go down and support Comcast even more for a crappy product. My cable/modem/phone are so overpriced and they take advantage of all the sports fans who want CSN because we love Philly sports.

Just a note, it sometimes helps in life to take a step back and look at things from a broader perspective.

Another excuse, Best one yet, but Hugh, all garbage.

No reason to keep this franchise in Philly. Fans are effed up, excuses are el wacko, this or that is wrong. NO FAs wull come, Plus say farewell to Iguodala.

Thats reality, which is hard to accept, yes.
Good nite, all. Sweet excuses to all.

NO WAY DO THEY MAKE IT!!!!

why are you guys explaining your self to this smuck ?????

I watch the miami game , there wasn"t 10 thousand in the stands !!!!!!!!

Are you a drunk fish? Whats a Smuck

Hugh, if you were the g.m., what would be your first 3 moves this summer. Realistic moves.

theres not enough beer in the ocean to get me drunk, a smuck is kind for a**hole

Hey Tuna, watch Beasley tonight.Another fish that got away. Playoffs?

Hey suede, watched your boy love the other night, lots of short coming, can't cover anyone, s l o w, plays below the rim, no range on his shot, he can pass though

if they get free tickets

We should be 10 to 12 at worst Tuna, I hope he!s there.He was off but came up big at the end.

Joshua - you are coming off as an elitist, spoiled brat who probably grew up in Gladwynne and went to private schools his whole life. Who exactly are you calling out?

I think we should meet up for the next Nets Sixers game at the center - me, you, Zeru, whatthehell and whoever else wants to support this team. We can get a guys' night out plan. I actually know one of the Sixers' dancers - maybe I can hook one of you guys up. I think we should continue to go down to watch the struggling Heat or Knicks whoever on a frigid Wednesday night to show our support instead of watching the dreck in HD on Comcast. I am going to listen to you guys from now on. I have finally seen the light. Sammy is well worth the $10M he is getting. We should continue to pay $100 for lower level tickets to watch a team who can't seem to develop any of its players. I will hope for a playoff run so we don't get in the lottery too. Also, Korver is an all-star in this league - we should not have moved him to free up room to get a multi-dimensional player in here. Billy King was a great draft guy and he gives great analysis on NBA TV. Am I missing anything else?

miller, j smith, and our 2 #1"s for beasley

Hugh, Joshua had to get to bed, Mr. Snider needs a ride early tommorow.

I!ll drive them to the airport Tuna. Mo better watch it .Sampsons available.

hugh, you got called out by a penna. dutchmen

As much as I regret saying it, Joshua is entirely correct. And every post I read supports what he says.

What happened here? Everyone has these excuses that sound like whining. It makes me sick.

ellen, get back in the kitchen

Ed!s whole family is on tonight.

Maybe you ought get a job. One day, you even might afford a Sixer ticket. You sound like another loser.

We returned from Bookbinders earlier. Ever heard of it?

Tuna, you are right by the way - I watched the game too - there wasn't 20K there - maybe 12 as you said.

Suede,

It really depends on how it all shakes out with the playoffs and restricted FAs and what Iguoadala and Lou Williams want. What I would have done was try to move Miller at the deadline and get some cap relief and future picks. I would let Lou Williams start the rest of the season at the point. I would like to see him in an increased role before we re-sign him. Since we didn't do that, it is going to be hard to sign a Josh Smith type, so I would (1) draft a PF who can score on the block with his back to the basket (Love, DJ White).
(2) look to move Sammy D for anything with less years - I would love to get Mike Miller, but I don't see Memphis taking Sam's contract in exchange for Miller and something. Sam's contract is a killer and will prevent us from signing any real stars for the next few years.
(3) look to add a Jamison type as a SF and move Thad to the bench - he is the perfect 6th man who could develop into an energy guy who can spell a PF or SF depending on who we are playing and who is in foul trouble, etc. - if we can't get a solid shooting wing man, we should keep the money for next year, where we will have Miller's expiring contract.

Another huge thing that we need is a real coaching staff who will develop some of these players. Unfortunately, Iverson's entertainment value kept him here too long and it hurt us because it was hard for young guys to get minutes and develop on the court as a result of his style of play.

We have been here 3 years and we cannot wait to get back to Seattle. Everyone here seems so miserable. And your teams are exciting but the fans are SO awful here.

Well, the job market is bad here too. God help all of you.

Hugh, Memphis started K.Brown at center the other night, they are not real happy with Milicic!s play. Not a big fan of his but he makes 3.5 less than Sam and a Sam/ Carney for Milicic/Miller may work for both teams. Seems they want Gay to be the man.And they probably won!t draft a center in the top 5 picks.

Was the bookbinder's comment directed at me? If so, very funny - but don't worry - I am employed. I am actually a grad of SJU where I watched many games coached by a guy who knows how to execute a half-court offense and set an effective screen.

Wow, a round of applause for Baby Huey. Gee wiz

Guess Hugh just got back from Red Lobster.
Ahahahaha

Suede, I like the trade but they will probably want us to take Cardinal in the deal - I would do it if we could give them Green.

They might go after a Thabeet from UCONN or Lopez from Stanford, but both guys are limited offensively but won't give them much different than Sammy - maybe they will do it and draft a PG like Rose or something.

By the way, I love Rose's game - he needs to improve his J, his shot is kind of ugly, but he has Jason Kidd like vision and that is hard to find.

last post was Hugh

LOL - I don't eat seafood. I actually had some Ellios - yeah, get some.

I forgot Lopez, he will go top 6 probably. If Sam gets us a p.f., Thebeet is interesting but I hate to start over with a project again.He could be Mutombo in 3 years.We need the main pieces in place this summer so they get used to each other. I hate constant changes.Young in Korvers role is ideal.I!d like Iggy at the 3 and a shooter at the 2, but if M.Miller is here Iggy can defend the tougher player regardless.

Yeah, I am not crazy about Thabeet either. I don't want another project as you say. We need a Love/White type. I would be fine with either. I think White will hold up more in the long run, but Love will have a more immediate impact.

More than cap room, I wanted extra picks this year. We won!t have a 2nd rounder and a late 1st gets us a p.f. if the best player available when we pick is another wing, that would be just our luck. Gotta get to bed, yes Ellen, I!ve got work tomorrow too. Good night all.

Man Joshua, you got it straight. I grew up in Philly, and now live in Santa Rosa, CA. Aint no worse fans than Philly fans anywhere, I been to some Warrior games and the place rocks crazy. Out here, they dont even tolerate booing. Throw ya out.

Aint got any family left in Philly that wanna stay there. Still root for em, the teams, but the peeps there aint screwed on straight, hear me? All they got are problems like others dont. Right.Crazy folks. Peeps in Philly all need to get outta there for a trip to see the sunshine, man.

Do y'all good

Second round picks are obtainable on draft night.

I am out too - peace.

Yeah, word here is Nellie and Mullin wanna make a run at your boy Iggadola. That dude is one sick do all type that has Warrior flavor.

He played at Aeizona, had triple doubles like Kidd here at Cal, Maybe they work a trade with Philly.

He fit like a glove with Nellie style ball, hear me? Seen him play. We see

Sam Dalembert is a better than average defensive center, weaker than average offensive center...that makes him average.

Average centers are tough to come by in the NBA.

Like anyone on the roster, if Eddie can bring in a SIGNIFICANT UPGRADE AT ANY POSITION, he will trade them. If not, he won't.

All the contenders for an NBA title would take Sammy in a minute. He may not start for some, but he would get meaningful minutes and be expected to play D and block shots.

Put a strong PF next to Sam, and he would be better.

Re playoffs, Sixers have a chance because so many other teams will give up towards the end of the season...the Sixers will not give up.

Thanks Marc.

wow, whole lotta haters out here last night...

Why is it that none of the posters speaking out against the philly fans can write in full sentences? It sounds like they all dropped out of 4th grade, in which case, their opinion doesn't hold a lot of stock.

They do have somewhat of a point...philly fans can be the worst. But in the same sense, what makes philly fans the worst (their knowledge and passion for all sports) also makes us the best at the same time. Put a winner on the field...hell, put a respectable team on the field and look at the love they get. (Ask the Phillies...ticket sales are way up, and technically I don't think many people feel they got a whole lot better in the offseason...but they're a team of likeable players who play their hearts out...hmm so far, they sound like the sixers...except they actually have some semblance of high grade talent on the team. It'd be harder to find a better infield in the majors even with a weak third base)

Compare the phillies to the sixers though...I've been reading this blog for a few weeks now and one of the comments repeated over and over is "he's a great 6th man off the bench". Evans, Lou Williams, Green for offense, and now Thad. Sammy on a good team would be a defensive 6th man. Well guess what, when you're entire team is made up of guys you think make great 6th men...what's that going to get you? Not too much. Yet you all want these gigantic trades to happen (I'm not even sure why trades with Memphis are even still being talked about...I swear the deadline passed already). Think to yourselves, if you're offering 2 sixth men, some of who you say have awful contracts...why would you get a starter back? Why would another team even want 2 sixth men?

Also, I love the talk about Billy King being a really good drafter when the evidence presented is who he drafted. That's not at all the full picture of whether or not he drafted well. If you want to know if he was a good drafter, then look at everyone who was available when he made a pick, and tell me that the guy he picked was better than all the rest...that's a good drafter. Getting value out of the second round isn't great when you lost out on a better talent who went lower. (For that one, ask every NFL team that didn't draft Tom Brady if they had a good draft that year...they should all be saying no.)

The Sixers have demonstrated this season that they can compete with any team in the NBA.

I think the question, at this point, is not can they make the play-offs...but how badly they want to make them.

We shall see.

(Marc, you've done an incredible job here with Deep Sixer. As I wrote to you personally, I am so impressed with your inclusiveness. I just love it when you incorporate contributors' comments in your blog offerings from time to time. Great stuff! Keep it up.)

Who cares!! they will get swept and the two games at home they will still play in front of 12,000 fans.

Glad this topic came up, lots of ideas why, sorry if they’ve been mentioned before:

(in no particular order)

1. Hip-hop, the mascot, sucks, what a horrible mascot, let’s just rent the phanatic, the Sixers don’t really need a mascot, what New York Madison Ave schmuck came up with him?
2. The Wachovia Center has a horrible basketball atmosphere, ugh, no wonder we can’t defend home court, I’m no architect but it feels like it was made for hockey; I miss the Spectrum.
3. They should bring back that multicolored ring at center court.
4. Someone screwed up our uniforms, it doesn’t match Philly at all, gold and black what the $%#$%... plus that new logo? It’s better than the Shawn Bradley-era vomit some brain-dead higher-up came up with, but it’s not a brand name; I saw some kids walking to school today, if you showed them that logo, I don’t know if they’d recognize it at all, I think that old basketball logo has more recognizability.
5. Race is definitely an issue, here’s a link from ESPN the Mag discussing that:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3243624

6. When marketing basketball, I think the Sixes need to go fully one way or the other: emphasize the hip-hop aspect, or harken back to the days of yore and short shorts. Examples:
a. I don’t like the area announcer messing with people’s names. Very annoying – again, it sounds like it’s a voice trying to make everyone happy, it should go fully hip-hop, or have some old fogey do it.
b. The arena music – very little traditional fare, or blast rap and r&b at every possible chance.
c. The intro to the Sixers games on CSN: what is up with that “Blade Runner” city of the future and that music? I would love something showing the players when they were back in high school and college (showing full houses at games), and rap was playing in the background. Set the tone for NBA Basketball!
d. This goes for all NBA teams - get rid of that ridiculous dress code! Let the players show their personalities!
7. Speaking of personality, this team has very little. They’re just a boring team. Thaddeus’s blog on sixers.com is a joke. The most interesting guy on the team is Sammy D, my goodness…
8. Give your average joe a gimmick to grasp, like let’s get all Nigerian players, or let’s all go see Iverson, the one-man show! I hate this idea, but again, we’re talking about what would get fans in seats, right?

Ed, they haven't proven that they can play with any team in the NBA - their biggest win came at home against a banged up Dallas team and their second biggest was against Houston on the road without T-Mac.

Sixerzguy, Excellent post - this team definitely has no personality. I can't stand the arena announcer either and the blasting of rap during offensive posessions is a joke.

The arena is so corporate and there are no real superstars to go watch now. While AI had to go for obvious reasons - there was always a chanc