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Kwisatz Haderach
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Coatesville, PA
Age: 25
Posts: 24,104
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Billy King Q&A...
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You are standing before the season ticket holders; give us a short state of the union address on the Sixers.
We are going to have an exciting team, a younger team, a much more athletic team than we had last season. I think with Jim’s (O'Brien) style of play, it will be one that will be appealing to our fans. We will get back to playing great defense, but also we are going to open up the offense a little bit. So, what our goal was for this off-season was to try to get a little bit more athletic, a little bit younger, and to get a little bit more offense, to get back to playing tough defense.
You recently made another move to trim the roster before training camp. What was the motivating factor behind waiving Buckner?
Well, I think looking at the overall picture, with the roster we need for Jim, and looking at the depth of our roster, I didn’t see the opportunity for him to play this year. The willingness to negotiate a buyout with him, gives him an opportunity to go play, but also is a chance where we could save some money. I thought it was the best for both parties.
What is Todd MacCulloch’s situation?
Todd and I will sit down when he gets back from Seattle, probably in two weeks. I don’t expect Todd to play this year; I don’t think Todd expects to play this year. I think the meeting at that time will determine the outcome of his situation.
Is there any move you made which you think will have an immediate impact?
Honestly, the biggest move of impact was hiring Jim O’Brien. Because I think he’ll set the table for all these pieces that we made moves on. I think if you want to look at one key move, that was having Jim.
What does Coach O’Brien bring to the organization, what attracted you to him?
What attracted me is defense. When the rules changed, Boston adapted and played the best defense of anybody in the league. And I think his offensive style allows players freedom to do a little bit more offensively. It reminds me a little bit of Coach Krzyzewski at Duke because we always had it defensively. You are going to play one way and one way only. But offensively you had a lot more freedom. I think he’s going to figure out ways to make each player better because he knows if he can make each player better and successful, then the overall product will be better.
Andre Iguodala has been called a steal of the draft and one of the best picks in the past draft. How do you think he will fit into the line-up or is this going to be a leaning year for him?
It will be a learning year because anytime a rookie comes in, there is a big learning curve. But I think he has the athletic ability and the upside to make an impact. It will depend on how quickly he picks up. The greatest thing about our roster is we have competition at every position, a lot of depth.
What positions do you expect the most competition at training camp?
It’s probably going to be at two positions. It’s going to be at the two/three position, and probably the five position. I think these will be the most battles for minutes.
Out of all the young players on the team, who do you see stepping up and taking a key role on the team this season?
A lot of what we put on Willie [Green], I think he will be able to step up to do that. I think Samuel (Dalembert) fell into the role, and proved himself last year. But I think out of everybody a lot of that will be on Willie.
What has Willie shown to you and Jim that he can handle the two-spot and a starting position?
The biggest thing is his poise. I think last year towards the end of the season there were games where in stretches he would take over a game on his own. And he allows the game to come to him. I think he has a great feeling for the game. Mainly, just seeing him in those stretches when we didn’t have veteran scorers out there, and he was willing to accept the role. The players on the court were willing to look for him to do that.
If there were a game today, how would the starting line-up look to you?
I would probably envision Allen [Iverson] at the point, Willie at the 2, Glenn [Robinson] at the 3, Kenny [Thomas] at the 4, and Sammy at the 5.
Jim O’Brien brings a new style of play and you have made attempts to adjust the roster accordingly. Are there more moves to be made?
I think right now this will probably be the roster we go into camp with. It may not be the roster we open the season with, but I don’t foresee any other moves before we get to camp.
How can Allen Iverson translate his Olympic experience this summer into a successful year with the Sixers?
The leadership role that he took with Team USA is something that I think he’ll need to do with this team. I think it’s something he’s ready for. I think he sees the young guys on our team, and I think he sees the fact that he may not be asked to do as much offensively in the sense of scoring, but more in the role of setting up other guys to score.
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Who cares about a championship drought?:
My teams will never win a championship anyway, so why don't you discuss everything else at my forum? Good idea, right? Yeah, I thought so. It's called.. Booing Santa Claus. See you there.
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Originally Posted by Henry Rollins
“The average is the borderline that keeps mere men in their place. Those who step over the line are heroes by the very act. Go.”
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