Coatesvillain

After the Finals success of two seasons ago, the Sixers went to work getting rid of everything that took them there. George Lynch, Tyrone Hill, Jumaine Jones, Rodney Buford all leave town. Of course that doesn't mean we don't get any new friends as the following players ventured in:

Corie Blount
Derrick Coleman
Vonteego Cummings
Matt Harpring
Derrick McKey
Jabari Smith

Don't worry, I won't forget mentioning McKie and Iverson not having surgery until training camp starts. And I won't forget the Sixers signing Mutombo to a riddiculous contract. We've found our outside shooter, Matt Harpring, and we have a backup forward in Corie Blount. We also find out that we can't win, with two riddiculously long losing streaks during the season. But we fight back, and fight back Sixers style, and Iverson goes on to say that he believes we are the best team in the East.

During the season the usual things happen, Snow gets hurt, Coleman gets hurt/suspended, McKie gets hurt, Iverson gets hurt. And we're watching young players rot on the bench, as Corie Blount is fouling everything up, can't pass him the ball because he can't catch, and he's always lost.

Season is closing, and we're neck and neck with Charlotte and Orlando for possibly the 4 spot. We don't play starters for the last couple games of the season, lose them, and we're stuck with the 6 seed. Oh don't worry.. we own the Celtics.. right? Wrong, it appears these Celtics were ready to play in the playoffs.. and our star player who wasn't used to running in over a month, was shooting like a maniac..

We lose the first two.. win the second two.. lose the last one in embarrassing fashion. The World says what was said the year prior, Sixers need a shooter. Harping apparently wasn't the answer that Brown told us he was. So what do we do? Say bye to Speedy Claxton. Say hi to Mark Bryant. Say hi to Greg Buckner and Monty Williams. And guess what, "WE AREN'T DONE!" Atleast that's what Billy King says..

Guess what King? I wish you never started!

No it all makes sense, not going for the secondary scorer we need, and instead going for two defensive minded players. But if finally makes sense to me:

We aren't making the playoffs.
Envelopes are frozen in the NBA lottery.
We're going to draft LeBron James.

If Larry Brown leaves, guess what? He'll play. But Larry Brown will be here, and LeBron will just be getting ready to be shipped out to somewhere.

YAY! SIXERS!

-Tim

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I must say I enjoy reading all your posts, they are well thought out, good form , and all somethings to think about.

I must give some comments. First , I totally agree that we should not have traded, Jumaine Jones, George Lynch, and probably Tyrone Hill.

Rodney Buford was a good player, but I think Jones was athletic enough to take on the load at small forward. Lynch was a great team player that fit in well with the chemistry that Iverson often destroys. Jones was an up and coming great player that could both rebound and take some of the scoring load off Iversons back. Tyrone Hill was aging and probably wasn't going to give us much this year, so I am not really going to argue with his dealing, though he was a great reason we made it to the finals.

If we look at who we brought in:

Corie Blount
Derrick Coleman
Vonteego Cummings
Matt Harpring
Derrick McKey
Jabari Smith

Blount was someone I actually liked. Though he was born with the natural ability of most, he gave us some good minutes and good rebounding, his offensive game was anything but polished, and his fouling was always and often he still showed glimpses of being a strong backup.

Coleman was a guy that i thought would jsut completely be a horrible pickup, he had no work ethic and didn't fit in very well before, but he averaged some good points and palyed some good minutes.

Vonteego Cummings was an athletic guard that I liked coming out of college but he wasn't going to play or score unless Iverson was out of the lineup (and he was alot), but Cummings still didn't always show up.

Harpring was a pickup that I loved, but expected different things that what we got. I expected a perimeter shooter and a smart player, we got more of a hardcore hustler that scored scrappy points. He is a guy that im not really sad to see go, and i probably would trade him back for Lynch, just cuz i like Lynch style more.

Derrick McKey was in my eye a good pickup. A good defensive player that often was injured but helped our slim bench.

Jabari SMith, i dont have much to say about, hes a 11th or 12th man at best, then again Nazr Mohammed was our 12th man and turned out decent in Atlanta.

This season wasn't anything special but we stayed in the palyoff picture and it could have been worse , not much after Antoine "Paul Pierce Carrys the Team" Walker bragged but at least we made it there.

The Speedy CLaxton deal wasn't all that bad. If you liked Buford, you will like Holcomb, and Salmons fits in much better then Speedy, unless Allens injured (so i guess you can't really say that Salmons fits in much better)

Monty WIlliams is an interesting pickup , my theory is that instead of getting a 2nd scorer with Allen, BK and LB want to spread that 2nd scoring into 2 or 3 players, McKie and Williams being 2 of them. He can score and play defense and hopefully set some examples, thats all im looking for.

Greg Buckner, is well, who knows we will see how worthy the pickup was during the season.

I think we will make the playoffs, I just kinda want Mutumbo out, but I want to keep Snow, he is doing things we dont see to keep this team together.

Just my 10 cents.

__________________
Sometimes, theres just not enough rocks.

Coatesvillain

What's funny is, the things that frustrate me the most, I have the best time discussing, I don't understand it. I guess that's the Philly fan in me.

I love this team, but what Brown and King don't get is that to improve the team, you have to break it apart. They can't just bank on the fact that if the Sixers were healthy all year that they'd be in the second round. One thing that extremely pains me about the Sixers franchise is that, the organization is great at scouting young talents, but when they get the players they don't know what to do next.

People say bad things about Jabari Smith, but when he was in the game he produced.. just couldn't rebound if his family depended on it. After a rough start, Raja Bell got back into it as the season went on showing flashes of being the palyer he was in the 2001 playoffs. Alvin Jones went out and made Eddy Curry look flat out silly in a game against the Bulls, and he was one of the only "true" rookies that was getting respectable minutes. Also we had Speedy, who they loved to play, but they didn't know how to use him.

And then now we have budding young talents sitting and waiting for their shot, and most likely they won't even receive a call. Here's a list of the guys with one year or less under their belts:

-Samuel Dalembert
-Alvin Jones
-Damone Brown
-Efthimos Rentzias
-Sam Clancy
-John Salmons
-Randy Holcomb

All guys who can play, if given the chance. What some people like Larry Brown don't understand is this, a flower doesn't grow from the bag of seeds. What I mean in this instance is, players don't become stars sitting on the bench, they have to go through a baptism of fire. Some guys might not be ready when they get minutes, but they have to learn. No player is the finished project when they start, but you let them take their mistakes, bring them along with game time, allow them to gain confidence.. and they're on their way.

This is the same team, who landed Tim Thomas and Larry Hughes in consecutive drafts. They know what talent looks like, it's almost like if they aren't Iverson they don't know what to do with them.

Sometimes I might not sound like the most optimistic person in the world, but I've noticed that to succeed, not just now but in years to come.. the Sixers need to go with their young players. What better way is there to get more athletic then to go with what they have on the bench?

Also, I'm hoping they don't mess things up by trading Derrick Coleman, his contract is off the books by the end of this year, so is Matt Geiger's, so that means we can actually look forward to someone that offseason.

My only question is, who's the most viable talent that you could see the Sixers going after?

-Tim

JBH

I think they'll go after J.O'Neal. He would be a perfect fit.
I like your posts a lot...I think the same way about the Sixers. Since Brown is there, they completely change their roster every year. That's not how you build a championship-team...you have to be patient. And yes! please, Larry, let the youngsters play (especially Delambert and Salmons!)

jsa

In summary of the above well articulated posts, it looks like the 76ers will play the guys who will make them better this year than the guys who won't play, but the guys who won't play are the guys who could eventually win. So by not "offically" rebuilding you are slowing the inevitable rebuilding. A future top 5 draft talent (hard to get by trade) requires that you play the kids now and lose, and you get a bit lucky. I like their draftees, as wonderful future solid players. No stars . Sometimes the middle of the pack is the worst rut you can get in. You win enough to stay away from the top draft talent and believe "next year" is your year.