To Re-build or Not to Re-build?
by Jordan Sams on Jan 26, 2010 6:42 PM PST
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PrintThat is the question. It's a question fans of every team ask themselves at some point, and there's never a simple answer. The original question often poses more questions. Has the window closed? Do the players need more time to develop? The future of the Sixers is in limbo and these are questions that need to be answered, and answered before February 18th.
With Andre Iguodala trade rumors swirling, the proverbial line has been drawn. On one side, the fans who believe Iguodala is a good enough player to build a champion around. On the other side, fans who believe the Sixers' roster has potential -- but not championship potential.
I've gone back-and-forth with fans who advocate keeping the roster intact and their arguments are pretty simple: With the "right" head coach, an emphasis on defense, and normal development of the young core, the Sixers could win 50 games. And then who knows!
I agree to a certain extent. With a defensive-minded head coach the Sixers could win somewhere between 40 and 50 games for the remainder of the Iguodala/Brand era. They'd win a couple playoff series, and might appear in a conference finals -- but they'd never, and I repeat never, win a championship.
So, what is the ultimate goal of an NBA team? Win 50 games? No. Make the playoffs? No. The ultimate goal of an NBA team is to win a championship. Of the past 20 NBA champions, 19 of them have had one thing in common, a "superstar". Each superstar was either drafted or acquired in a draft night trade, and 13 of those superstars were drafted in the top 5. The bad news, the Sixers don't have a superstar. The worse news, they're talented enough to stay out of the top 5 on draft night.
(I know this will resurrect the 'Iguodala is a superstar' debate, but he's not. He's a very good player, but he doesn't fit the definition of an NBA Superstar. He can't carry a team offensively. He can't get superstar calls at the end of games. He's good at everything, great at nothing. To put it in perspective, LeBron James -- the golden standard for superstars -- is better in every facet of the game.)
The answer is simple; the Sixers need to have a fire sale. Trade Iguodala, Brand, and Dalembert for expiring contracts, cheap talent and future draft picks. Throw in Lou and Thad to sweeten the deals. Do whatever it takes to get these contracts off your hands before the trade deadline. In doing so, the Sixers would gain a ton of financial flexibility and be bad enough to pick in the top 5 for the next couple years. The Sonics did it with Ray Allen and the Grizzlies did it with Pau Gasol. Three years later both teams are poised to contend for championships.
It seems like a no-brainer to me.
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+10000000
Agree with you on everything you mentioned in this article.
I love Andre but he’s just not worth his contract, time to trade him or at least Brand
eff you we winning anyway
A.I. IS BACKKKKKKK
We’ve had this debate too. His contract is pretty fair, just doesn’t fit with the rest of the team’s salaries. It’d be a different story if Bron is getting paid 15 mill on this team instead of Brand, and Billups is getting paid 13 mill instead of Sam.
Then we’d be looking at:
Bron – 15 mill
Billups – 12 mill
Iguodala – 12 mill
Then Iguodala’s contract wouldn’t look that bad.
Yup
That basically sums it up. This core could never beat the Lakers or the LeBrons in a 7 game series, simple as that.
by philiafan14364 on Jan 26, 2010 6:50 PM PST via mobile reply actions
Only if Stefanski is fired, because if not – what’s the point?
by jemagee on Jan 26, 2010 7:45 PM PST reply actions
Jordan, I arrived at the same conclusion when I posted this:
Basically, they need to blow it up. Definitely would prefer to keep Iguodala, but they may need to move him to move Brand. Either way, ground zero is a better place than they are right now.
http://www.phillyarena.com - Philly sports forum/blog
That before/after records as compared to with Miller really jumps out.
Of course our latest vet band-aid: AI.
http://www.phillyarena.com - Philly sports forum/blog
I still think people underestimate the loss of Andre Miller.
Even though our record is better with A.I. I don’t think there’s a direct correlation to his play — it’s more his effect on Dalembert. Plus EB, Lou and Speights all got healthy at the same time.
-AI is responsible for Sam waking up (I’m not completely sure why.)
Since AI has arrived EJ has gradually cut the minutes of Thad and even Jrue. He has dramatically reduced Speights’ minutes.
Basically relying on the old Miller-Joe Smith strategy of getting a few more wins out of reliable vets as opposed to mroe erratic but more talented young players.
Why develop talent when you can win 30 games with vets.
http://www.phillyarena.com - Philly sports forum/blog
why trade Young and Williams?
Getting Iggy and Dalmebert off the books for some extra picks sounds like a good idea, but Thad, Lou, Speights and Holiday are a pretty nice young nucleus, all 23 and under, and all under team control at a reasonable price through at least next season, and depending on what you think of the PG situation with Williams/Holiday(I could see Lou and Jrue being a good combo guard tandem if they could live with the possible defensive problems), its a group that doesn’t necessarily conflict. Add a Derrick Favors or Wes Johnson to that mix, and who knows. Maybe you don’t have a “superstar”, but thats a young group I’d like to see get a chance to grow and compete together.
I think you need to include young talent to get rid of those contracts. There aren’t alot of NBA Teams that want to commit to a long contract, especially if its considered a bad contract. They have to sweeten the deal by including thad or lou.
re:
To get a significant return maybe you need to add some talent, but I’d be very surprised if they couldn’t find someone to take Iguodala for an expiring contract and a pick. Dalembert might be slightly harder to shed, and Brand I think is virtually impossible, but I think they can “rebuild” and keep their young core.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 11:15 AM PST up reply actions
Yeah you keep saying that – you also think Dampier is better than Dalembert….
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 11:18 AM PST up reply actions
they're about even
don’t think I’ve said one is better than the other. Dalembert is younger and nimbler, but the results are pretty much the same.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 11:35 AM PST up reply actions
I suppose if you use PER you could call it ‘the same’ , and that’s fine, but it’s a flawed statistic that i’ve never been fond of
http://www.wagesofwins.com/AllTeamMid0910.html
Let’s keep in mind that Dalembert also stays healthy and isn’t about to fall apart.
To me Dalembert for Dampier is a clear win for the mavs and a clear salary dump for the sixers
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 11:39 AM PST up reply actions
re:
You don’t just have to use PER. Most metrics have them as being pretty much the same the last three and a half years. Dalembert is, on a per minute basis, having perhaps the best year of his career, which is why he has the slight advantage so far this year, but I’d say he has a pretty good chance of regressing to the mean by the end of the season. Dampier, for all his failings, is remarkably consistent.
Given that neither guy would likely be employed by Dallas past next season, I don’t think their injury histories mean much.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 11:52 AM PST up reply actions
Well Dallas isn’t going to pay dampier 16 million dollars next year and I don’t think he’s magically going to net you a great free agent since the ancillary parts Dallas has to offer are insignificant to most teams.
Then again, as we’ve seen, mavs fans favor getting kevin martins one dimension over an all around good player who is more helpful with their weakness (defense) and doesn’t need the ball to be contributory to a teams winning.
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 11:56 AM PST up reply actions
I don’t think you can build around Iguodala, but I think he’s an important piece to be kept. Iguodala is a very good facilitator, but he also needs someone to facilitate to him. I think he could work well with an excellent point guard. I’m not just saying that because the team was better with Andre Miller. Jrue could be this guy and I wouldn’t count this out as a possibility yet.
However, if the sixers need to move AI9 in order to move other expensive contracts, I just hope it’s not done for financial reasons, but because there is a real re-building plan in process.
As for the younger guys, talent needs to be evaluated and decisions need to be made on who gets kept.
The biggest problem in my eyes is the coach, and I don’t even want to think fire sale until it’s guaranteed that by moving expensive contracts the team will put forth the money and effort to find the right guy to lead this team.
something along these lines?:
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=ygx8ogw
"Oooohhh, cat in the wall, eh? Now you're talkin' my language."
I have no interest in adding Ariza – he makes Iguodala look like a precise shooter, rather keep Iguodala than have Ariza
Ariza keeps the team treading water even though it does free up playing time for Speights (who doesn’t play defense)
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 6:52 AM PST up reply actions
Dallas fan here.
I’m curious to know how Philly fans feel about Iggy for Josh Howard straight up. It’s something that has come up fairly often recently among our fans.
Philly would save money right away, and Howard has a team option for next season, so even if it doesn’t work out, he can be easily gotten rid of, kept at a lower price via his Bird rights, or packaged in a S&T.
"I hope they become a 'Doomsday'. I hope they consider this bunch better than any of the other ones. I want them to do well. I want people to say they're better than the group I played with. That would make me very happy." -Randy White
Iguodala has more value than Howard (who is mentally damaged goods.)
The Sixers are looking to move Iguodala if they can use him to get a team to take on one of its other big contracts like Brand or Sam.
I agree with the Brand part, but Sam expires after next year, so saving money for one year probably is more a Comcast $’s thing than something to help the Sixers.
Either way, they don’t want to move Iguodala alone.
http://www.phillyarena.com - Philly sports forum/blog
I’m confused as to why people keep thinking of Josh HOward as a player, Josh HOward has a relatively cheap team option for next year, he’s not a player, he’s an expiring contract, he’s exactly the same as a Dampier or a McGrady – he isn’t traded for to play, he’s traded for to save money.
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 7:40 AM PST up reply actions
It’d have to be Iguodala and Brand for Howard and Dampier.
Brand’s contract has 3 years left, but I believe Kidd, Dirk, Terry, Marion all have extended contracts, so it’s not like the length of Brand’s contract would kill them.
Plus Iguodala and Brand make the Mavs instantly as good as the Lakers.
Dalembert and Iguodala for Howard and Damp works as well and might be more palletable to the Mavs (i believe cuban would jump at this deal)
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 9:01 AM PST up reply actions
re:
I know we’ve been over this before, but the nature of Dampier’s contract makes him a pretty big trade chip(look up “dust chip” for more details). The buzz around Dallas for the last year and a half has been that he is the guy Cuban will try to use to land a marquee name in the offseason in a sign and trade deal, and Iguodala is not quite a marquee name. Whether or not they’ll be successful in doing that is anyone’s guess, but by most indications that is their plan.
So, while Iguodala might be of interest to Dallas, it doesn’t seem likely that Dampier will be involved.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 11:31 AM PST up reply actions
Yeah you keep saying that and I know that he’s a pretty big trade chip, but so what. No team is going to help the mavs get better JUSt to get Dampiers expiring contract, and the youth on the Mavs roster isn’t exactly appealing.
And aging team like the mavs has very few attractive assets to a team about to lose a Lebron or a Wade or whatever, and while paying dampier the buy out number is probably real appealing to some team – dampier alone doesn’t get you squat
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 11:43 AM PST up reply actions
not necessarily
again, Dampier’s contract is somewhat unusual. He can be waived without his team having to spend a cent on a buyout. And since his contract is so high, by sign and trade rules, this means whoever he’s traded for can still make max contract type money.
If a team suspects they might lose their star player in free agency, they can get Damp’s contract off the books(at zero cost), and get picks, whereas if the player signs with another team, they get nothing.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 12:03 PM PST up reply actions
and
the player would be going to a team that already has quality pieces in place, while most other teams with the necessary cap space will probably have little to put around them.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 12:05 PM PST up reply actions
The mavs offer would be damps expiring contract and low first round picks versus the other team just letting him walk and not facilitating him making more money than if another team just signed him staright up.
I can see a bunch of teams lining up for the privlege of losing their best player AND helping him make more money just to pick 24/25 in the draft once or twice
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 12:06 PM PST up reply actions
re:
“I can see a bunch of teams lining up for the privlege of losing their best player AND helping him make more money just to pick 24/25 in the draft once or twice”
So you’re saying a team would rather let him leave for nothing than get picks?
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 12:12 PM PST up reply actions
Low first round picks almost have a negative value since they are guaranteed contracts, that’s a lot in todays NBA
So…the team facilitating this trade gets the privilege of guaranteed contracts to guys more likely to miss than hit…and the player screwing over their franchise gets a little extra cash.
I’m saying you seem to think low picks (25-30) in the draft have a value when I think they’re less valuable than early picks in the second round.
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 12:14 PM PST up reply actions
Paying a guaranteed contract to a low first round pick for 3 years as opposed to investing 100K to buy a second round pick…that’s a strong value.
If all the mavs have to offer is dampier and his ‘contract’ plus first round picks in the low to mid 20s – i see teams lining up around the block
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 12:05 PM PST up reply actions
I continue to not agree with this line of thought at all. I’d rather try and do what the Celtics did: continue to stockpile young talent and find a player that you can get in a sign-and-trade. Although if we get the first pick next season this problem would seem to solve itself.
Who did the celtics get in a sign and trade?
And John Wall alone is not the savior of this (or any) franchise
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 6:46 AM PST up reply actions
A fire sale is a great idea
but it probably won’t happen because there will still be 3-4 more months of empty arenas, which ownership will simply not allow. and stefanski is not bold enough to make those moves, he just wants to get as close to .500 as possible and call the season a success, and continue the string of uninteresting basketball and usually underwhelming season finishes.
Chase Utley is so good that on one pitch he stole second, third and the shortstop's hat.
Saying that either Memphis or OKC are poised to compete for championships is overly optimistic and over stating the case. Memphis has Zach Randolph as a core player and it’s been a nice season for Zach – but come on – who expects him to maintain his good behavior.
OKC is young and still developing and while having a good season, Im’ not ready to say they’re ready for anything until they do it for more than one season. Other teams have shown up in the playoffs once and then stunk the next season (or does everyone forget how the ‘future’ of the bulls had arrived after last season?)
It’s easy to say ‘trade for expiring contracts’ but it’s not easy to get. The Cap is coming down somehwat, no one knows how much, very few teams want to pay the luxury tax and very few teams want to take on multiple long term deals. Keep in mind that various reporters have indicated that Elton Brands contract is one of the most untradeable (if not the most) in the league. Thinking you’re going to get ANYTHING useful for him long term is a pipe dream, and you’d probably have to include Jrue and Speights just to get any team to consider taking on his deal.
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 7:08 AM PST reply actions
Mayo, Gay, Gasol is a big 3 who can win a championship.
Durant, Green, Westbrook is definitely a big 3 who can win a championship.
They’re only going to get better, and by the time they reach their prime there will be no more Kobe, no more Billups, Melo will be a little older. The Thunder will definitely compete for championships.
You can’t say that about the Sixers roster.
Well there’s an awful lot of assumptios in there but let’s start with the most immediately incorrect one.
Not whether or not those are championship trios – but the trios staying together. Rudy Gay isn’t going to be on the Grizz much longer. The Grizz owner is positioning to sell (and has been for years) and is loath to give out long term deals, let alone the kind of deal Gay is going to earn. Rudy Gay won’t be on the Griz next year.
So now the grizz are down to mayo and gasol two very nice offensive players who don’t play defense…as we’ve seen, guys who have weak defense often lead teams to NBA championships with mediocre players and a weak bench around them.
OKC maybe will contend for a championship but you’re projecting these guys after just their second (not even full) season in the league – are they out performing this year – sure – but no one says that’ll continue – do they have a nice core right now – sure they do – but I don’t see them winning a title out of the west any time soon – the other teams that contend and are better run with more money aren’t just going to go away.
Those two teams have very nice young cores, but again, so dd the bulls last year when everyone got excited about their season.
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 9:04 AM PST up reply actions
No guarntee Gay will be gone.
Mayo is a good defender.
Everyone thinks the Thunder have an insanely bright future. Just check out ESPN’s future rankings.
And the Bulls have Rose, that’s about it.
I’d ellaborate more, but I’m sure it won’t change your mind and it’s difficult to type/look stuff up on your iPhone in Accounting.
by Jordan Sams on Jan 27, 2010 10:09 AM PST via mobile up reply actions
Again, everyone thought the Bulls had a bright future after last years playoffs….a lot of things can still go wrong, and let’s see what happens when the cheap ass owner of OKC has to PAY all these guys long term deals.
Do you pay for the hosting for this site? how much? I’ll bet you a years hosting fees (assuming they are reasonable) that Rudy Gay is not on the Grizz next year.
The Bulls have Rose and that’s about it?
Tyrus Thomas, Loul Deng, Joakim Noah and a lot of cap space AND a much more inviting free agent destination than the Grizz or Oklahoma City (cause no one really wants to live in either place)
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:12 AM PST up reply actions
I don’t pay, but I’ll bet you 20$.
by Jordan Sams on Jan 27, 2010 10:31 AM PST via mobile up reply actions
You won’t change my mind based on half a seasons play no…
I remember when people talked about how the sixers future was looking up cause of some first round playoff losses, cause if memphis or okc (or both) make it this year – they’ll be losing in the first round
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:12 AM PST up reply actions
Thunder
I’m not that sold on the Grizz, but the Thunder are scary, because they’re an insanely young and talented team that actually plays defense…and, taking into account what was said above about championship teams needing a superstar, the Thunder have that in Kevin Durant.
It’s going to take some serious injuries or front office screwups to prevent OKC from being an elite team in the West. Really, they’re not as far off from that as their record might indicate. They’re 4th in the west in the hollinger rankings, by virtue of having good point differential and having lost a lot of close games.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 11:42 AM PST up reply actions
Yeah, and Utah is #1
Does anyone think Utah can take out the spurs or lakers or even the nuggets in a 7 game series.
Hollinger does one of the cardinal sins of statistical analysis he doesn’t look at his formulas to see if they match reality – and he hardly ever adjusts them.
No formula that ranks the Jazz #1 in the west right now should be taken seriously
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 11:45 AM PST up reply actions
the rankings
are based on how the teams are playing at this point, and the Jazz are playing great so far. They don’t factor in injuries(which have really hurt teams like the Cavs, Nuggets, Celtics, etc).
The formula is an excellent indicator of which teams are playing better than their records might indicate, and which teams are playing worse, but the onus is still on the fan to be intelligent enough to understand context.
by Alan Smithee on Jan 27, 2010 12:09 PM PST up reply actions
Oooh, passive aggressive insults, very nice, you’re pretty slick…
There are also numerous more intelligent, reliable, tested methods out there, not employed by ESPN, and the onus is on the fan to be intelligent enough to realize that ESPN just looks for the simplest method to attract in the simple fans. The intelligent fan would hardly ever use ESPN as a source of anything, except shoddy rumor mongering
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 12:12 PM PST up reply actions
Michael Barkann
An Employee of Comcast
Which owns the sixers
is going to interview the sixers owner.
I don’t expect a lot of hard hitting questions, I’m sure Barkann has a list of what he can and can not ask…
Anyone local who can give insight would be great but I don’t expect anything earth shattering UNLESS of course they’re firing him live on air (on air executions are the next step)
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 9:27 AM PST reply actions
Let’s say we buy the premise that OKC and Memphis are poised to contend in the crowded west with their income control worried owners.
Durant, Green, Westbrook
Gay, Gasol, Mayo
Holiday, Young, Speights
Um…no offense to the sixers talent, but I’d take either trio over the sixers trio, by a long shot.
The sixers ‘young trio’ hasn’t shown as much completeness as the other two teams ttrio. Heck as far as I’m concerned, Young and Speights haven’t shown anything to indicate that they’re even starters on a good NBA team
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:16 AM PST reply actions
Saying Holiday, Young and Speights are a trio is like saying Deng, Thomas and Noah is a trio. That’s why the Sixers need to build through a couple top 5 picks. If I thought we already had a legit trio I wouldn’t advocate blowing it up.
by Jordan Sams on Jan 27, 2010 10:29 AM PST via mobile up reply actions
I’m not saying top 5 picks aren’t nice…but look at the clips and their history of bad picks – the warriors have had a lot of top picks recently – ain’t helping them much – bobcats needed to trade for stven jackson to even contend for the playoffs.
Top 5 picks are nice – but you can’t depend on them to win anything.
Luol Deng was in the same draft class as Iguodala – there’s a reason I ignored Iguodala when I named the three :)
Blowing it up involves keeping some players – and holiday young and speights are the three players you absolutely have to keep (in my mind)…the bulls ocmparative trio would be rose, thomas, and noah (and which three would you rather have?)
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:34 AM PST up reply actions
Yeah, but DiLeo has a much better history than those owners.
I could live without Young, and I like Speights but if they need to include him to trade Brand I’m all for it.
I’d take Rose, Thomas, Noah over Holiday, Young, Speights. Thomas is garbage, but Rose is the best player of the 6 and Noah is a really really nice player.
by Jordan Sams on Jan 27, 2010 10:40 AM PST via mobile up reply actions
You know – not for nothing – but I was watching David Lee the other day (another UF alum) and he doesn’t play crap for defense either.
Is it something that Billy D doesn’t coach at UF?
Like I said – as of now I see young and speights as bench players…so really the only plyer I think I truly care about is Jrue Holiday
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:42 AM PST up reply actions
Like I said – as of now I see young and speights as bench players…so really the only plyer I think I truly care about is Jrue Holiday.
Agree.
by Jordan Sams on Jan 27, 2010 11:26 AM PST up reply actions
How depressing is that.
I wonder how many rosters if you looked at around the league that if you decided to blow up the franchise you’d only care about keeping one player.
Even the knicks (and I beleive the nets) have at least 2 players to worry about keeping.
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 11:29 AM PST up reply actions
I have a more important and pressing question
Why are you in an accounting class?
Seriously, what’s your major?
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:23 AM PST reply actions
My (ex) step-father was a CPA – a partner in his firm
he wore bow ties, and suspenders AND a belt
and he and all his CPA friends were more boring than paint drying
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:36 AM PST up reply actions
it comes with the territory – but if you can pull off a bow tie that’s pretty impressive
by Tanner Steidel on Jan 27, 2010 10:37 AM PST up reply actions
Didn’t say he pulled it off did i :)
Sorry, I just find subject matter like that, and most social sciences (aside from statistics) boring as all get out…
drives my gf crazy since she’s a fracking history genius
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:38 AM PST up reply actions
i loved statistics – i wish my school offered more variety of stat courses i would take one every semester
by Tanner Steidel on Jan 27, 2010 10:40 AM PST up reply actions
I’m looking into a masters in stats, PSU does one online but man the courses are expensive…450+
Right now i’m just trying to ‘teach’ myself statistics again (i haven’t looked at them since 1991 when I took intro to stats for folks who barely know math – i needed to get my GPA quick or tuitition was getting cut off) – i got a book called learning statisticus using baseball (don’t have one for basketball)
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 10:43 AM PST up reply actions
I could be into that.
I hate the idea of being abysmal but I hate being slightly below mediocre as well.
At this point I just want to see them do something if nothing else just for shock factor.
Jim Johnson 1941-2009
"The 0-2 pitch, swing and a miss! STRUCK HIM OUT! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 World Champions of baseball! And let the city celebrate! " - Harry Kalas 1936-2009
Jordan
Yes I’ll bet you 20 bucks that Rudy Ga isn’t on the grizz at the start of next season
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 12:07 PM PST reply actions
I don’t think it is correct to “blow” this team up yet. Unlike you, I am unwilling to believe that this team has “No chance” of winning a championship with the current group. This doesn’t mean that you’re wrong. Most teams aren’t and never will be NBA champs, so the odds are in your favor.
Here’s my issue: You don’t trade away players until you know what they’re capable of. I’ll agree that players like Iguodala and Brand and Dalembert are known quantities. Good capable players. Maybe you can put Willie Green and Lou Williams into that category of being known. None of these guys are going to get markedly better. This doesn’t mean that they aren’t good components for a Championship team, just that they need more to get to that level.
But Speights, Holliday, Young and Smith, even Rodney Carney- these players have a lot of room to grow and develop their potential. It isn’t clear if any of them individually or separately can give the current group enough, and even under the best of circumstances- a good coach, it isn’t easy to see if they can push the team up to the next level or not.
This is the source of my frustration: Without a good coach, who understands how to use talent and how to compensate for their weaknesses, you can’t know with any certainty what their capable of.
If you don’t know what you have, you don’t know who to get rid of and whom to keep. The worst mistake you can make is throwing away a good player, because he was never given a chance to develop or contribute.
With the coach blaming the players for the loss, and focusing on defense after his team shoots 27% in the 2nd half, he should be very close to being fired. The GM put the team together and I think they did a good job of bringing in the right pieces.
Instead, what I would suggest is that a new coach come in, with more of an emphasis on evaluating and developing talent, rather than trying to win games. If the team is coached the right way, it should become apparent who doesn’t fit and who does, what is lacking and what is needed. Then the team can make informed decisions and avoid unnecessary mistakes.
The best way to find out how close you are is to win games against good teams, but with the present coach, we wouldn’t learn anything. We need a coach to maximize this groups potential, not squander it.
Thanks for the heads up. Barkan is going to interview Snyder. This is the problem with the Cable company owning the basketball team. I doubt we’ll see the grilling I’m hoping for.
True, but at the same time – whatever Snider says should give insight into the direction he’s leaning – if he throws the players under the bus like Jordan did on Monday – then there’s a problem and Iguodala will probably be traded for corn chips
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 3:05 PM PST up reply actions
Now, you’re really scaring me! I really hope that Snyder isn’t buying what Jordan is selling. If Jordan stays much longer, I’m done. I will no longer be a Sixers fan.
I have no idea WHAT he’s going to say – but no matter what the questions – the content of what he says is instructive – he’s obviously wants to say something out loud to folks – and whatever he says will be an indicator in the direction he is leaning for insightful folk
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 3:14 PM PST up reply actions
Barkan threw him softballs. Not sure what you got out of it, intuitive as I sometimes am, I got nothing. Said he couldn’t imagine ever throwing games, I would have asked “Aren’t you doing that by allowing Eddie Jordan to continue on?”
And then you’d get fired…i know someone who is recording it and going to put it online…
Someone who paid attention who can give us a summary or what was said would be awesome
by jemagee on Jan 27, 2010 3:22 PM PST up reply actions
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