Slow Down Rebuilding? (minor changes on 7/2/10)

The Sixers got their man, Evan Turner. They have a solid back-court for years to come. We all know that the Sixers are not contending for a championship any time soon, even if Lou Williams was MVP. The Sixers have locked up their money in Andre Iguodala and Elton Brandfor the next 3 years. We all know this. So should the Sixers care if they win or lose? Yes and no.

Why they should win:

Sixers have to try to prove to management, the fans, the league, and to themselves, that last year was not the real Sixers. They had a coach that did not know how to use the roster. Were injuries a factor? Not entirely. Lou Williams seemed to be on the verge of a breakout season until he broke his jaw. Marreese Speightswas doing OK as well. At the time that they both went down with their injuries, they were the main scorers for the team. Stafanski decided to try to solve two problems (low attendance for games and lack of scoring power) for the price of one by bringing in Allen Iverson. During his time with the team, the Sixers basically had a .500 record. So how else did the Sixers lose? Was it the rotation that their coach had for them? Here are the factors that I think affected the Sixers this season:

1. Poor rotation
2. Injuries
3. Lack of player development from the off-season

Those are the main reasons why the Sixers did so poorly this season. With the poor rotation, most of the players couldn't get into rhythm. Kapono even said that he needs consistent minutes to become effective. At the end of the season we saw that indeed the consistent minutes did him well. As mentioned above, the injuries to Williams and Speights really hurt the Sixers' scoring. Players like Young showed no signs of improvement from the previous season. The lack of improvement could also be caused from the first two items on the list. Another reason the Sixers should win is because no one loses on purpose. Money, fans, friends/family, self respect, and/or teammates keep a player from just giving up on a season.

Why they should lose:

I'm not saying they should tank. I'm saying that they should not stress about winning games. As the roster stands, and even after any changes they make during the off-season, the Sixers are going to end up in nowhere land. They will either barely make the playoffs with an early exit, or barely miss the playoffs. In both scenarios, they will have a pick in the teens. While sometimes this can be an OK situation, the Sixers will not be able to make a move anywhere else. They can't sign because they have no money. They do have possibilities to trade a few players, but no trade will make a huge positive impact for the team. With this in mind, the main reason why the Sixers should not rush the rebuilding process is because of what will probably occur in this off-season. If LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and all of their friends combine their talents, the Sixers will stand no chance in winning anything. One could argue that with all of the money spent on 2-3 all-stars, there won't be enough left to sign a solid team around the stars. I personally think that there will be a lot less movement than what is being called. Let's assume that the all-stars combine their talents and join New York, New Jersey, Miami,etc and that the teams are going to dominate the league for years to come. The Sixers should just ride out the contracts of Brand and Iguodala. Next season, the Sixers should just try any experiments to the rotation. It's not like they have anything at stake. They could end up in the lottery again.

There's always the chance that the Sixers could pull an upset. But, the best thing that the they should do is suck. And when Brand's contract is on the last year, trade him with Iguodala for picks and of course a couple of role players. Re-signing Iguodala could ruin the Sixers. He won't take less money. Either trade him or let him walk. By then the money should be going to rising players like Holiday and Turner. By the time Iguodala's contract is up in 3 years, Holiday will be 23, Turner 24, Young 25, Hawes 25, Speights, 26. If Speighs and Young can bounce back from their poor play last season, and if Hawes plays some nice defense, the Sixers are in good shape with a still young team to build around. With these young ages and with the free agents combining their power, the Sixers should lay low and keep on finding young talent. Time to let go of Willie Green and Jason Kapono(by trade of course). It doesn't matter who they get back. Also, Iverson and Fransico Elson should not come back. Again, the Sixers are in no position to make a serious run. If the Sixers end up back in the lottery, they can draft for more talent. The fans must be patient during this time. Look at the Thunder. They traded off Rashard Lewis and Ray Allen and started over. It took some time but now they are a couple of years from potentially winning it all.

No more quick fixes. That's what Brand was used for when he was signed. Iguodala will have to be traded, let go, or maybe a sign and trade. The point being made here is that, because the team is not going to make some noise, why be afraid of making some moves during the off-season? Ride out the coach's contract. No more one and done. This is it. Now or never. Key word is patience. Let the other teams fight for glory. When the Sixers finally arrive, it will be worth the wait. Let us, as fans, be faithful to support this plan. This will be a hard, possibly humiliating, ride. But when we reach the finish line, we'll have parades left and right.

This whole thing is a stretch, I know. But again, what do they have to lose? They have nothing to lose and everything to gain. They could do this without worrying about the free agency at all. They don't have to tank but instead, just take their time with it. Let Doug Collins do his work and finish his contract.