I'm about to watch the tape of last night's game. Don't ask me why I continue to torture myself, because I have no answer. Before I do that I want to quickly look at Marreese Speights's status on the active roster.
Good ol' Phil Jasner weighs in.
First, and this is just my perception, I believe coach Maurice Cheeks--correctly--paid repsect to the veterans by having them in uniform for the first night. Second, remember, they could only dress 11 men because Royal Ivey was sitting out the second leg of a three-game suspension but still had to be counted against the 12-man limit.
Seriously? That's something they did in my high school for senior night. I see where Mo would be coming from, but I'm one of those people who thinks every game is just as important to win as the next one. Have your best players active please.
And again, this is just me, I think Cheeks wants the kid to earn his time, not have it handed to him. That worked wonders with Thaddeus Young last season.
Thaddeus and Speights are two completely different cases. Unlike Thad in his rookie season, M16 played out of his mind in both the Summer League and Pre-season. If nothing else, he earned himself a spot on the active roster. I still like Evans in the rotation, but Marshall and Theo both look really old to me. I also think Speights post-up game would help our bench's stagnant offense.
Will Speights remain on the inactive list? That would be surprising. The Sixers must submit the list an hour before tomorrow's tip-off. I think tomorrow we'll see an active Speights, an inactive Donyell Marshall. Also, Royal Ivey will serve the last of a three-game suspension.
I really hope she is right. Donyell didn't look good last night in limited action.