"You are what your record says you are." -- Bill Parcells.
The Sixers fell to 37-35 today -- a mediocre record for a mediocre team. One night they'll go into Los Angeles and stifle Kobe's Lakers, another night they'll collapse against a banged up Pistons team. I realize it more and more every game. This team is flat-out mediocre.
However; they won't be mediocre forever. Despite today's tough loss, and the lack of execution down the stretch, there were a few bright spots.
The brightest being Thaddeus Young. He is blossoming before our eyes. He gets better every game. Some of his moves leave me saying, "Whoa! Where did that come from?" His shot is smooth, his post game is effective and his ball handling is improving. It's scary to think that this dude is only 20 years old. With another off-season under his belt, I see no reason Thad can't be an all-star next year.
- Work ethic: check
- Good character: check
- Intangibles: check
- High IQ: check
- Shot coach: check
Baby Legs has the intangibles of an all-star and the work ethic of a legend -- a deadly combination. (I want this quote to be cited during Thad's Hall of Fame induction.)
Another bright spot was Iggy. Remember last April when Andre looked over-matched by Tayshaun Prince's defense? Tonight's game made me forget about that. Iggy's offense was much improved. He was running, he was dunking, he was getting to the line. It was nice to see Iguodala drop 27 on 10-19 shooting against the fan-proclaimed "Iggy-stopper."
One more minor bright spot was the free throw shooting. The Sixers shot 20-23. Missed free throws are my biggest pet peeve, so I can't go without giving credit where credit is due.
The bottom line is, one team executed better than the other down the stretch, and that's the team that won the game.
I'm about to re-watch the entire game so I can crunch some numbers. I'll be back afterwards with the first edition of "Bill Simmons Stats".
Injury: Sam Dalembert played only seven minutes before leaving with a right calf strain.