Even though it hasn't been exactly talked about much, it was pretty much assumed by all parties that Jodie Meeks would not be coming back to the Sixers next season. The asking price was higher than the Sixers were willing to go to begin with, and then they went out and signed Nick Young and traded for Dorell Wright. He was being replaced and would become a free agent.
But we got a bit more official confirmation from Sixers CEO Adam Aron when he was going on a typical tweeting spree, congratulating and saluting the guys that they didn't think were worth bringing back.
@Jmeeks20 All in Sixers Nation salute Jodie Meeks. You have a bright future, we wish you well.
— Adam Aron (@SixersCEOAdam) July 12, 2012
Jodie was sort of an enigma in Philly, which is weird because he's such a normal basketball player. But the fact that Doug Collins started him over Evan Turner for awhile and the stretch were Jodes wasn't really hitting shots grinded on people. Ultimately, he was far and away the team's most efficient scorer last season (55.1 TS%) with a criminally low usage rate for a guard (15.2%) and no one area where he really killed you.
No, Jodie was not going to be the starting shooting guard on a championship team, but neither was anyone else on last year's squad. Floor spacing was important, and if they were trying to win games in the short term (they were), starting Jodie over Evan was the right move. Shame people resent him for that. And considering we got him for Primoz Brezec and Royal Ivey (FROZONE ALSO CAME WITH HIM!), that's damn good value.
Good luck to Jodes wherever he ends up. Even more luck to Orestes, who will forever be our blog dad. We love you both.