I finally got my first extended look at the 2008-2009 Philadelphia Seventy-Sixers tonight and I came away feeling pretty good. The
Sixers controlled the game pretty much the whole way as the Knicks tried out their new run-gun-and-play-no-defense philosophy. As opposed to the walk-the-ball-up-the-court-dribble-too-much-take-a-bad-shot-and-play-no-defense philosophy they championed under Isiah Thomas last season.
There were a few surprises, like Andre Iguodala bringing the ball up the court for the majority of the first quarter. Iguodala turned in the type of game I'm hoping he'll be turning in all season long. He was 7/15 from the floor (1/3 from three) with 5 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and only 1 turnover. Miller led the team in scoring with 22.
Brand's shot wasn't falling. He could get it off whenever he wanted to, but it just would not go down. He was a dismal 3/12 from the floor, but 7/7 from the line and he also grabbed 11 boards in his 30 minutes of work. Willie Green somehow got 13 shots up in 19 minutes of work. Mo really needs to limit his time, the guy just never learns.
Now, for the two players who really got me excited. I'm sure you can guess the first, it's Thad. The kid just continues to elevate his game. Tonight he played 35 minutes and scored 16 points on only 9 shots. He was 2/4 from downtown, and had 3 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals and zero turnovers. The kid just gets it. He played great defense (except for a backdoor he got burned on by Q), he ran the floor. In the halfcourt, he found the soft spot on the weak side of the floor and drained two threes in the first quarter. His jumper looks much better this season. He's quickened up his release a little, but most of all, he just looks confident shooting it. He's now 7/14 from three so far this preseason, if he can hit 40% of those shots the Eastern Conference is going to be in serious trouble.
After the jump we'll talk about the biggest surprise of the game.
I went in expecting this from Thad, what I didn't expect was what I saw from Marreese Speights. On Friday night, Mo left the second team in there for the fourth quarter. The Knicks wound up winning the game. Tonight, Mo went with his typical small lineup for the majority of the fourth, except when he slid Brand to the 5, he inserted Speights at the 4. I have to say, Speights is quicker than I thought he'd be, has a much better touch than I thought he'd have (he hit 2 deep jumpers, probably from about 20), and he has a better feel for the game than anyone could've expected. I think the Sixers brass may have found another gem in this year's draft.
With a lineup of Miller, Iguodala, Thad, Speights and Brand the Sixers were all over the floor on defense. Speights was guarding guys on the perimeter, Iguodala was down on the blocks, Thad was bringing the ball up the floor, Brand was leading the break. The parts were interchangable and with those guys on the floor the athleticism is just through the roof. I really, really can't wait for these games to count.
On the negative side of the ledger goes the play of Lou Williams. He looked really bad, he shot 3/9 from the floor and hhad only 3 assists to go along with his 3 turnovers.
Obviously, it was only a preseason game, and one they only won by 7 points against a bad team, but still. The little things I saw were extremely encouraging.
By the way, my bold prediction of the night is that Eddy Curry is either "hurt" the entire season, traded for cents on the dollar or bought out of his contract before December. He can barely walk up and down the floor. Tonight he played 6 minutes, then left with a tummy ache. He came into camp out of shape, which means pretty much exactly the same way he came into camp and played all year last year. D'Antoni isn't going to stand for it. Best-case scenario, he rides the pine all season. On the plus side for the Knicks, Wilson Chandler was insane. He single-handedly kept the Knicks in the game, 20 points, 10 boards on 5/6 from three. Pick him up if you have an empty roster spot on your fantasy team.
Speights is sooooo sick. Unfortunately, I couldn't watch the game because it wasn't on, but these are the same things I was seeing from M16 in the Summer League. I went in not knowing much about him and came out asking myself, "Was that Mo Speights or Amare?"
Obviously he has a lot to learn, but someday Brian, someday he will be a star in this league.
I actually thought he was a wider body for some reason, he's quick and actually does remind me a lot of a young Brand. It's sad to say, but the Jason Smith injury could really open a door for him and that might be a very good thing for this team in the long run.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGOfFDPp00E
Nice, hadn't seen that video before.
Thanks Brian. Awesome recap. I am psyched about the Sixers...I wish Ed Stefanski was the GM of the Eagles. Now THERES a GM who gets it and understands that when you have a window to win a championship...you go for it. Thank you Ed.
If Iggy can get his TOs down, then his game can take that next step.
If you look at his splits, it appeared as though he was learning this late last season for what it is worth.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3826/splits?year=2007
Yup, he raised the level of his game in just about every facet in the second half of the season. Even shot 36% from three.
Most important words or the post?
"He's quickened up his release a little."
Please be true. Thad and Smith have really slow releases and it was always a major concern in the back of my head. Thad's release has always been good though so I figured he would learn, as he does with everything else.
This brings up an important question in my book for next season... can Dalembert finally be purged from this roster?
There was no hesitation when he was open, and he definitely got through his shooting motion quicker. I'd say he definitely worked on speeding it up a little, but it didn't hurt his form. He brought the ball up the court a couple times and didn't dribble it off his foot, he also had a couple of pretty drives to the hoop that ended with his whirling dervish spin move and a finger roll. It was sick.
Dalembert had a pretty good year last year. But in the playoffs he dissapeared when it mattered most.
I could see a LOT of Speights out there at the 4 and Elton at the 5 as the year goes on...
Ed Stefanski is a friggin genius. I love this team.
Man think back to the last few years when we were stuck with Iverson and Webber...I had such an empty feeling that this team would never turn around and that you just couldn't win with Iverson no matter who you brought in(as evidenced in Denver). What a change...Go Sixers.
Sammy actually didn't look bad last night. He was completely marginalized, but he didn't play poorly. He hit a couple of jumpers in the lane on feeds from Brand down low, which was nice. He made a great cut to the hoop and was rewarded by an alley-oop from Iguodala which he threw down with one hand. More than anything, he didn't get the minutes.
I have mixed feelings about Sammy. Last year he played some mind blowing defense against some of the best bigs in the league, Tim Duncan comes immediately to mind. If Mo can find a way to keep him motivated without force feeding him the ball on offense, he can be a valuable asset to this team.
I do, however, think that Mo's small lineup for the fourth should probably be Brand, Speights, Thad, Iguodala and Miller. Maybe with Lou Williams mixed in from time to time.
I root for Dalembert. I root for him to understand how ot play basketball mostly.
I remember that game Brian. Sam was great against duncan down the stretch...but I would imagine if he faced Duncan more often he would be exposed. I dont know if its a case of motivation or if hes just not that talented. Time will tell...
I think it's desire. He has the physical skills to be a superior defender, quick feet, great length, jump through the roof. It comes down to tenacity.