Put Out Of Their Misery

If a local team misses the playoffs, but no one is paying attention, did it really happen?

In a completely unexpected development, the Sixers have been eliminated from the Eastern Conference Playoffs. Ok, I’m being sarcastic. I know this team held down the 8th spot in the East for most of the season, but did anyone really expect them to make any noise in the playoffs? Most people with a modicum of basketball knowledge could tell that this roster of players, put together by mastermind G.M. Billy King, was fatally flawed. I’m just surprised they totally fell apart over the last month of the season. I guess these millionaires were in a rush to get to the offseason so they can put spinning “dubs” on their “whips”.

I’m with Stephen A., A.I. clearly deserves better than this. I still don’t understand how the personnel departments during A.I.’s tenure could not identify players to complement his style of play. It has been proven over the years that a team needs two legit superstars or one mega star and two other All Star caliber players to contend for a title. A.I. has never had his complimentary superstar or two All-Star players. It is true that Larry Hughes, Stackhouse, Harpring, Kukoc and even Van Horne played better when they left town, but after he was unable to mesh with Stack, it was apparent that AI could not play with another perimeter player that drives to the hoop to create offense.

A title team could have been built around AI had they added the following pieces:

1. An unselfish low post presence that could rebound and get 15-20 points a night from the blocks (think C-Webb from five years ago);
2. An unselfish 3 that could defend, run the floor and knock down threes (ok, guys like that don’t grow on trees, but Detroit found Tayshaun Prince late in the first round); and
3. A point that is taller than 6’3”, can defend the other team’s two guard, and knock down open jumpers (as my buddy Big Daddy pointed out, I’ve just explained Jalen Rose)

Larry was on the right path by surrounding AI with a bunch of guys whose only concern was defense and rebounding, but we would have won a title with guys described above.

Nonetheless, it is now clear that we’ve squandered A.I.’s prime. It hurts to admit this, but I’m in the minority of people who think AI should be traded for young players and picks. This team needs to hit rock bottom before it can itself out of the NBA’s lower middle class. My plan is to make the team so bad next season that we win the Greg Oden 2007 draft lottery. (If you don’t know who Greg Oden is, do a Google search and you’ll see why Ohio St is projected as a Final Four team next year.) However, Billy King would probably screw that up also.

Right now, I’m fed up with this franchise. Ed Snider is a smart man. He can see that Dalembert was a waste of money and that Korver, as a role playing 3 point specialist, was not worth the money they paid him either. I’m not fully investing myself in this team again until King is dethroned as the GM.

Congrats to the Sixers's front office, you've now joined the Phillies on my boycott list.