Making this quick before leaving for the weekend (maybe I’ll be able to update the post later, with all the sums etc).

Ok, it’s a given that this is a pretty young team, with some veteran presence only in the back up department.

So I tried to check our players’ playoffs experience, making a small research through the years.

My source has mainly been Basketball reference and here is what I found.

In order:

SPEIGHTS, IVEY: 0 playoffs games played.

Barely a surprise: the first is a rookie, the second sucks (LOL) and has always played for bad teams (feel free to add the Sixers to this category).

YOUNG, WILLIAMS: 6 playoffs game played (2-4 record)

They were members of 2007/2008 Sixers, that were eliminated by Pistons, 2-4.

IGUODALA, DALEMBERT, GREEN: 11 playoffs games played (3-8 record).

They were members of two Sixers teams that made it to the postseason, in 2004/2005 with Jim O’Brien, and in 2007/2008 with Maurice Cheeks. Sixers lost to Pistons in both occasions, 1-4 in 2004 and 2-4 in 2008.

MILLER: 21 playoffs games played (5-16 record)

Here is the recap of his career in the postseason:

• 2004 (Denver Nuggets), lost 1-4 in the first round to Minnesota
• 2005 (Denver Nuggets), lost 1-4 in the first round to Spurs
• 2006 (Denver Nuggets), lost 1-4 in the first round to the LA Clippers (LOL)
• 2008 (Philadelphia Sixers), lost 2-4 in the first round to the Pistons

(uhm, I think I gave some strong arguments to his critics, LOL)

EVANS: 22 playoffs games played (9-13 record)

• 2005 (Seattle Supersonics), won 4-1 vs Kings, lost 2-4 to Spurs
• 2006 (Denver Nuggets), lost 1-4 to the LA Clippers
• 2008 (Philadelphia Sixers), lost 2-4 to the Pistons

RUSH, 31 playoffs games played (19-15 record*)

• 2003 (LA Lakers), won 4-2 vs Timberwolves, lost 2-4 to the Spurs
• 2004 (LA Lakers), won 4-1 vs Rockets, 4-2 vs Spurs, 4-2 vs Timberwolves, lost 1-4 to the Pistons in the NBA Finals

Funny how the only guy that basically NEVER gets his ass off the bench for the Sixers, is the only one with a winning record in the postseason…

RATLIFF, 33 playoffs games played (20-23 record*)

• 1996 (Detroit Pistons), lost 0-3 to Magic
• 1997 (Detroit Pistons), lost 2-3 to Hawks
• 1999 (Philadelphia Sixers), won 3-1 vs Magic, lost o-4 to Pacers
• 2000 (Philadelphia Sixers), won 3-1 vs Hornets, lost 2-4 to Pacers
• 2008 (Detroit Pistons), won 4-2 vs Sixers, 4-1 vs Magic, lost 2-4 to Celtics

In the two seasons in Philly he was coached by Larry Brown.

MARSHALL, 41 playoffs games played (22-20 record *)

• 2001 (Utah Jazz), lost 2-3 to Mavericks
• 2002 (Utah Jazz), lost 1-3 to Kings
• 2007 (Cleveland Cavs), won 4-0 vs Wizards, 4-2 vs Nets, 4-2 vs Pistons, lost 0-4 to the Spurs in the NBA Finals
• 2008 (Cleveland Cavs), won 4-2 vs Wizards, lost 3-4 to Celtics.

CONCLUSION:

Excluding the two old asses that close this list, and a guy that likely won’t play a minute vs Orlando, we have a laughable playoffs experience, and even smaller background as for series won… I’m afraid the updates that will be made on this post after this year won’t help much in improving the figures.

Have to go, leave comments and send me the corrections, if there is anything to edit.

*= clearly the record refers to the TEAMS, as they did not play in every game of those series.

For example Ratliff in his rookie year in Detroit played only in one out of the three playoffs games for the Pistons, while Marshall was riding the pine as a Cav and was getting on the court sporadically, same Rush for the Lakers.

The Celtics trashing the Lakers in game 6 for their 17th title made last night a lil’ bit sour.

Italy had previously dominated archrival France in the European championship (2-0), so it was overall a good sports day. Still, it sucks that Boston won. I hate the Celtics (hey, just as much as I hate the Lakers…) and I hate the fact that Ainge’s “plan” at the end worked.

With this sour grapes/rant/typical Sixers fan post I will try to prove some points of the theory expressed in the title. Fellow Celtics haters will perhaps like this, Celtics fans will love it even more because it shows how much we all are envious. You see, it’s a win-win situation (LOL) in which everybody is happy, so let’s start.

PREMISES: I admit I hate the Celtics but I like individually almost all of the Celtics players. Pierce has always been among my fav players (I always try to forget he could have been a Sixer…), same for James Posey, I like Ray Allen – because I like shooters in general - I always loved PJ Brown. I am not a great fan of Garnett but I never argued his greatness.

This said, I rooted for them to lose, because… well, because they play for the Celtics ! And be careful, as a poster on the Sixers board correctly said, there is a huge difference bewtbeen BEING A CELTIC (Bird, Mc Hale, Ainge, Pierce etc) and PLAYING FOR THE CELTICS (Allen, Garnett, Posey, Cassell etc).

More: Celtics won, they deserved the title, they were the best team this year. So they are right in any case. Not saying another team could/should have won, ok? This post doesn’t really want to take anything from them but simply point out that EVERYTHING WENT IN THE BEST WAY FOR BOSTON THIS YEAR, and that luck played a big part on its success. It usually happens when you win a title… Some examples:

1) NO MAJOR INJURIES

Five Celtics starters played 129 of their 130 playoffs games (99,2%), with the only Kendrick Perkins missing one. In the regular season, they played 379 of 410 games (92,4%) but the pct should be higher because Pierce (80/82) got two nights off at the end of the regular season (wins @ NY and @ Cha, so it could have been a perfect 82/82), same for Ray Allen (73/82 that could have been 75/82) and Kevin Garnett (71/82 that could have been 73/82). Garnett was the only one to suffer a pretty serious injury, that costed him nine games from January to February.

So counting only the Big Three and not counting the DNP-CDs, it’s a total of 226/240 games, that’s 94% !!!! Rondo missed five regular season games (but one was a night off, 77/82), Perkins missed four (78/82). 

Now I’m too lazy to go check other teams’ stats in detail – and I wasn’t among the ones wishing Garnett & co some injuries… – but, just to randomly name some key players of playoffs teams, Laker Andrew Bynum played only 35 games, Yao Ming 55, and they both missed the post season, while Mc Grady reached 66. Feel free to add more.

2) UNEXPECTED BLOSSOMINGS

Ok, we all know and knew that the Big Three were damn good, but RAJON RONDO PLAYING LIKE THIS ???? C’mon, he showed only some flashes in a 24 W team last year, he was behind Telfair and Delonte West in the rotation for most of the season.

He exceeded everybody’s expectation, let’s be honest, I’m not buying any “I knew he was THAT good”  bullshit. More power to him, of course, I take my hat off. He was a key player, playing in a key spot. Celtics started him because THEY HAD TO, there simply weren’t other options ! And there wasn’t a real back up either, until they signed Cassell.  

Similar thoughs, only at a lower level and with lesser efficiency, could be made for Perkins and Leon Powe, who also exploded for impressive games in pivotal wins: a 18 + 16 game 5 vs Detroit for Perkins, a 21-points-in-15-minutes game 2 vs Lakers for Powe.

But while Powe’s game should be ranked among the Scott Wedman-type of nights that any scrub can occasionally have in the strange world of the NBA playoffs – and that make real fans love this game even more, after all – Rondo and Perkins were from ‘good’ to ‘f’n good’ all year long. My point: they played better than anybody could imagine, and with “anybody” I’m including Ainge, Rivers and themselves. I’m 100% convinced of this.

3) SEQUENCE OF THE “PLAN”

I’m also 100% convinced that when Ainge got Ray Allen – a move that was made ONLY to please Pierce, who asked for some help from some veterans in order to stay in Boston, remember… - he wasn’t sure he could really trade for Garnett. Maybe he had HOPES of getting him, ok, but other teams had them as well.

While I could buy the theory that the following signings of House and, mostly, Posey were really part of the plan: after you get two all stars of that level, it’s easier to convince role players to join your team. Honestly I wasn’t impressed by Ainge’s moves until he got Posey. That was a turning point to me and maybe not coincidentially Posey played a HUGE part in Boston’s winning season, especially in the playoffs.

PJ Brown and Sam Cassell were important as well: try to tell me that Ainge was thinking about them last summer and I will jump off a bridge. 

4) PURE LUCK

Basketball gods wasted no time in showing they were on Celtics’ side this year. Remember the unbelievable last second win @ Charlotte at the beginning of the season, when Bobcats inbounded the ball to… Ray Allen for the game winner, or another unlikely one-point W, at home vs the mighty Minnesota T’Wolves (uh…) when, to quote the same Doc Rivers, “We were lucky to win… it didn’t look like it was going to happen”. Minnesota simply gave away the game in the final.

Not saying Boston won the ring because of those two reg season games, of course, I’m only saying nights like those are often decisive in helping building chemistry and confidence in a brand new team. 

I could go on but it’s better to stop here before looking like a complete moron (LOL).

Celtics won the title, congreatulations, well deserved, again.

But don’t tell me it was because of a specific smart “plan” by Danny Ainge.

He made a couple of (desperate ?) moves to try to save his job and rolled the dice. He won, and he will be remembered in the books as the “architect of the greatest turnaround of NBA history”, bla bla bla… so he’s right. But good GMs (Jerry West, RC Buford, Joe Dumars etc) are something different.

He’s no genius, he’s mainly a lucky ass.

Next season, please.

(on a side note, I would like to thank my boy James Posey and all Celtics for showing that Kobe Bryant’s MVP trophy was another joke by the League…)  

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

Smart guidoish reading tip: guys, fine Sixers blog Recliner GM is doing another player-by-player analysis of the past season. Only difference, Dannie’s posts are way better than mine (LOL).

Seriously, make sure to check them out, so far Recliner GM covered Sam Dalembert, Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young and Andre Miller, it’s interesting to see when we share the same thoughts about our players (most of the times) and where our views differ (sometimes, but here it’s when the best  discussions are generated). Anyway, it’s always worth reading them I think, as Sixers coverage is never enough for real fans.

Time to take a look at one of Sixers4guidos’ favorite players, forward Reggie Evans.

Being right on something hoops-related happens to me so rarely, then when it does, I like to remind it and brag a little bit: I was a fan of Reggie Evans since Day 1. Pretty cool, uh?

OVERALL EFFICIENCY AND RATE

Evans had a heck of a season in my opinion, and was a key contributor in building that “never give up” attitude that was a Sixers’ trademark this year, and one of the things that fans appreciated the most.

Reggie is a player whose efficiency goes beyond the numbers, and that it would be stupid to judge looking at his stats, or only at them. Boxscores never tell the energy he brings, the example he is for his team mates, the boost that he provides to the team and the crowd. Not coincidentially, by the end of the year he had a remarkable amount of groupies fans at the Wachovia center, who formed a sort of “Reggie’s corner” inside the building. This is an example:

My overall rate for Evans this year is 8 - scale is from 1 to 10, being 10 the top – , and I don’t give a damn that his field goal percentage dropped from 54% to 44% (even if a -10% in a year is really awful, LOL). Let’s see why.

WHAT HE DID WELL

Everything he was brought in Philly for: rebounding, first, defense, second, + all the aforementioned ”unmeasureable”, “little” things (that many times make your team win the basketball game…). Evans is perhaps the best offensive rebounder in the League, and the extra possessions he gave us were money in a team that had serious struggles scoring in half court offense.

Whether he was starting (61 games) or coming off the bench (the remaining 20), Reggie has been damn consistent all year. His production actually improved when Cheeks started alternating him and Thaddeus Young in the initial line up: that little fire lighted under his ass made him even angrier, and all the team benefited.

Numbers tell us that Reggie set a career high in steals (1.1) and a career low in free throws (46.7%, “capping” a constant drop that came to the fourth consecutive season…). The 1.000 in three point percentage should tell Cheeks to run more plays for him, or that he should be the man coming off the picks, and not setting them. Or, more realistically, that the only shot made from behind the arc in his career – an unbelievable fallaway jumper at Boston – will be a nice story to tell his sons after retirement.

Evans is undersized for a PF (listed at 6′8, this means he’s 6′7 at best…) and has to face taller opponents every night, but he’s so strong and fiery that he can play some tough defense on basically all big men. He even guarded Shaq very well in a memorable W at Phoenix, a decisive turning point during Sixers’ 07/08 season.

His quick hands and sense of position help him too: it’s difficult to push him or bounce him. Evans is the kind of role player that coaches like, and that will always find suitors. He simply has to be used properly (see below).

WHAT HE DID WRONG

He took too many shots, basically, ant that led to the pathetic 43.9% from the field I mentioned. But don’t blame him. Or not only him.

The origin of this “fault” is that in THIS Sixers team he “had” to start for most of the year. The other solutions at PF were simply too risky (=Jason Smith) or unrealistic (=Randolph, Amundson etc), and the fact that Thaddeus Young lately blossomed at that spot – that isn’t his – has to be considered a success in a huge bet, and was a surprise for all of us (GM and coach included, for their own admissions).

Attentive Sixers fans will remember that at the beginning of the year the team used to play 2-3 isolations per game for Evans (!!) , clearly a reward for what he was doing on our half court. The results of those plays were usually bricks, blocked shots or turnovers, and that affected his numbers (and the team’s offense, of course). Later in the season, Cheeks fortunately cut this dumb habit, and Evans’ efficiency raised.

He will never be a good finisher, though, he’s not athletic and his shooting touch is horrible: the fact that he’s righthanded but his most “effective” shot is the left handed layup/hook speaks volumes about his offensive “skills”. But, again, we don’t care, he’s there for other purposes.

I won’t even start covering his free throw woes: his 3/13 from the line in the home W vs Milwaukee is up there in an ideal “Olympus of bricks” and it brought back sweet Chris Dudley memories…. too funny !!

THIS SUMMER WORK ON…

Uhm… free throws? And getting taller, yes, that would help.

WHAT TO DO WITH HIM

Keep him of course, and use him in the best way: as 7th-8th man off the bench, for a good 24-26 minutes of that “blue collar Sixers basketball” that I like so much. He won’t like to sit, and he will play better.

Evans, who just turned 28 y/o, is signed for three more years for a total of 14.6 millions, and with current NBA standards I would say that is even a steal. Anyway, I stand with my statement that finding a team willing to trade for him will never be a problem. He’s a good asset in any case, that’s my point.

Give me a Reggie Evans any day !!

HEY, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW REGGIE ??? I REALLY LIKE YOU, MAN !!!!

Already published:

• Andre Miller
• Willie Green
• Andre Iguodala

(up next: Sam Dalembert)

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

Hey guys, before I go on throwing out my BS about Iguodala, log on to www.sixers.com: on the right side of the page you will find a poll on “Your favorite Sixers logo”.

Please remember to cast your vote for the only, real, cool Sixers logo, the one with the round ball that is shown top left on this page (option B on the poll), as integral part of Sixers4guidos’ logo:

The REAL Sixers logo is luckily ranked #1 while I’m typing this (44% of the votes) but the ugly one they are using now is close second (41%).

So let’s take advantage of this chance to show how current Sixers’ corporate ’equipment’ sucks and how this storied franchise should go back full time to its traditions: bring the old uniforms – in the picture. with Andre modeling - and the old logo back !! 

Vote for option B, over and over, until we get rid of the anonymous, meaningless one we have now.

Back to our player-by-player analysis, trying to judge Iguodala’s season.

OVERALL EFFICIENCY AND RATE

Iguodala this year made another step in the direction that we were hoping for.

He’s on his way to become an all star. His regular season numbers are at superstar status (19.9 PPG with 45.6% FG, 5.4 RPG, 4.8 APG, 2.1 SPG – with his career highs in bold) or very close to.

Andre showed he’s one of the few, real all round players left in the league, and played in all of 88 Sixers games this season, each night for 40 minutes. That’s huge, especially considering he always takes the toughest defesive assignment of the team.

Unfortunately in the Pistons series his main numbers took a significant drop (13.2 PPG with 33% FG, to go with 4.3 TO, compared to a reg season average of 2.6). That was a huge change of course, that can’t be explained “only” with the great defense Tayshaun Prince played on him.

That made his overall rate fall to 8.5 (scale is from 1 to 10, being 10 the top), less than Andre Miller’s 9, at least in my book. Had he stayed more or less at the same level of the reg season, he would have reached 9.5, and would have been Sixers4guidos’ MVP of the season.

 WHAT HE DID WELL

Everything the numbers show (scoring, rebounding, passing) + something that stats DON’T show (playing good defense). He showed leadership, always being a true reference for his team mates, especially the young ones. He never bitched or complained (ok, with the refs he does that…), never said a bad word about his coach, team, management, fans. Nice.

To sum it up, he truely behaved like a supposed-to-be franchise player should do. At least off the court (LOL, this was evil).

He scored the first buzzer beater of his career, in the game at Memphis, and made a good number of clutch plays in crunch time.

WHAT HE DID WRONG

The playoffs choking job was honestly embarassing and is worrying for all Sixers fans.

It seems that not only Prince shut him down – which would be even ok, he did the same vs Kobe in the 2004 Finals after all - but also got under Andre’s skin. If you think Iguodala’s numbers were bad, take a look at Tayshaun stats in those six games: 16.3 PPG, 65% FG (with a combined 19/21 in game 3 and game 4 !!) , 40% from 3 pt land, 5 RPG, 2.8 APG in 36 minutes of action…. Can you say “outplayed” on both ends of the court ?????

Free throw shooting is a major concern too. I think is simply unacceptable that a perimeter player of his level shoots 72% from the line in regular season, including 3/9, 8/15, 4/9, 0/4, 2/8 nights… it’s all a matter of focus and self confidence, of course, because he CAN and SHOULD be over 80%.

Outside/3pt shooting is “half” a problem, I think. We all know and should remember that Iguodala IS NOT a shooter, and he probably will never become one. He can OCCASIONALLY hit a three pointer or a long jumper, but that’s not his game. He should use these shots only to balance his drives to the basket, as a “bonus” weapon in the nights when they are falling.

I think Andre will greatly benefit from playing with a real 3pt threat beside him (Ray Allen-type, say. Hey, I didn’t say he should get Ray Allen, ok ????), and would be very good in drawing double teams and kicking the ball out. Of course one thing is having Willie Green there to catch the rock and shoot it, another thing is having… Mike Miller ?

THIS SUMMER PLEASE WORK ON…

Shooting, three point shooting, free throw shooting. Over and over again.

Hire some indian guru to teach how to perform well under pressure.

WHAT TO DO WITH HIM

Keep him. Sign him at a reasonable price.

I think Sixers shouldn’t go much over the 57 million -5 yrs deal he reportedly rejected last summer. I am no cap expert, but 63-65 would be the max I’d give him for that length. Or more $$, but for a shorter period (50 mill-4 yrs ???). The fact that it will be Ed Stefanski, and not Billy King, to manage the negotiations for us, makes me feel safer…

If he wants more, work on a sign-and-trade deal.

Get a low post presence, and probably Iguodala’s efficiency will raise big time. I think he can be the cornerstone of this franchise, reguardless of the fact he’s a “franchise player” or not, a “#1 option” or not, Batman or Robin and similar BS…

I also think that trading him will ruin the chemistry already built, and perhaps break something in a team that is STARTING to look good, so in general I am all for keeping Iguodala.

But always keep in mind that we finished 40-42 in the worst conference ever, so there should be huge room for improvement, with or without Iguodala !!

Already published:

• Andre Miller
• Willie Green

(Up next: Reggie Evans)

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

Guys, sorry for the absence of these days but I’m changing job, town, house and I’m pretty busy… this will last some more weeks.

Time to go on with Sixers4guidos’ analysis, with a post about shooting guard Willie Green, the player I loved to hate over the last years. Now it’s payback time for Willie, let’s give him his props.

OVERALL EFFICIENCY AND RATE

Just like Andre Miller, Willie Green had his best season ever, reaching career highs in games played (74, all of them as a starter), minutes played (26.6), FG % (.436), rebounds (2.5), assist (2 !), and points (12.4).

Willie won the competition for the starting spot at SG with Carney – a competition that apperently didn’t even start… – and was effective all year, providing Sixers his best asset, the ability to score. Green is instant offense and you can count on that.

My rate for Willie Green is 8 (scale is from 1 to 10, being 10 the top).

WHAT HE DID WELL

He did well everything he is good at: transition game, fastbreaks, drives, some outside shooting. Green is also an ok defender, thanks to his strong legs, and it’s difficult to see him burned by his opponent: we’re not talking about a Bruce Bowen or a James Posey, of course, but he’s not the kind of player that makes coaches mad in his half court. 100% effort is always guaranteed.

Green improved a lot in his shot selection - one of the reasons why he draw so much criticisms over the years and made FANS mad… – played more under control, believe it or not, and learned to get more often to the line, something he really lacked before.

Free throw pct also improved, from the horrible 66,7 % of last year to a respectable 75,7 %. Same for his passing ability and understaning of when giving the ball.

WHAT HE DID WRONG

In his “off” nights Green can still drive you nuts and destroy any kind of offensive flow with rushed shots, one-vs-three drives, charges. There were some of those also this year.

Passing is still an optional for him: a season high seven, two games with six dimes but twelve with zero.

His numbers dropped in the playoffs, but less than those of more celebrated colleagues….

THIS SUMMER PLEASE WORK ON…

Outside/three point shooting. Sixers desperately need that, and everybody knows it. 

If Green could become a more reliable shooter, the team will be really stronger.

WHAT TO DO WITH HIM

If we want to trade him, this summer will be the best moment to do it.

His value is at an all time high, I honestly doubt that Willie could get significantly better than he is now and I think there might be several teams, also very good ones, where Green would be very useful.

I am thinking about New Orleans, that had to play a declining Mo Peterson at the STARTING SG spot all year, but also San Antonio (Finley is the shadow of his old self), or Cleveland, not to mention a lot of weaker teams that need scoring: Seattle, Miami etc.

If we want to make the Sixers a real contender, we have to think about a better solution at SG (= we could put Green in some package to get a stud PF), but Willie could be nice as 6th-7th man off the bench: similar thoughts were made for Reggie Evans, an excellent role player who SHOULD NOT start in a serious team.

(Up next: Andre Iguodala)

Already published: Andre Miller.

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

Sixers4guidos starts its player-by-player analysis of the season with the guy who in my humble opinion should receive the ‘Sixers MVP award’, point guard Andre Miller.

OVERALL EFFICIENCY AND RATE

Miller had arguably the best season of his career.

If you have been reading this blog for a while, you should know I am not a stat maniac, but his 17 PPG and .492 % FG (both career highs) are pretty impressive, especially coming at 32 y/o. 

Seven assists for 2.5 turnovers is a nice ratio as well, considering he plays 36 minutes in an up tempo team.

He’s always been known more as a playmaker than a scorer, but this year we saw that in the right system he can be also a reliable #2 option for his team, carrying the load offensively in many nights. He often knocked down clutch shots down the stretch, which never hurts….

My rate for Andre Miller is 9 (scale is from 1 to 10, being 10 the top).

WHAT HE DID WELL

Basically all: leadership, scoring, passing, shooting, rebounding, in that order.

Dude played in 733 of his possible 736 games in the NBA (!!!), is solid as a rock (knock on wood) and a great presence in the locker room. He’s one of the best players to set up his team mates in the NBA. Alley oops, passes from the dribble, passes for the man coming off screens are his bread-and-butter.

He also gives Sixers the best low post presence offensively, which is sad and true at the same time, but not for Andre’s fault !!!

WHAT HE DID WRONG

Not much, honestly. He notoriously has troubles guarding smaller, quicker opponents that like to drive to the hoop (Chris Paul and Deron Williams had fantastic nights vs Sixers), but I challenge you to name me a player that can limit the guys I mentioned…

Billups killed him in the last two games of the playoffs, but Miller gave him the same treatment in the first games, so I’d say INDIVIDUALLY that particular match up ended with a tie. He surely didn’t come up short in the post season.

THIS SUMMER PLEASE WORK ON…

Uhm, can a guy get better at 32 y/o ? Maybe he could work on getting in a better shape for the start of the season, he usually starts slow, for his own admission.

WHAT TO DO WITH HIM

Keep him, he was the key of Sixers’ successful season…. I think only Calderon will be an upgrade over Andre Miller right now, but I doubt Raptors will let him go.

Unlike many Sixers fans, who think he’s more of a SG, in my opinion Lou Williams CAN play the point full time, but he still has to learn from Miller… that’s why I say wait at least one more season with Andre at the helm, keeping Lou coming off the bench, and see if he can improve his playmaking skills seeing what Andre does. 

Then, if it will be clear that Lou can’t/will not play PG, extend Miller even after 2009.

People who want to trade Andre MIller now should remember that his 10 mill coming off the books in the summer of 2009 will be even more that the current asset later, when we’ll approach next year’s trade deadline….

(Up next: Willie Green)

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

I am back home after a 4 days romantic trip to Verona (the city of Romeo and Juliet !) with my wife, finally back blogging also.

I am changing job & town in the next weeks, so it’s possible that new posts and updates will have some pauses.

Anyway I’ll have BIG NEWS SOON, so give me a free pass and stay tuned on Sixers4guidos.

So the Sixers season is over after the 77-100 loss to the Pistons in game 6 of the first round: 4-2, end. While I’m typing this post, Detroit has a 2-1 lead over Orlando in the second round.

Of course no need to recap the game one week after it was played, and also because it was another blowout (2-15 Detroit to start it, 12-30 after the first quarter, 33-51 at the half…).

I’ll just point out some things, the feelings I had after the end of the series.

1) Detroit deserved to advance, of course. Can’t argue with three consecutive wins after trailing 1-2, also because the wins came in a pretty impressive way. The best team won, simple as that.

2) I am VERY HAPPY with what Sixers did in the season and in the series. Idiots complaining about the 2-1 lead we had, about the collapses in the last two games, about Iguodala’s (actual) shortcomings, perhaps forget where did we come from.

So I’d better remind you: a 40-42 regular season record, and this after a year in which many thought we’d end dead last in the Conference. Sixers overachieved, both in the regular season and in playoffs, so cut the BS criticisms this time !!!

3) I’m EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED that Sixers fans (in the pic, a cool one) couldn’t sell the arena out in none of the three games played in Philly. I even heard some boos in game 6… typical Philly.

Fortunately the fans few left until the end of that (bad) game, gave our guys and the coach the standing ovation they totally deserved for this wonderful season.

4) I will root for the Pistons during these playoffs.

I always liked the Pistons, since the Bad Boys era, and the fact they kicked us out of the playoffs in our last three appearances, will not change this feeling.

Stefanski stated many times that Detroit should be a model for the Sixers (last one mentioned in this article by Bob Ford), and I like this too, I hope in 2-3 years we can reach that level.

UP SOON ON SIXERS4GUIDOS !

* a brand new home page, with cool graphics !!!

* a Sixer-by-Sixer breakdown of the 2007/2008 season, starting with Andre Miller.

* results of a poll among Sixers bloggers, giving the 2007/2008 Sixers awards

* (hopefully) a surprise from the Sixers franchise, that I’ve been in contact with, even today. I’m waiting for some answers about a “sensitive” topic I’ve been bringing up over the last months… 

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

Yeah, the series is still open, yeah before it started everybody would have thought that being 2-2 after four games would have been damn good, but still I have the feeling that we missed a great chance.

1) First off, give Pistons their props for the deserved 84-93 win of last night, they proved why they have been to the Conference finals five years in a row.

2) we better try to analyze how we let a 14 point lead (43-29, 4.30 left in the second) turn into a 15 point deficit (65-80, 8.30 to play in the fourth. That means a 22-51 break in 20 minutes of action !

3) we should think about possible solutions to avoid that happening again.

Pistons played like a veteran team, never losing composure also when everything looked going in the wrong sense for them.

Sixers’ FIRST QUARTER was great: Sammy knocked down a couple of free throws and had a huge block on Billups (0/3 + 3 turnovers to start the game…), igniting the crowd and setting the tone for his team mates. Iguodala hit his first two shots, one being a step back jumper (the same shot that NEVER went in before) and the other a thunderous dunk over Rasheed Wallace. We all thought it could be the right night for him and for the Sixers.

By the half of the period all Sixers starters had already scored, while Detroit (with Maxiell in at PF) struggled: it was 17-10 and it ended at 25-19, with Green and Dalembert scoring six points, Iguodala five and Young four. Mo didn’t make any substitution.

The SECOND QUARTER was even better: Jason Smith had a huge impact off the bench, with a spectacular block on Hamilton, a fall away jumper that beat the shot clock and a high flying dunk off a feed by Lou Williams, followed by another throwdown by the same guard that gave us a 10 point lead (39-29). On Detroit’s first defensive attempt of zone defense Carney knocked down a long three (42-29), so what could you ask more ???

A couple of turnovers kept the Pistons alive, and they closed the half down ten, 46-36, with Prince leading all scores with 10 on a nice 5/6 from the floor, while Billups and Rip were held to a combined, and pretty unbelievable, 3/18. Sixers’ offense was balanced, with Iguodala at 9 (4/8), Green at 7 (3/6), Miller at 8 (4/8 but with four turnovers), Sam at 6, with five rebounds.

The THIRD QUARTER was simply another story. We could make all the possible breakdowns, but the truth is just as simple: Detroit made all shots. Pistons went 5/6 from downtown in the period, with Sheed hitting three: that helped them making the initial 11-0 run (46-47, first lead of the night) and then extending the lead to seven (53-60, Sheed’s third three), and ten at 56-66, completing a 10-30 break ! 

An unstoppable Prince made a lot of damage (3/3 in the period), and second chance points absolutely killed us.

The 62-70 score at the start of the FOURTH QUARTER was something possible to overcome, but Sixers’ pains continued: long rebounds were always falling in Pistons’ hands and, unfortunately for us, even the horrible Rip Hamilton seen in the previous quarters woke up, scoring 10 consecutive points that put the game out of reach (69-84, 6 minutes to go).

Our lack of outside shooting was exposed, Willie Green had a nice spurt with a couple of baskets but Pistons were never really threatened. Game over.

So what went wrong for us?

1) Iguodala’s second half was unwatchable. Not only he shot 0/8 in the last two quarters (and 1/13 overall after the 3/3 aforementioned start), but he was abused by Tayshaun Prince again.

Tay went 5/5 in the second half, and while everybody is (correctly) pointing the finger on Iggy’s 11/49 from the floor in the series (22%…), you better combine that with Prince’s 66 % (31/47), including 19/21 in the last two games  !!! To sum it up, Iguodala, known also for being a good defender, is being severely outplayed by Tayshaun on both ends.

But it’s not the shots not falling, or at least not only that. It’s his decision making, the kind of shots he takes (fallaway 20 footers, forced drives etc) and the turnovers that really irk me. Yesterday he gave away the ball five times, and also missed five free throws, which is totally unacceptable. Just another horrible night for him (and his agent, LOL).

This leads to another question: why is he playing so much (46 minutes yesterday ???) even when he’s clearly ”off”? It’s not that we lack options at the shooting (?) guard-small forward spot. Thaddeus Young had another impressive game (15 points + 9 rebounds and a ton of good, smart plays), Green is being very solid (props, Willie) and he’s always good for providing instant offense, while Carney responded well even in limited minutes.

I understand Iggy is the franchise player (?), that you have to wait for him bla bla bla, but… how long ???? Solution: pull him out give him a rest earlier, use a combo of Green, Lou and Carney in his place.

2) we didn’t box out well, leaving Detroit too many offensive rebounds in the key moments (even if the boxscore doesn’t tell it). Solution: how about playing Dalembert AND Smith together for some stretches? Smith at PF for some minutes could perhaps open some space for Sam in the paint as well: lobs, alley oops etc.

3) we didn’t make shots (I guess you are impressed by this smart “behind the scene” analysis…), also because we took bad shots. Solution: more ball circulation, more movement without the ball, more screens, cuts etc, less one-on-one plays.

Now looking at the next games I’ll have to say this.

The series is still open and I think we are capable of winning one more in Detroit. We simply let a winnable game slip away, even if no fan with half a brain could have thought that Pistons would given up so quickly/easily.

Still, being 2-2 after four games is nice (remember how we got here… 40 reg season wins vs Piston’s 59…), and this team surprised us so many times that if they pull out a W at Detroit on Tuesday, this time I won’t be… surprised. Pistons realized these Sixers are for real and that they have to play hard for 48 minutes to beat them.

SIXERS4GUIDOS BONUS STATS AND RANDOM THOUGHTS

Well, I just gave you a lot of nice stats above, what the f’k do you want more from me ?? LOL – At halftime, Sixers shot 18/33 (54%), Pistons 15/40 (37%) – That means Sixers shot 13/33 in the second half, Pistons 19/40 –  A good note: Sam Dalembert was very good again – Another thing to be happy for: Thaddeus Young’s 15 points are a playoffs career high, same for his 9 rebounds  - When Andre MIller has more turnovers (4) than assists (3) it’s tough – Detroit’s (celebrated) bench was nowhere to be found again. All Pistons veterans logged more than 40 minutes, this might turn in our favor later – Mc Dyess played with a mask, lifting the total of Pistons looking scary to a remarkable two.

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

I don’t know if there are Reggie Evans groupies yet. If not, time to create a group of them.

Evans, a reborn Dalembert and Andre Miller were – in this order, to me – our key players in the 95-75 unexpected thrashing of the Pistons in game 3.

This means few things:

1) my 4-1 Pistons prediction is already off the mark (and I love it, of course…)

2) young Sixers are psychologically more solid and mature than we all thought, bouncing back from the blow out of game 2 and answering it with another blow out. This against a veteran team that was supposed to regain the lead of the series, also mentally I mean, after the “distraction” of game 1. It didn’t happen, I see.

3) Pistons might still win the series, of course, but after these three games they are actually closer to a memorable collapse than to a “routine” advancement to the second round. Some signs (looks, faces, body language etc) should worry a lil bit their hot fans.

4) the most worrying fact for Detroit should be that Sixers are up 2-1 with their best player completely out of the series. Andre Iguodala had another bad game last night, but we still won, with no real struggles. This tells us a lot about the team’s capability to find other solutions, with different players stepping up. The only Reggie Evans (+ the wonderful Thaddeus Young, but with less impact) has played very well all three games

5) Billups – a player I am a big fan of - the heart, the soul and the brain of the Pistons, has been completely outplayed by Andre Miller so far, and Pistons bench has never left a sign on the games. Twentyfive turnovers is an impressive stat for a team like Detroit, that averaged only 11 in the regular season (#1 in the NBA).

Few flashes from all periods.

In the FIRST QUARTER Sixers started with a 6-0 run, and Pistons first possessions were an airball (Mc Dyess) and a bad turnover (Billups). Pistons stayed in the game because Tayshaun Prince was very effective on both ends of the floor, scoring at will and pushing Iguodala to take bad, forced shots from the perimeter. Andre, take it to the rim please….

Reggie Evans sparked us in the SECOND QUARTER, stripping Rasheed and going coast to coast to draw a foul and, later, scoring on an (unlikely, let’s be honest !!) fallaway jumper. Sam Dalembert gave him a lot of help, including a nice jump hook and a sweet mid range jumper.

But Sixers built their win in the pivotal THIRD QUARTER, starting hot and connecting on all of their first four shots: it was 56-46 when Thaddeus Young made a pair from the line with 8.30 to play. Hamilton’s fourth foul anticipated a sequence by Reggie Evans that made me scream of joy: offensive foul drawn by Wallace, 2/2 from the line, another offensive foul drawn by Prince: the crowd went wild (in the picture). Iguodala capped that with a layup for the 64-50.

Pistons started a streak of consecutive misses that reached fourteen (!!) and that continued also in the beginning of the FOURTH QUATER, until a goaltending called on Evans ended it at seventeen (!!!!!). Too late, because Carney had already scored the first four points of the period (74-55), a lead that Miller quicky lifted over twenty with a coast to coast (78-57, 9 minutes to go).

Then the fun began, with Sam Dalembert dunking everything, Lou Williams completing nice plays and even Shavlik Randolph scoring the first playoffs points of his career.

What a night !!

SIXERS4GUIDOS BONUS STATS AND RANDOM THOUGHTS

I didn’t check but I’m pretty sure Pistons shot 8/35 in the second half, with two field goals coming in the last minutes of garbage time – Mc Dyess had to leave the game with a broken nose with the score at 56-46: Iguodala accidentally hit him – Thaddeus Young was hit in the nose as well, after a hard foul by Maxiell – The only thing that makes me nervous is the fact that we are making a favor to the Celtics… even getting the Pistons tired, I mean, reguardless of the final outcome of the series – No sell out ????? 18.805 fans is pretty disappointing… they were loud, though.

(BRING THE OLD SIXERS UNIFORMS BACK ! S4G CAMPAIGN – SIGN HERE)

The 105-88 loss of last night is exactly the game that we were expecting. Even in Game 1, I mean.

Pistons absolutely destroyed the Sixers, outplaying us in every possible way and the final score doesn’t even give the idea of how hard we got beat.

I don’t think it’s necessary to recap the game, let’s say we could stay with Detroit only in the FIRST QUARTER and only because it lasted 12 minutes (LOL).

Andre Miller’s (lucky) bank shot at the buzzer made it 25-18, putting an end to a lesson of playoffs basketball. I would say ‘Detroit playoffs basketball’ if the expression wouldn’t remind me of that annoying chorus that you hear there….

To sum it up, Pistons played a damn stifling defense, pushing us to shoot FOUR AIRBALLS in the period, that Iguodala ended with 0/6, while Sixers as a team were 3/14 initially.

On the other side, Rasheed Wallace did his job, exactly like in game 1, scoring 11 points with a conbination of low post moves over Dalembert (embarassed in every one-on-one situation) and a long three. Thaddeus Young was the only effective Sixers, with 6 points off some nice offensive rebounds.

The SECOND QUARTER was simply ugly for us: without Dalembert, Pistons found their way to the basket for easy layups, lifted by Stuckley (4 quick points off the bench) and Maxiell. Mc Dyess and Tayshaun Prince did the rest, with a set of drives, baby hooks and mid range jumpers that no Sixer could limit.

That series of baskets was boosted by another horrible sequence: Sixers turned the ball over on three consecutive, key possessions, twice by Willie Green who took some dumb decisions: so from 43-33 it became 49-33 soon, and 53-36 at the half. No match really.

The THIRD QUARTER was basically garbage time: a frustrated Iguodala started it with a charge, and his first and only field goal of the night marked the 60-40 (8.00 to play)…. Before that, Willie Green had a wondeful block on Rip Hamilton, but the ball went to Billups who connected for a three, his first basket (56-37). A sign that it wasn’t our night.

From thereon, the game was good only for highlight reel: Maxiell’s block on Jason Smith, Maxiell’s reverse dunk on Jason Smith (in the picture), a couple of dunks by a spirited Rodney Carney – who played only he last 36 seconds in the first half…. Lou Williams filled his stat line with some jumpers and free throws, but forcing too many shots: he sometimes tends to do that when the game is over, instead of making the team play, and I don’t like it.

So here are some extra thoughts.

1) When Reggie Evans (great game again, much respect) is your MVP two nights in a row, you do have a problem

2) when your supposed-to-be franchise player shoots 5/24 in two games, he’s not helping you (I’m pulling a Sherlock Holmes here…) 

3) when your starting center shoots 3/16 in two games, he’s not helping you either (see above)

4) (Ricky = the guido Einstein) when the two of them shoot for a combined 8/40 in two games (20%), you have a big problem

In general, every shot by Iguodala was contested, with Tayshaun’s long arms stretched over him while Sam, simply, has zero reliable offensive moves to count on, and it shows. We will probably (or hopefully) see more of Rodney Carney in game 3 if Iguodala’s struggles will continue.

5) Andre MIller didn’t have a fun night as well, often double teamed by Pistons big men: he had to stop his dribble many times, trapped in a corner, and couldn’t find the open team mate. He had some nice cuts and offensive rebounds to put some points on the boxscore, though, his experience helped him being somehow useful for the team.

6) Pistons got too many offensive rebounds and second chance points killed us: don’t look at the boxscore, it doesn’t tell you the truth on this

So are Sixers headed to a quick exit after this bad loss?

Maybe not, it was simply a reality check that could be useful and that we could work/build on. We have to learn the lesson and make adjustments. Our confidence shouldn’t be diminished, we still have home court advantage (!) and in the packed, roaring Wachovia center it would be a different story. Go Sixers !!!

SIXERS4GUIDOS BONUS STATS AND RANDOM THOUGHTS

Shooting 4/8 from the line in the pivotal second quarter wasn’t exactly enjoyable – Iguodala threw an embarassing brick in the fourth, that nearly crashed the board, and after that smarty decided not to shoot anymore – Dear Jason Smith, you know I like you, you are my dude etc but how about grabbing a f’n defensive rebound? Zero in 20 minutes of action… – Mo Cheeks called time out after 1.30 played in the fourth, with the score at 88-65 !