It is pretty much a forgone conclusion that Eddie Jordan will not be welcomed back next season as the coach of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Hopefully, half the roster is shown the door with him.

The Sixers do not have the least talent in the NBA. Their roster includes a former All-star at power forward (Elton Brand); a talented, if overpaid guard (Andre Iguodala); a $12 million center (Samuel Dalembert); a young guard scoring 14.9 PPG (Lou Williams); and a young forward with big upside (Thaddeus Young).

Yet they play like the Washington Generals.

The Sixers aren’t just losing, they are failing to show up. In nine of the most recent 10 losses the team has suffered, the Sixers have been defeated by double digits.

Some [...]

Well, recently The Answer was quoted as saying that his Sixers still held a chance of qualifying for the playoffs.

I have been trying to reserve judgement on everything about the Iverson trade this year, but Allen, as we all know, makes it hard to ignore him.  I do have to note that he has been far less of a disruptive force since his return, and until his recent comment about the team’s performance, he seemed to be focusing on keeping his mouth shut and just playing basketball.

But really, after some thought, I have to make an observation here.  The simple truth of the matter is, were Iverson the player he was in the late 90’s through 2006 with this team, [...]

Elton Brand looked like the player the Sixers thought they were getting when they signed him to a huge contract last offseason.

Andre Iguodala looked like a player worthy of his max contract.

Thaddeus Young looked like an emerging, young forward who could provide all the intangibles.

Willie Green looked capable of being an NBA player.

When it all came together it gave the Sixers just enough to defeat the Chicago Bulls, 106, 103 in overtime.

I’m not sure what should be the bigger news: The fact that the Sixers finally played as they are capable of, or that on a night when so may things went right they still needed overtime at home to beat the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference?

The optimists [...]

The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Boston Celtics by a point tonight, 98-97 in a game played without newly acquired Allen Iverson.  Elton Brand had a strong game off the bench, scoring 23 points on 7-12 shooting; Iguodala, Speights and Green all scored in double figures as well.

Such is the NBA, where a 7-19 team that just broke a 12 game losing streak, playing without it’s newly acquired catalyst can defeat a 20-5 team riding an 11 game winning streak at home.

I believe this victory reveals the flaw in resigning Iverson to play with this team, when they so obviously perform better overall as a unit without him.    I love Allen, don’t get me wrong, but this current 76er’s team [...]

Vick returned to Atlanta with the Eagles and helped secure a 34-7 victory, contributing 2 scores, one passing and one rushing to the cause.  Tonight it was Iverson returning to Philadelphia, the team that originally drafted him, and trying to beat the Nuggets, the team he was traded to in 2006 after falling out of favor with the 76ers.  Careerwise, Iverson was “The Answer” in Philadelphia during his 10+ seasons with the team, holding the team’s top spots for average points per game scored, ranking second in overall scoring and steals, and 3rd all time in assists.

This is not a team that has not had it’s share of superstar contributors over the years, with the likes of Chamberlain, Irving and [...]

The smell is undeniable. Nothing lingers in the air quite the same as the smell of desperation.

The Sixers are ready to party like its 1999 or 2001 or something like that.

As expected Allen Iverson has agreed to come out of his “retirement” to join a Sixers team that is a horrible fit for him. The Sixers are clearly making the move to sell tickets, because on the surface it makes no sense. Here are a few reasons why:

1: Eddie Jordan has installed the Princeton offense in Philadelphia. The only offense Iverson runs is the “I” offense – as in I dribble, dribble some more and I shoot. Does anyone really see Iverson cutting and setting picks? Didn’t think so.

2: Iverson [...]

Attention Elton Brand: Yes you sir, with the giant 5-year $80 million contract. Mr. Brand, it is time to prove yourself, prove that you can still be the type of dominating low post player the Sixers thought they got when they signed you last year.
It is time to wake up Mr. Brand. Your team needs you.
With the news that second-year forward Marreese Speights will miss 6-8 weeks with a knee injury, Brand’s role with the Sixers has become a lot larger. He will now see the 4th quarter minutes that he has been denied for most of the year. Word is that he may even play a little center with the second unit in the coming weeks.
Over the next two [...]

Playing without their top player in point guard Devin Harris, the New Jersey Nets should have stood no chance of winning when they walked into the Wachovia Center Friday night.

Instead, the Philadelphia Sixers gave them every chance to earn their first win of the season.

It turned out, the Nets didn’t want it.

The Sixers overcame a small fourth quarter deficit to pull out an uninspiring 97-94 win. The Nets came into the game as the worst team in the league at 0-5 and were without six injured players, leaving them with just four players on the bench. Still, they almost took down a Sixers team that looked lost at times on both ends of the court.  

Elton Brand – who was [...]

The Sixers got their first win of the season Friday night, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks, 99-86, in their home-opener.

The Sixers recovered from a season-opening loss to the Magic to even their record at 1-1.

Though the sample size is just two games I think what we have seen out of the Sixers so far is what we can expect to see the rest of the way. Philly will do well when matchup up with the average-to-bottom teams that the Eastern Conference puts out but struggle against the top tier teams.

They don’t have enough talent to beat teams like the Magic, Cavs or Celtics, but have more than enough to take down squads like the Bucks, Nets and Bobcats.

It is kind of [...]

It is not often a season-opener goes unnoticed, but that’s exactly what is happening for the Sixers as they prepare for the start of the season today.

With the Phillies set to face the Yankees tonight, basketball is set deeply in the background Philly fans. There is also the notion that the Sixers will be nothing more than mediocre this season. The Phillies are a series away from bringing the city another championship, the Eagles are in the thick of things in the NFC East and the Flyers are one of the favorites to win the Cup. No one is picking the Sixers to go anywhere.

That wasn’t the case last year when many pendants predicted the Sixers to be a top [...]