Sixers get ZERO respect.

[Randy]

Actually, the freethrow spread has been very consistent with the exception of game 2 (a game Detroit won even though the freethrow spread was like 20 in favor of the Sixers).  It's been about 5 or 6 freethrow margin in favor of the Sixers the rest of the games.

Rick, I have never been a been Cheeks fan but if you think that the Sixers are aspiring to all of this on their own you know less about basketball than I think you do.  These players aren't just rising to overachieve on their own -- Cheeks deserves a GREAT deal of credit for what they are accomplishing.

[JoMal]

Posted on: April 28, 2008, 02:38:45 pmPosted by: rickortreat

In fairness to Cheeks, what really killed the Sixers were the referees, who haven't given the Sixers a fair shot the entire series

.

Well, from what I looked up, you could not be more correct, rick. The Sixers have only shot 93 free throws in these three games, compared to a whopping 64 for the Pistons. I mean, that is potentially only 29 MORE points the Sixers should have at least had a shot at, and with a loser coach like Cheeks, they clearly need a margin of plus fifty by now, because being up only two games to one against the number two seed in the East is total failure on his part.

But you are stuck with Cheeks. This has to have a happy solution for all concerned. I suggest spilling oil under his chair so he might slip and fall and crack his head open, or sticking a voodoo doll made up to look like him to make him die in agony, but let's face it, that would be too good for him.   

What can we do about this bastard, Cheeks, who is letting his team beat up on a truly lousy Pistons team, or these clearly biased refs who you would think could squeeze out at least another 10 or 20 favorable calls that would bend the games more in favor of the Sixers.

Why oh why did I become JazzMal, instead of Mal-Sixer. 

[rickortreat]

Just because the Sixers are getting to the line more doesn't mean the refs still aren't screwing them.  If you ever watch a game you will see that the outcome of many possessions is determined by the refs and what they call.

It is particularly visible when you watch your team trying to rally back, and never gets the chance because the ref takes the ball away, or calls a foul that interrupts your run-out for an easy bucket. 

And even if the refs are calling some fouls, they are missing calling a lot of others that the Sixers normally would get.  Andre Miller was fouled every time he shot the ball inside, and he didn't get to the foul line for any and-one's which he got regularly during the regular season.  Same contact, the only difference is the lack of a call.

What is particularly galling are the charging calls, where the Sixers steal the ball and are on a fast break, a Detroit player backpeddals into the way, and the Sixers are forced to give the ball back, instead of shooting a foul shot.  It's a terrible call when the defender is still moving his feet and is 10 feet in front of the three point line. Almost asinine, and yet that is what they called, multiple times. That's a four point swing courtesy of the refs.

As for Cheeks, those young players would still be languishing on the bench and the Sixers would be out of the playoffs if Stefanski didn't trade Korver and force Cheeks to play them.  As soon as the trade occurred the Sixers lost about 10 straight games, and the youngsters finally had the chance to learn how to play. Cheeks deserves credit for teaching them the right way, but not for his game day decisions and rotations.  Allowing Andre Igoudala to be guarded by Tayshaun Prince is a perfect example of how not to coach!

[Joe Vancil]

Maybe it's just me, Rick, but I don't think Cheeks gets to tell Detroit players who they have to guard.

[WayOutWest]

Maybe it's just me, Rick, but I don't think Cheeks gets to tell Detroit players who they have to guard.

LOL!  That was too easy, I didn't want to throw a rock in the fishing pond.  I was hoping he would expand on that brilliant tactic because  I want to pass along his info to PJ and get Memet Okur to guard Kobe and Deron to guard Pau.

[JoMal]

Maybe it's just me, Rick, but I don't think Cheeks gets to tell Detroit players who they have to guard.

My God, Joe, are you that naive?

We are talking about Philadelphia here, where the coach can't coach, the refs apparently cannot determine a blocking foul from a charge, the opponent players refuse to listen to Cheeks telling them who to guard, and some of the fans apparently think they are watching lacrosse.

[rickortreat]

In theory you can't force any player on the other team to not guard one of yours.  But in reality, you use your players to create mismatches in YOUR favor, by choosing which of your players to put in.

If you put in 2 bigs, like Dalembert and Evans, and 2 smalls like Andre Miller and Willie Green, that pretty much puts Iggy at the 3 spot, where it is easy for Detroit to put Prince on him.  Since Prince is tall and long and hard for Iggy to score on or defend, this makes this match-up beneficial to Detroit.  Therefore, MORONS, you don't play a line-up with two smalls, two bigs and Igoudala against the Pistons.  Instead, you play 3 bigs, like Dalembert, Smith, and Young or Dalembert, Evans and Young, along with Igoudala and Miller in the back-court.

Once you make that change, now all the match-ups are in your favor, particularly the guard spots where Hamilton and Billups cannot deal with Igoudala and Miller, and Prince is guarded by an equally long, lean player in Thad Young.

What is so hard to understand about this concept?  If Detroit chooses to keep Prince on Iggy, than one of the guards has to defend Young, which would give Phila. very easy buckets. You simply make it impossible for them to continue match-ups because it allows you to create even more favorable ones for your side.

The problem is Cheeks is generally unwilling to do this, which is why Detroit has been outrebounding the Sixers and getting second shots.  Cheeks has more confidence in his shorter players, but they can't block out or rebound well enough.  Any coach should be able to see his team is getting beat on the boards and attempt to make an adjustment.  Cheeks just lives with it and lets the team lose.

A good coach would at least explore all his options and try different strategies.  There's nothing unusual about that line-up, the Sixers used it to beat Detroit in March when Willie Green was out.  Putting in 2 bigs and Young, put extra pressure on Detroit's front line and gave their guards fits. That sounds like the kind of line-up a coach would want to use.

[WayOutWest]

I guess idiots don't realize that there are plenty of bigs on the Pistons to defend any combo of the bigs on the Sixers and STILL leave Prince on Iggs.  Same goes for the "smalls".  I think some FanHome retardation leaked on to this board.

[Skandery]

Cheeks just lives with it and lets the team lose.

Did Rick just use only 1 "o".


HALLELUJAH!!

[Laker Fan]

Minnie Me has been well instructed by his mentor, he is a better coach than Cheeks, who has only taken an overachieving team and scared the daylights out of a clearly superior Detroit team. But just making the playoffs is not enough, Philly's impressive run after the break had Minnie Me proclaiming them the team to beat in the EC, and back then, now I could be wrong, but he had no problems with the way they were being coached.

Cheeks and Popovich are amazing, lousy coaches that should let their fans coach the team, the Spurs would have gone 82-0 every year and have more rings than fingers if they had listened to some know-nothing bandwagon scrub instead of Popovich and Philly would be sweeping the infinitely more talented Pistons if they would only listen to some moron who has less basketball knowledge than my wife's cat, what loser organizations these are!!

[Reality]

Dan,
Honest question requesting honest answer.

Are you praying for a Pistons series win at this point?

[WayOutWest]

....no-nothing....

   No more lectures from you about the im po tance of gude english! 

[Laker Fan]

....no-nothing....

   No more lectures from you about the im po tance of gude english! 

Boy do I feel sheepish! It has been corrected

[Laker Fan]

Not praying for anything, I just don't think Philly can win a 7 game series against Detroit, if they do, I will eat crow by the ton.

[WayOutWest]

Not praying for anything, I just don't think Philly can win a 7 game series against Detroit, if they do, I will eat crow by the ton.

Should Philly win I will get my crow imported from the UK.