Clips Game

[tk76-]

Z-Bo and the Clippers.  Can you say destiny?  I could not imagine a better fit of loser and loser franchise.

[jemagee]

Hmmm...mobley on the knicks - good or bad for my fantasy team?

[tk76-]

Very good

[jemagee]

Very good

But i already have duhon

[tk76-]

Why would that be a problem.  Duhon, Robinson and Mobley will split the minutes the same way they were split with Crawford.  There a ton of jacked up shots to be spread around on the Knicks.

[jemagee]

Why would that be a problem.  Duhon, Robinson and Mobley will split the minutes the same way they were split with Crawford.  There a ton of jacked up shots to be spread around on the Knicks.

Not encouraging - crap now i need to check my line up i think i started mobley against the clips tonight.

[jemagee]

They just don't look good to me

That could be one of the worst coast to coast fast breaks i've seen a point guard run - if not bailed out by the foul i think the shot would have gone up behind the basket

[jemagee]

So Mo Cheeks perpetuates the "Don't tell thad he's the leading scorer' thing not just in the papers but when the clippers announcers are talking to him pre game

Louis Williams Willie Green back court - still bad

[jemagee]

The sixers second team isn't very good - on either end of the court

Ralph Lawler has called #16 Sprites twice though - that's not even close.

[jemagee]

Jim Lyman likes him some zach randolph these days cuase for one reason he's got a good woman in his life?  Did he have evil women before?

[tk76-]

Some day the offense will be run through our most gifted offensive player.

I'm not sure if the coach will be the same, but it has to happen at some point.

I assume Ed sees the game.  Its pretty obvious that the most gifted offensive scorers are Thad, Lou and Speights.  And running sets exclusively through Miller, Iguodala, Brand and Sam is like driving to work in 2nd gear- you can get there, but its a much smoother ride using all your gears.

Lucky win, but does not bode well for this team.

Also, seems like either Sam or Evans are always in the game.  Means you only have 4 guys to run the offense with (and often the best is left standing in the corner.)  Things run smoothly when Speights and Brand are in.

[tk76-]

Fagan, to her credit doesn't pull any punches:

Let's be honest, while tonight's game against the Los Angeles Clippers will go down as a 'W', it was not a step in the right direction for the 76ers.

It would be easy to toss around the phrase, "A win is a win," but that would be like eating candy for breakfast: Sure, it tastes good at the time, but you know there will be consequences. And for these Sixers, if they don't treat tonight's game like a loss, it might come back to haunt them. 

Here are the facts: The Clippers are 2-10. Only hours before game time, the Clippers traded two of their top five scorers: Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas. So let me get this straight, the 76ers, playing at home, needed a rattled-in 15-foot jump shot from Elton Brand with 57 seconds left to beat one of the NBA's worst teams, who were made even worse without two -- two -- of their best players? That is not cause for pats on the back. Not if your a team supposedly pointing towards the playoffs.

Things just don't feel right out there for the Sixers. And by "things" I mean rhythm, flow, cohesion -- all of the attributes that make five good basketball players a good basketball team. Nobody is denying that the pieces of the puzzle exist within the Sixers roster. There are enough to build a playoff basketball team.

Glaring problem: Too many Sixers are trying to be players they aren't. Food for thought. 

1.) Andre Miller has taken the second-most field goals on the team. 2.) Andre Iguodala is trying to prove he can shoot from the perimeter. 3.) Lou Williams is stuck between having a single-minded focus -- scoring -- and learning how to be a point guard. 4.) Elton Brand is trying to be the No. 1 main guy, all the time. Is he feeling the pressure? What do the Sixers need from him?

The Sixer who does not appear to be pressing: Thaddeus Young. After the game, we asked Thad about scoring 14 first-half point and then not getting a shot until 5:50 left in the third, and barely touching the ball in the second half. Thad said, "Let's get this straight, I don't ever get plays called for me. I just go out there and play basketball."

Hmmmmm ... that seems like a philosophy the rest of the Sixers might bend an ear towards.

Ok. There were a few good things tonight. Right? Weren't there?

1.) Like always, Young was a bright spot. If you're a Sixer fan, you can't be upset for long knowing this kid is on your team. 2.) Even though they should never have been in the position, the Sixers did show resiliency in overcoming that late-game hole and winning this game. 3.) Once again, Iguodala was aggressive at the end of the game: His three-point play was key.

[DuckyNinja]

Thad said, "Let's get this straight, I don't ever get plays called for me. I just go out there and play basketball."

Ya know, I didn't hear it, and I'm not in his mind or anything, but I can't help but wonder if this is a bit of tongue-in-cheek, and that Thad really does want the ball more but won't take it up publicly.

And after looking at it again, at least in writing, it looks like a thinly veiled shot at Cheeks.

[jemagee]

Doesn't look thinly veilied to me, looks like a shot at his coaching staff not calling plays.

[Derek Bodner]

Yeah, I didn't hear it, but it definitely sounds like a shot on paper.

And it should be.  The only way you should end the game with 17 points after scoring 14 in the first half is if you go 1-10. 

The consistency Thad is showing is pretty remarkable.  He's scored 15+ ppg in 8 of 10 games in November.  Give him the damn ball.