Sixers @ Celts - 11/28

[tk76-]

I imagine Ed is not thinking Happy Thoughts right now.  I don't think 20 games is needed to evaluate what we have right now.
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So what kind of problem do we have here?  Here are some possibilities:

-A team that has the right pieces but is not executing (put it on the players and coach)

-Those moves that you thought might be needed should be done ASAP (Mo/Miller/Sam)

-This is broken at a more fundamental level.  Iguodala/Brand/Young don't really fit to make the core of a contender.  The team will have to really blow something up. Brand/Iguodala/Thad/Speights/Lou are the really valuable pieces- and one or more will have to go in order to bring in the right pieces to build with.

Which of these go to the heart of the matter?  And where does Ed go from here.  I doubt he stands pat.

[bebopdeluxe]

tk:

A lot of #1...along with #2.

This team simply cannot score the ball on a consistent basis...with better players and less of the gimmick that won us a bunch of games from February on last season, I think that Mo is getting exposed here.  Send him on his way...along with a sincere thanks for what he did...dealing with the AI transition...keeping the kids together and playing hard enough to learn a few things...but it's time.

Send Miller with him - not because I am so hell-bent to get rid of him, but because he is a depreciating asset like a stock option - with a rapidly approaching expiration date.  Get whatever you can for him between now and the deadline.  And if we can get ANYTHING of value for Sam, you have to do it, IMO...maybe Chicago would bite (Hinrich)...Minnesota (Foye/Telfair and an expiring)...there have to be other options...whatever he gives us defensively over Speights is offset by the fact that he is restricting this team's ability to develop its offense, and I'm ready to start Speights now.

I think that EB, Iggy and Thad is a pretty damn good threesome that is getting pissed away right now.  Put Speights in the starting lineup (for this season at least, we can probably get some decent minutes from Theo...and hopefully Smith will be ready to play next season).  And I would start Lou and see what we have there...we have Ivey and Green to pick him up if we need it...I see Iggy almost being the PG (in a very loose sense) on offense...let Lou play off the ball a healthy amount.

Lou
Iggy
Thad
EB
Speights

For now, I would run with that...with either Miller or Sam getting us a potential PG (get to work, Eddie)...or we use our MLE to pick somebody up (although the FA pool looks pretty thin next summer)...or we get lucky a THIRD time and turn a mid-teens pick into our PG of the future.

[tk76-]

So I take it you think this team can contend at some point built around Thad/Brand/Iguodala?  We just need to upgrade C and PG and add some more solid role players?
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I'm not so sure, but I am getting close to sharing your feelings about effectively punting this season in favor of seeing how much we have in Speights and Lou- hopefully jump starting their NBA development by throwing out there with the starters.

Just be wary of what you ask for, since Thad, Lou and Speights are all 21 or under and lack starting experience.  It could very quickly start looking like a lottery team out there- but then again that's what it has looked like thus far.

[bebopdeluxe]

tk:

From the boxscore tonight:

Sam - 24 minutes...0-2 from the field...4 rebounds...no blocks...zero points.

Speights - 15 minutes...12 points...6 rebounds...one flagrant foul (he's learning from Evans, isn't he?)

I see no reason to wait any longer there.

And as much as I want that to happen tomorrow, it's almost as important that we figure out who is going to coach his team...and whoever does coach this team needs to coach offense well (you think that Stefanski has Eddie Jordan's number?).   In all seriousness, he was the offensive guy behind that Nets team, right?  And when he had a healthy roster, they did win a few games in Washington as well.

I almost don't want to pass judgement on this roster until Mo's gone....well....

I think I still want Sam gone ASAP.

[DuckyNinja]

I think there are a few problems:

Problem #1: Bad coaching.  Mo Cheeks is great at taking a scrappy, undertalented team and getting them to play hard every game.  Mo Cheeks is NOT great at teaching Xs and Os.  Right now, we need somebody who can teach these players how to play on both ends of the court.  Cheeks hasn't shown the ability to do much more than tell a team to create turnovers and run.

Problem #2: Bad bench.  Not much Stefanski could do on this front.  He had to unload everything to get Brand.  With no exceptions or anything of that sort, there was no way to get a solid bench player.  Still, you can't blame everything on Cheeks when there's about 6 guys that I actually want to see getting any kind of PT (Speights, Brand, Young, Iggy, Miller, Williams).

Problem #3: Lack of PG Play.  Andre Miller has seemingly taken a huge step back.  He's not finding open guys, he looks like he has no clue how to run a pick and roll (seriously, Willie Green runs it better than him by far), he seems to have no sense of a double team, and he can't guard anybody on defense.  This may be a product of not really having any noticeable offensive plays, but really, it just looks like the last year+ have went to his head and he wants to be a shoot-first PG, which he clearly is not.  We don't have a PG on the bench.

So, how do we solve this?  Well, problem #1 just requires a fire and hire.  Problem #2 requires an offseason with all the exceptions available along with Andre Miller in a possible S+T and maybe a lucky 2nd round pick.  Problem #3 requires maybe a signing AND a first round draft pick, which could be pretty high at the rate we're going.  The thing with Problem #3 is that there's really only 3 PGs in this draft that stand out IMO (Jennings, Curry, Calathes) and we may not be drafting high enough to get any of them.  If we don't get any of them, the PG market pretty much consists of like...Ramon Sessions and Mike Bibby?  Unless we can use Miller in a S+T (or in an expiring for longterm with a team this year), that looks like it.  In any event, this team is at least a year away.

[bebopdeluxe]

Ducky:

Use Sam to get your young PG with potential...use Miller to add to the bench.

I agree - the FA crop is thin this summer.

[jemagee]

Use Sam to get your young PG with potential...use Miller to add to the bench.

You overestimate sams trade value in my estimation.

Speights majority of play was in the 4th quarter when the game was over and scrubs vs scrubs

As for the foul - while some on other blogs seem to think it was great and indicates toughness, I think it was just a rookie mistake that's going to cost him a game and hopefully he want do it again...

[tk76-]

Agree, it wasn't a good hard foul, he just pushed him out of frustration.  Nothing really positive about the play, and I hope he doesn't get a suspension (but he probably will.)

[bebopdeluxe]

jem:

I am happy that SOMEBODY is frustrated with how this team is playing other than the fans.

I also think that the Bulls might consider trading Hinrich for Sam....bad contract for bad contract...and at least the players would be better fits on the other team.

[jemagee]

What does speights stupid possibly injury causing foul have to do with being frustrated - that's not frustration to me - that's just stupid

[bebopdeluxe]

Whatever.  This team needs an attitude adjustment...unfortunately there are no Abreus or Lieberthals to get rid of...

Or are there?

[DuckyNinja]

Andre "can't be bothered over the summer" Miller would be a good start IMO.  Iggy has never had a great attitude either, but he's not very tradeable atm.

[Derek Bodner]

What has Andre have shown to "not have a great attitude"?

I love arm-chair psychologists.

I'd argue that Abreu never had a bad attitude either, but that's probably a pointless argument.

Funny.  When they overachieve last year it's because the team's filled with great character guys who's hard work and always playing hard fueled them to overachieve.  All of a sudden they underachieve and it's because they all have bad attitudes.

[tk76-]

Its not an issue about attitude.

There is a big issue with chemistry as compared to last year.  Not a surprise given how much most players' roles have changed since last year.  I think the chemistry issues will lessen as the year progresses (this is actually one of Mo's strengths.)  I'm not sure if the finished product will be better then a mid pack playoff team, but that goes beyond attitude or chemistry.

[jemagee]

Whatever.  This team needs an attitude adjustment...unfortunately there are no Abreus or Lieberthals to get rid of...

Or are there?

Yawn