No Mo

[Skates]

For me to consider trading Thad or Speights it would have to be somebody Joe Johnson level or above.

[jemagee]

Where do you place Michael Redd?

[Skates]

Redd is in the Elton Brand level, highly productive, but not really capable of dominating a game.  That is the differense between 20 and 10 from Brand versus Amare, they might get you the same amount of points and rebounds on average, but one player can enforce his will and game upon you, while the other can be taken out more easily by a strong defender.  Iggy and Brand fall into that lower tier, although both have a lot of non-scoring skills to still help the team even when their offense is shut down.

[DuckyNinja]

I would consider trading Thad for the right price.  The problem I have with Thad is that he kinda replicates what Iggy brings.  Now, the obvious thing would be "trade Iggy", but Thad is eminently more tradeable.

[jemagee]

http://dberri.wordpress.com/2008/12/14/will-firing-cheeks-helps-the-sixers/

[DuckyNinja]

http://dberri.wordpress.com/2008/12/14/will-firing-cheeks-helps-the-sixers/

While I agree with most of what he says, the best way to raise shooting efficiency, as a coach, is to install a new offensive system that is more friendly to the personnel you have rather than the personnel you wish you had.  The Sixers happen to have two guys who are superb at making cuts (Iguodala and Young) that can lead to easy baskets, which in turn, raise shooting efficiency.  Even though the Sixers can't really stretch the floor, they still have the quickness to beat their guy to the inside.  We'll see how much our shooting efficiency goes up post-change, but I'd bet it goes up somewhat noticeably.

[tk76-]

If a fastbreak doesn't materialize, DiLeo wants the Sixers to go right into the offense while the floor is spread, as opposed to pulling out and waiting to get into a half-court set.

Brand's role is to be the trailer, which would put him in position to get open jumpers or position in the low box while everybody is on the move.

"We want to try and get down, and get some early offense before the defense is set," DiLeo said.

Sounds like a small thing, but I think this can make a difference.  He basically is talking about trying to go immediately into an "early offense" type scheme instead of them pulling the ball out to halfcourt to set things up when they can't run.

When they have pulled the ball out to run a set they have ended up at a disadvantage since it also allows the defense to get into position and get back on the right men.  At this point the Sixers set offense is no match for a good defense.

On the flip side, the Sixers can take advantage of Iguodala's playmaking skills and hopefully Thad's post skills by running early offense before all of the bigs are up the court.  They just have to be very careful not to settle for long jumpers early in the shot clock- esp 3's.  The "early offense" needs to be drives, quick post ups and short (inside 17 feet) jumpers.

...

I guess its more accurate to say DiLeo wants to get more from the secondary break than to say he is really installing an early offense like someone like Dantoni uses.

[Skates]

From what I saw on Saturday and throughout the season, Brand is much better posting on the move, driving and cutting towards the basket, then he is simply backing a guy down in the post with a slow dribble.  I think a lot of this is due to the fact that even with his long arms, he is still short for a PF.  He can take more advantage of his long arms and short area quickness in more of a movement based offense like the pick and roll/pop or on a secondary break type post-up.  Both of those scenarios also reduce the effectiveness of the other team double teaming.  Brand is not a (young) Shaq-like monster that can routinely beat a double team.  His post game is much more akin to Karl Malone than to Charles Barkley.

Running an early offense/secondary break is a much more controlled and sustainable way of playing up-tempo than trying to force the full fast-break when it's not there.  Run when you can and move quickly and crisply when you can't sounds like a good plan for this team.  They need to develop Thad's ability to get his own shot so that when the offense does not get set quickly, you have a player to go along with Lou who can get his own shot when all else fails.

[tk76-]

Both Thad and Iguodala have a much better chance driving before the defense is set.  Both can get by there man, but struggle if confronted by a defensive wall in the post.  Iguodala struggles to finish, whereas Thad sometimes makes a bad pass.

The team will still need to eventually score better in a true halfcourt set, but for now I can see why they would want to put themselves in that situation as little as possible.

[anklebreaker]

Really looking forward to seeing tomorrow's game.  I'm sure they'll have their sloppy moments and mis-communications trying to figure this out, but at least we'll get an idea as to whether or not it's more effective. 

[Skates]

Both Thad and Iguodala have a much better chance driving before the defense is set.  Both can get by there man, but struggle if confronted by a defensive wall in the post.  Iguodala struggles to finish, whereas Thad sometimes makes a bad pass.

The team will still need to eventually score better in a true halfcourt set, but for now I can see why they would want to put themselves in that situation as little as possible.

Both Thad and Iggy would be better to use in the low post with Brand up high when they are forced into a slower game.  I am not sure Iggy will ever become a great finisher in a set defense off of his own dribble, but he can compensate with his passing if the offense is properly spaced.  Thad sometimes gives up too easily on drives, but his array of floaters and instincts in traffic make me believe he will eventually be nearly impossible to stop once his already improved handle gets even better.  Speights will also likely be able to more easily shoot and pass over defenses than Brand once his game really develops.

[tk76-]

Thad finished with his right hand the other night- it almost seemed unfair to the defense that he can spin either way.  He should be up over 20 ppg by next year- and probably can do that shooting around 50%.



The Sixers have to run out and get one of those great caps for Thad to wear in their ads.

[Skates]

Pure class shown by Mo in his press conference today:

PHILADELPHIA -- Sitting in front of a Philadelphia 76ers banner and behind a 76ers microphone, fired head coach Maurice Cheeks took the blame.


Three days after the team replaced him, Cheeks met with reporters on Tuesday to thank the fans and take responsibility for the poor start of a team with playoff aspirations.

Sometimes, Cheeks said, it can be the coach's fault a team does not perform as expected.

"In my case, it was the coach," he said.

Team president Ed Stefanski fired Cheeks on Saturday after the Sixers stumbled to a 9-14 start.

Last season, Cheeks and Stefanski orchestrated a remarkable midseason turnaround that helped the 76ers recover from an 18-30 start to make the playoffs. In the offseason, they acquired star power forward Elton Brand and appeared ready to contend in the Eastern Conference.

But the team struggled early and had lost eight of 10 before Stefanski fired Cheeks and replaced him with assistant general manager Tony DiLeo.

"Things don't always work out the way you expect them to," Cheeks said. "I take solace in the fact I did the best I could."

Cheeks said his affection for the fans and the franchise -- where he played 11 seasons -- prompted him to agree to a news conference at the 76ers home arena.

"I think it would have been selfish for me to just pick up and leave and go and not show my appreciation to the people that have supported me," he said. "I pretty much grew up in this town."

Cheeks carefully rearranged the tape recorders in front of him as he spoke and joked with reporters, telling them he wanted to thank a lot of people without having to run up his cell phone bill.

He refused to place blame for the team's poor performance on anyone but himself.

"Sometimes being fired is one of the things that entails being a head coach," he said.

Cheeks said he would be open to another position with the team, where he was a star point guard on the Sixers' last championship team in 1983, although he has not been approached about a job.

"I've been a part of this town a long time and I don't plan on going anywhere," he said. "If the opportunity is there for me to be in the organization, I'm more than happy to do that."

A four-time All-Star, Cheeks spent 15 seasons in the NBA before retiring in 1993. The 76ers retired his jersey in 1995.

Cheeks was a member of the coaching staff when the 76ers went to the Finals in 2001 and, after a head coaching stint in Portland, was named the 76ers head coach in 2005. He finished with a 122-152 record in Philadelphia.

The 76ers beat Washington 104-89 on Saturday in their first game under DiLeo. Philadelphia hosts Milwaukee on Wednesday.

[jemagee]

Aside from Larry Brown who is going to come out and bad mouth their iorganization after their dismissal, i mean he wants another job right?

[rickortreat]

If a fastbreak doesn't materialize, DiLeo wants the Sixers to go right into the offense while the floor is spread, as opposed to pulling out and waiting to get into a half-court set.

Brand's role is to be the trailer, which would put him in position to get open jumpers or position in the low box while everybody is on the move.

"We want to try and get down, and get some early offense before the defense is set," DiLeo said.

Sounds like a small thing, but I think this can make a difference.  He basically is talking about trying to go immediately into an "early offense" type scheme instead of them pulling the ball out to halfcourt to set things up when they can't run.

When they have pulled the ball out to run a set they have ended up at a disadvantage since it also allows the defense to get into position and get back on the right men.  At this point the Sixers set offense is no match for a good defense.

On the flip side, the Sixers can take advantage of Iguodala's playmaking skills and hopefully Thad's post skills by running early offense before all of the bigs are up the court.  They just have to be very careful not to settle for long jumpers early in the shot clock- esp 3's.  The "early offense" needs to be drives, quick post ups and short (inside 17 feet) jumpers.

...

I guess its more accurate to say DiLeo wants to get more from the secondary break than to say he is really installing an early offense like someone like Dantoni uses.

I don't like that he is thinking that way.  This is really pretty dumb.  The team needs to be able to score in the half-court and turn what was a weakness into a strength.  When you play the Pistons or the Celtics or the Cavaliers, you're not going to be able to run enough to stay in the game. You have to be able to score against their set defense, by using your athleticism and motion to produce open shots, preferably high-percentage ones.  Pick and roll the other team to death, using Brand and Williams, or Brand and Iguodala. Develop Mareese Speights so that you can pound the ball inside and get a score or draw a foul. Develop his defensive and rebounding skills so that the team can still control the middle when Dalembert is out.

This team has the players to be competitive in a half court set up if they have a plan of attack. teamates have to know where each is going to be, and how they are going to try to score against a given defense or a given team. Run the same play over and over again until the other team stops it.  When other teams call time-outs because they can't get stops on the Sixers, then they'll be a good team.


ter teams