The 76ers... Where Did They Come From?

Lou Williams brings instant offense off the bench

2 triple-doubles in the last 2 games

By Haz Bey

Early last season in the NBA & the 76ers were looking horrific.  They were 3-13 & was considered the worst team in the league.  Coach Doug Collins was changing line-ups on what seemed to be an every night basis.  Then all of a sudden something clicked in Coach Collins mind & he was ready to define roles for his young team.  He composed a starting line-up of not his best players, but his best mix of players.  See in Philly, this years team was built just like the few seasons... Athletic, fast wing-men with undersized, jump shooting bigs.  Difference is that Coach Collins is a true teacher of the game & commands the respect that warrants all hands on deck to comply to or else.  So what Doug did was start Jrue Holiday & sharp-shooting Jodie Meeks in the back court teaming them up with a front line composed of Spencer Hawes, former All Star Elton Brand & team captain Andre Igudala.  This move provided not just balance & stability at the start of games, but it allowed the Sixers to kick it in high gear the leagues best 2nd unit.

 Collins deserves Coach of the Year considerations

When Lou Williams, Thaddeus Young & then rookie Evan Turner were called upon, the Sixers do not miss a beat.  So for 48 minutes a night teams have to match their intensity while not running out of gas doing so.  The 76ers fast-break is deadly when you have all their young, athletic talent coming at you full speed.  9 times out of 10 a spectacular play happens resulting in a Sixers score.  The 76ers ended up with the 7th seed in East with a match-up in the 1st round with the Miami Heat. The Sixers lost the series 4 games to 1, but they faught Miami to the very end staying highly competetive all seriest long.

Young Guns

Let's fast forward to this season.  The Sixers jumped out the gate like gang busters with a 20-9 record and was 3rd in the Eastern Conference.  Just smotherling teams with their defense and confusing teams by moving the ball effenciently to multiple scoring options around the court.  When you don't turn the ball over and play great defense, you will win and win big in the NBA and that is what the Sixers were doing.  Andre Igudala finally received the All-Star bid that was due to him maybe 3 years ago and the Sixers were receiving the respect around the league they haven't had since "The Answer" Allen Iverson was leading them to the Playoffs on an every year basis.  Everything was going great until the one thing that can truly disrupt what the Sixers were accomplishing, the "Injury Bug" hit.  Spencer Hawes was playing at a close to All-Star type level and then back & ankle problems have gotten the best of him.  Side lining him for many games this season forcing 2 young rookies to step up and pick up the slack left behind with Hawes' absence on the court.  Lavoy Allen & Nikola Vucevic are playing as well as the can possibly play as rookies on a team that many consider a true contender in the East, but their play together does not match what Spencer Hawes brings to the team on both ends of the court.  Spencer was having his best NBA season while averaging 10.8 ppg with 8.3 rpg & 2.3 apg.  He was scoing inside & out, rebounding at a high rate and protecting the paint like a good big man should.  Elton Brand has been in and out the line up as well as of late leaving the Sixers very undersized in the paint area allowing teams to score inside on them and get to free throw line more frequently.  The combination of all factors involved including a stretch where the Sixers had to go on the road for a 4 out of 5 game stretch has resulted in a 5 game losing streak heading into the All Star break. 

Difference Makers

The Sixers open the second half of the season with a 20-14 record.  I believe their are 3 points of emphisis the Sixers need to improve on to finish with one of the top 3 seeds in the East.  Number 1, Andre Igudala needs to drive to the basket more to create foul shooting opportunities.  The Sixers rank amungst the league's worst when it comes to free throw attempts & makes.  If Andre attacks the rim more frequently, I believe only good things will happen, but with him still trying to shoot that inconsistent jumper of his, the Sixers waste possessions and allows teams to get out on the run against them.  Number 2, designate Lou Williams as the teams go to guy.  The man is an relentless scorer and I personally believe he should not be coming off the bench.  He wants the ball in the biggest moments and has delivered.  Remember game 4 in Philly against the Heat?  He drains a deep three with a few seconds left to win a highly contested playoff game against the eventual Eastern Conference Champions.  And let's not forget what Lou did against the Lakers earlier this season at the Wells Fargo Center scoring 14 of his 24 points in the 4th quarter out dooling 14-time All-Star Kobe Bryant by erasing a 7 point deficit with 4 and a half minutes to play to win a big game for the Sixers and their fans.  He is the teams leading scorer with 15.7 ppg.  He should be playing 32-35 minutes a night.  That probably will not happen, but if he gets more time on the court, I think the Sixers will be very hard to stop on every possession.  Last, but not least, number 3, they have to get healthy and fast.  With the emergence of Jeremy Lin, the New York Knicks have return from the grave to be a serious contender in the East and they are eyeing the Sixers position on top of the Atlantic Divison.  If the Sixers can get their roster completely healthy in the next few weeks, then should be able to maintain their dominance of the Atlantic Division.  When the Sixers are healthy, they are 1 of the most balanced & deep teams in all of basketball.  They run teams to death.  They also have a gnact of thrashing the teams they are supposed to beat, so let's just say as this team's health goes so does their position in the Eastern Conference.

Bottom line, Philadelphia has a winner on the basketball court.  A team they can be proud of.  A team that is exciting.  A team that has a chance to achieve something great.  The Philadelphia 76ers are on the right path to greatness, let's see where their journey take s them.