Could Lance Stephenson Be A Future Sixer?

Posted by: Alex Gorge
01/24/14 11:39 am EST
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lanceRecently there has been a great deal of discussion about where rising Pacers guard Lance Stephenson will play next year after his current contract expires.  Normally I get irritated about this type of speculation surrounding a young player who is the middle of a very good season, but really hasn’t totally proven himself yet.  However, in this case, the speculation is warranted.

The Brooklyn product has had an absolute breakout year when he was expected to become just a good role player on a Pacers team with Eastern Conference title aspirations.  When I say breakout year I mean a borderline All-Star who has cemented himself as a possible triple-double threat.  More impressive than that is the fact that Stephenson has done this on a title contender rather than taking volume shots on a bottom feeding team.

So could this talented shooting guard be a missing piece to Sam Hinkie’s 76ers puzzle?

I will explore this scenario and what it could mean for the 76ers after the jump.


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GM42: Rapid (Turner) Reacts

Posted by: C. Smith
01/23/14 11:33 am EST
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Philadelphia 76ers 110 FinalRecap | Box Score 106 New York Knicks
Thaddeus Young, PF 39 MIN | 8-21 FG | 2-3 FT | 7 REB | 4 AST | 4 STL | 1 BLK | 2 TO | 19 PTS | +18Thad did not have the most efficient scoring night, but the important thing is that he had a good overall game and hopefully this gets him back on track.  #21 had a couple of hoops off impressive cuts to the basket.  His block on Tyson Chandler in the 2nd Q was sweet.  Thad also racked up a savy, post-up AND1 in the 3rd Q (8 pts. in 3rd Q). Ohh yeah…the dagger 3 he drained in the 4th Q was clutch.

Evan Turner, SF 40 MIN | 13-22 FG | 5-5 FT | 11 REB | 2 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 34 PTS | +5A quick start (10 1st Q pts. on 4-4 from field & 2-2 from three) led to a career-high 34 points for “The Enigma”.  His socring outburst included a game-sealing pull-up J on the FB.  He also played respectable defense for the 1st time in a while. ‘Nuff said.

Spencer Hawes, C 25 MIN | 1-3 FG | 1-2 FT | 1 REB | 7 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 4 PTS | +10With Thad, Turner and MCW putting up a combined 61 FGAs, there weren’t many looks for hawes last night.  Spence handed out some pretty dimes last night, but a 7-footer has to grab more than 1 rebound.

Michael Carter-Williams, PG 37 MIN | 5-18 FG | 7-10 FT | 12 REB | 7 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 19 PTS | +17An ice cold 3-13 shooting start kept MCW from what could have been a big game against the NYK’s weak defense.  Yet, he still managed a near triple-double thanks to spending the night at the FT line and converting.  The rookie had a great rebound & put back over Chandler in the 3rd Q and hit several key FTs down the stretch.  He collected more offensive rebounds than the Knicks as a whole team through 3 Q’s.

James Anderson, SG 37 MIN | 8-11 FG | 1-2 FT | 7 REB | 3 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 18 PTS | +9Arguably the best all-around game Anderson has played in a Sixers uniform.


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Is Embiid a Good Fit for the 76ers?

Posted by: C. Smith
01/22/14 8:40 am EST
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JoelEmbiid KansasDISCLAIMER:  The following post is NOT an outright endorsement of Joel Embiid as the 76ers 2014 NBA Draft Lottery selection.  It is simply a hypothetical idea that crossed my mind this past holiday weekend as I watched Embiid help Kansas defeat Oklahoma State and Baylor…

Leading up to the 2013-14 college basketball season my thoughts on the 2014 Draft class were that either Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker would be the best fit for the 7-6.  As I have watched both of those All-America caliber kids play this year, my pre-season thoughts have not wavered like many of the “experts” out there.  Both are athletic, fantastic wing players who could step right in and start for Brett Brown.  Either one would be a tremendous fit as a draft pick for the Sixers.

However, as the college basketball season shifts into high gear, I have begun to take a much closer look at some of the other elite prospects around the nation.  So this past holiday weekend I closely watched (and rewatched via DVR) Joel Embiid of Kansas play in two games against very respectable competition.

As I watched and took notes on Embiid, who has recently sky rocketed up draft boards, I asked myself the following , “What if the Sixers are in a position to select Joel Embiid ?  What if Hinkie is on the clock and Embiid is the best player available?  Would Joel Embiid be a good fit here?” 

 
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GM41: Rapid (MLK Matinee) Reacts

Posted by: Philadunkia
01/20/14 6:10 pm EST
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Philadelphia 76ers 99 FinalRecap | Box Score 107 Washington Wizards
Thaddeus Young, PF 30 MIN | 7-14 FG | 4-5 FT | 3 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 18 PTS | -14After averaging onlly 11 ppg. over his last 5 runs, I was glad to see Thad get his career season back on track.  A slow start (1 FGA in 1st Q & 4 first half points) prevented Thad from having a really big game.  His 10 points in the 3rd Q helped pull the Sixers back into this game.  Unfortunately, his 1-4 start to the 4th Q also helped the Wiz put this one away.

Evan Turner, SF 28 MIN | 3-10 FG | 5-6 FT | 2 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 11 PTS | -6Brett Brown said in his post game presser that Turner looked “tired”, but he’s looked the same to me for 3 games in a row now.  IMO during his recent slump, he simply has not been aggressive enough in the opening minutes of the game.  I did like that ET got to the FT line often today.  I also thought he should have gotten a couple more calls from the zebras.

Spencer Hawes, C 31 MIN | 5-15 FG | 0-0 FT | 16 REB | 2 AST | 2 STL | 1 BLK | 2 TO | 11 PTS | +2Obviously Spencer did not shoot the ball well today, but he tied a season high with 14 boards.  If could have played a lick of defense on Marcian Gortat, the Sixers may have accidentally won this game.

Michael Carter-Williams, PG 34 MIN | 13-22 FG | 4-8 FT | 6 REB | 5 AST | 3 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 31 PTS | -10I loved most of what I saw from MCW today — especially during hsi stellar 2nd Q play — 17 points.  However, if you look at this game closely, you’ll see that he was MIA in the 1st Q (2 pts. & 2 TOs); shot 50% from the FT line and couldn’t contain John Wall (MCW was a -10 on the day).  Still, I’d like to have seen Brown put him back in the game during the late 4th Q.

James Anderson, SG 18 MIN | 3-6 FG | 2-2 FT | 5 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 8 PTS | +6An okay game by JA who scored 4 points in the 1st Q and another 4 during the Sixers to little, too late push in teh late 4th Q.  But IMO our second best 3-point shooter has to squeeze off 1 or 2 3PAs per game.


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Now That’s Tanking

Posted by: C. Smith
01/19/14 3:34 pm EST
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2getherwebuildmantracopyAfter dropping both ends of a back-to-back set this weekend, the Sixers have now lost six of their last seven games.  The last two defeats  – Friday’s loss to a motivated Heat squad and last night’s ass whopping by the Bulls — were simply too embarrassing to warrant a Rapid Reacts post.

At the end of the 2013-14 season, we may look back at this lost weekend in mid-January and recognize it as the moment when the season of the tank became unwatchable.

After the jump, a look at some of the disturbing trends and numbers from Friday and Saturday night.


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Fo’ with the Foes: Miami Heat

Posted by: C. Smith
01/17/14 3:16 pm EST
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miami-heat-dancers-8This 2013-14 opening day edition of “Fo’ with the Foes” – Philadunkia’s advanced scouting series which with the help of an accomplished journalist from around the NBA beat or blog world, previews key upcoming 76ers games – features tonight’s opponent, the Miami Heat who are not playing like two time defending NBA Champions right now and thus are experiencing a 3-game losing skid right.

After the jump, I’ll look a Fo’ key items for tonight’s game.  Additionally, we’ll get a little more insight into the Heat team the Sixers face tonight from our man Wes Goldberg at AllUCanHeat.com as Wes will answer Fo’ questions on the Heat from us here at Philadunkia.


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Interview: Thaddeus Young

Posted by: Jeff McMenamin
01/16/14 2:26 pm EST
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thad3ballDraining the game winning 3-pointer last night for the 76ers (pic at left) was just the latest jaw dropping feat in what has been a stellar year for veteran forward Thaddeus Young.  

In addition to averaging career highs of 17.6 ppg. (19.8 in his last 10) and 6.6 rpg., Thad has become the leader of this Sixers’ roster and a Philadunkia nation favorite during one of the toughest seasons in the history of this franchise.  

The bonus to his heightened play this year is that Thad remains one of the classiest guys in the League.

As he pushes for a spot on the 2014 East All-Star squad, Thad took some time to jump on the phone with Philadunkia’s Jeff McMenamin and answer questions on the standout season he is having; his alleged trade request and the advice he is giving to his young teammates. 

Q&A after the J…


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GM 38: Rapid (Lucky 13) Reacts

Posted by: Philadunkia
01/16/14 10:27 am EST
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Charlotte Bobcats 92 FinalRecap | Box Score 95 Philadelphia 76ers
Thaddeus Young, PF 33 MIN | 4-11 FG | 2-4 FT | 5 REB | 1 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 11 PTS | +3As I mentioned in my preview post for this game, I was looking for a fast start and a big night for Thad.  That didn’t happen as #21 only got one look at the hoop in the 1st Q and had 3 TOs in that portion of the game.  He played decently the rest of the night, but was headed for a disappointing run until he drilled the GWing 3-ball.  It was his only made FG of the 4th Q (1-4). FYI…Previous to that 3PM, Thad was 2-for-his-last-11 from deep….Lastly, Thad is averaging only 11.6 ppg. in his last 4 runs.  Hopefully hitting that big shot pulls Thad out of his mini-slump.

Evan Turner, SF 36 MIN | 10-19 FG | 2-2 FT | 7 REB | 4 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 4 TO | 23 PTS | +17A stellar 4th Q (11 points on 5-6 from the field) turned an okay night by Turner into a real crowd pleaser.  50% shooting from the field and 100% from the FT line last night.  Holy sh**!

Spencer Hawes, C 38 MIN | 7-12 FG | 0-0 FT | 14 REB | 7 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 5 TO | 17 PTS | +8A very solid double-double by Hawes was tainted by 5 turnovers and an inability to provide any resistance on Al Jefferson.  However the 3-ball hawes splashed home in the late 4th Q was huge and he handed out 7 dimes.

Michael Carter-Williams, PG 32 MIN | 8-15 FG | 3-6 FT | 8 REB | 7 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 20 PTS | +9A near triple-double for MCW was highlighted by 12 points in the 1st half and a beautiful assist on Thad’s GW’er.  However, his missed FT with the Sixers up 92-90 nearly killed me and he (as well as others) got lit up by Kemba Walker.

James Anderson, SG 30 MIN | 3-4 FG | 0-1 FT | 2 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 6 PTS | +1I still would prefer if JA was coming of the bench and providing a scoring spark, but last night he played fine (as long as we don’t talk about defense). When he scored 4 points early, I actually thought he was headed for a big night.  I was mistaken, but there’s nothing wrong with the way he played.


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Fo’ with the Foes: Charlotte Bobcats

Posted by: C. Smith
01/15/14 2:43 pm EST
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charlotte-bobcats-lady-cats-cheerleader-kristiThis edition of “Fo’ with the Foes” – Philadunkia’s advanced scouting series, which with the help of an accomplished journalist from around the NBA beat or blog world, previews key upcoming 76ers games – features tonight’s opponent, the Charlotte Bobcats, who have lost eight of their last ten, but got a solid win against New York last night and currently sit inthe 8th and final playoff spot in the East.

After the jump, I’ll look at Fo’ key items for tonight’s game.  Additionally, we’ll get a little more insight into this Charlotte team the Sixers face tonight from our colleague Spencer Percy at queencityhoops.com, as Spencer will answer Fo’ questions on his Bobcats squad from us here at Philadunkia.


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Philadunkia 4on4

Posted by: Philadunkia
01/15/14 9:45 am EST
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76erscrystalballIt’s time for another edition of Philadunkia’s 4on4 series…

As a reminder, this Philadunkia question and answer series is “loosely based” on ESPN.com’s highly successful, NBA related series of posts titled “5on5″.  Our version of this genre of posts will ask 4 Philadunkia scribes to answer 4 topical, hot button questions about our Philadelphia 76ers.

Now you’re probably asking, “Why not simply stick with the “5on5″ format that ESPN.com uses?”

Well as any great hoops coach will tell you — playing 4on4 is the best way to truly learn the game of basketball.

After the jump four Philadunkia scribes will look at four pressing 76ers topics.

 


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