Back in 1993, the Orlando Magic rocketed from their slotted #11 position to the first overall pick in the draft thanks to the NBA’s ping-pong ball lottery system.

Last night, the 76ers were not fortunate enough to see that Draft Lottery miracle repeated 20 years later.  As you know by now, the Sixers officially own the #11 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, which is exactly where the odds said they would end up.  The tie shunning Joshua Harris seemed about as thrilled as everyone else in Philadunkia nation with the outcome.

“We had a small probability of being super happy and a small probability of being slightly sad.  We’re neither.  We’re right where we were expected to be,” a weary and somewhat disheveled looking Harris commented.

To be honest, it’s not the most exciting draft position to be in, but after the jump, we’ll take a look at some facts about and ideas for the 11th pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.

Continue Reading

After Sam Hinkie spent a lovely week in Chicago evaluating the prospects who were invited to participate in the 2013 NBA Draft combine, Philadunkia nation has had Cody Zeller shoved down their throats.  A number of draft “experts” are predicting the 76ers will select Zeller in late June.  Additionally, Philly.com reported that the Sixers interviewed the sophomore big man out of Indiana and that the conversation went swimmingly.

Whether Zeller is available when the Sixers first round pick arrives and whether they select him largely depends on three factors:

1)  Will Zeller still be available at #11.

2)  Do the 76ers like other players more than Zeller.

3)  What pick the Sixers draw in tonight’s NBA Draft Lottery.

Based off of the combine’s results and reactions, there seems to be a decent level of talent in the first ten picks and then a there is a drop off.  One prospect that is on the rise after the Chicago combine is France’s Rudy Gobert.  Gobert with his 7-9 wingspan and impressive shooting touch, really impressed the NBA scouts and front office types and appears to be moving up draft boards.  If Gobert continues to wow scouts during individual workouts and other pre-draft camps, he may crack the Top 10.  Gobert is another name that has been linked to the Sixers by draft “experts”.

So, can the 76ers move up in 2013 Draft and grab Zeller or Gobert?

Continue Reading

There seems to be a lot of different opinions regarding how the Sixers should handle the 2013 off-season.

Some of Philadunkia nation thinks that the organization should still plan to build around Bynum, while a large percentage of people don’t want to see him anywhere near this team or city again.

Then there are those who feel that the Sixers actually aren’t too far away from contention and could compete with a couple tweaks.  However for every one with this view there are at least two others who feel that the team needs to be  completely blown up.

The only thing certain now after the disappointing season that was for the Sixers, is uncertainty.

The hiring of Sam Hinkie is the first stride on a long staircase the Sixers are facing this summer.  Finding a “basketball guy” to support Hinkie’s analytics, selecting a head coach, making draft picks, and filling out the roster with free agents are all still left on the agenda.  With a new regime in town it is difficult to tell exactly how any of this will turn out.

With that being said, the smart thing for the Sixers to do this summer is — as little as possible.

Continue Reading

“Hope is a dangerous thing.  Hope can drive a man insane”

That quote from Shawshank Redemption holds true for 76er fans, now more than ever.  Hope is all that is left, I guess.

Seriously, sit back and think about the Philadelphia 76ers for a moment.  Not much, right?  Maybe Sam Hinkie pulls a rabbit out of his hat, a bunch of other things go right and certain guys elevate their game in 2013-14.  Still, how much will that help?

$12,000,000 in cap space is just enough to do something stupid, but not enough to pull off a miracle.  Between Turner, J-Rich and Kwame; the 76ers have more than 25% of their roster as dead weight.  Even getting players at their true value won’t be enough to do anything but keep the team in an awkward spot.

Our man Bynum looks ready to screw the franchise for the next 5 years by being Shawshank quote incarnate.  If not Bynum, it will be some other player.  Let’s just hope that Hinkie’s advanced analytics inform him that he should avoid the players I am write about after the jump.

(WARNING: LOOK AWAY NOW if you really like OJ Mayo…)

Continue Reading

In a classic Lonely Island video, Seth Rogen asks Andy Samberg if he’s, “in charge around here?” To which, Samberg replies, “I’m da boss.”

At the Philadelphia 76ers’ introductory press conference for new General Manager Sam Hinkie, Managing Owner Josh Harris might as well have said, “I’m da boss,” as well.

During a lovely affair at PCOM, Harris and Hinkie basically announced that the Sixers will be moving in a new direction, and that Josh is the man leading the pack.

At the presser Harris mentioned how similar he and Hinkie are in their philosophies towards building this franchise.  Josh also made it clear that Hinkie will “diligently” make roster decisions, take “smart risks”, add a “championship-caliber coach” and be “aggressive and push (his) chips into the middle.”

Even further evidence that Harris is now the man TCB-ing for this franchise, was the fact that Adam Aron — the face of the franchise for the last year — took an deep backseat at yesterday’s press gathering.  That only gave credit to the rumors that former NBA GM John Nash started on SportsRadio 94 WIP that Aron will also assume a more limited role on the business and basketball side of the franchise.

So, let’s put all of this information together.

Continue Reading

You can debate whether or not you think Jrue Holiday is an all-star caliber point guard, but what you cannot deny is that Jrue’s “star” is rising around the Association.

Players and coaches in the NBA commented on it frequently this past season.  We certainly noticed his rise in skills and popularity here at Philadunkia during 2012-13.  Now it seems adidas is finally jumping on the Jrue Holiday bandwagon.

Holiday has been an adidas endorser since he entered the League, but now “The Jruth” (as well as John Wall and Damian Lillard) is featured in the shoe company’s latest basketball campaign.

Titled “Quick Ain’t Fair,” the new commercial is for the adidas Crazyquick basketball shoe.  In this extended version, Jrue and Lillard give fans a behind the scenes look at the Crazyquick spot.

View Jrue’s new shoe commercial after the jump.

Continue Reading

On Friday Yahoo Sports reported via Twitter that the Sixers have reached an agreement to hire Houston Rockets assistant GM / executive VP Sam Hinkie to a multi-year deal to be their new president and GM.

Although the 76ers organization has yet to comment on the rumors, it seems certain that Tony DiLeo is officially out and Hinkie will be the new man in charge of the 7-6.

As you probably know by now, Hinkie was Daryl Morey’s right hand man in Houston and was involved in all decision-making on Rockets personnel moves.  Now he’ll be charged with rebuilding the 76ers — which will be a big challenge.

After the jump, the Philadunkia scribes express their opinions on the Hinkie hiring.
Continue Reading

The Sixers need a scorer.  It seems like a pretty simple sentiment.  In fact, there will be those that criticize this post as being too simplistic.

“Of course, every team could use a scorer.”

“We want a name!”

The point of this post isn’t to postulate about potential players, but rather to point out a decade long problem.

The Sixers have not had a legitimate go-to-guy since Allen Iverson was shipped to Denver, which happens to be about the same time that the franchise’s success stalled.

This is not a coincidence.

Every team that has found extreme success in the NBA over the past decade plus (Heat, Mavs, Lakers, Spurs, Celtics) have a clearly defined go-to-guy.  This is also not a coincidence.  The best NBA teams are well-structured and well-rounded, as a one man show rarely makes it very far (save for an ’01 Iverson and an ’07 LeBron James).

Continue Reading

The Sixers have been abandoned again.  It was another three seasons of wasted basketball instead of moving closer to the ultimate goal of a championship.  There were risks taken, hearts broken and blood vessels busted.

Yet, taking a trip down memory lane, what if I told you that the Sixers’ woes began way before the Andrew Bynum trade last summer?  What if I told you that if the Sixers had just taken my advice that they’d be in the hunt for an NBA Championship right now as you’re reading this?

Without tooting my own horn too much, I’ll just let you see for yourself…
http://philadunkia.com/?p=263

Continue Reading

The other day, I wrote how the 76ers should approach building a real contender by tanking and trading for superior but injured players.   Today, we will assume that their are enough parts in place to build something.

Like a hostile takeover of a corporate entity, cutting the dead weight is an obvious first step.  From there we will look at some undervalued assets around the league, similar to what was done in (A plan for 13-14).

What to do with “The Enigma”, Evan Turner?  It’s quite simple actually.  Whomever the GM for the Sixers is, he needs to call ET into his office on a weekday morning.  From there, they should ask, “Evan, if we can trade you to another team, is that something you would be interested in?”

The obvious answer will be yes.  The next move is to pick up the phone and call every single NBA team.  It will certainly be a humbling experience for Mr. Turner.  A combination of quick hang ups, laughs and outrageous demands (give us your lottery pick, is Thad coming too, We will give you Beasley/Bargnani/Ellis for ET, we require all the tea in china etc etc) will make it obvious to ET that the NBA truly has no interest in his services at $6,700,000 for the 2013-2014 season.

Continue Reading