With the NBA draft only a few hours away, experts all over the country have been making predictions as to where this year’s crop of players will end up.

For the Sixers the point guard position is one of the biggest questions on the roster and there has been a constant buzz over the possibility of drafting a prospect to play that spot for the home team. 6’3” combo guard out of VCU Eric Maynor or 5’10” UNC point man Ty Lawson appear to be the lead candidates to hear their name called at #17. The buzz of drafting a new point guard has been accompanied by rumors that the Sixers will pull off a sign and trade with Andre Miller, shipping star point guard to another team in exchange for a similar veteran point guard. Of course the reality is that the Sixers may not have a chance to sign and trade Miller if he goes with another team or if the Sixers just let Miller walk and simply sign someone to take his place.

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We are two days away from the 2009 NBA Draft and as we all know, the 76ers hold the 17th pick this year. Even at this late stage, there does not seem to be a consensus on what move the Sixers will make. As you slide down the Draft Board to the Sixers it seems that most “experts” feel Ed Stefanski will take a guard at number seventeen. Could be a point guard, could be a shooting guard or it could be a combo guard, who knows. But there are also those who think the Sixers have their eye on yet anoth and after his surprise workout for the Sixers this past weekend, it could be a real possibility for the Sixers. However we think it is a smoke screen.

Once again, we searched the world wide web and gathered up a host of “expert” opinions on what to expect from the Sixers on Draft Night 2009. While we did find a lead candidate, we think you’ll surprised at the lack of agreement among the “experts” and how many of them are flip-flopping on their predictions as well as a few of the names being put out there as a possible pick by Philadunkia’s home team.

 
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This Afternoon Ed Stefanski took some time off to answer some questions from fans as well as the media on Sixers.com. I was there to cue in on some issues as well as both Depressedfan and reclinergm. Most of the questions asked were adequate, yet one towards the end asking Ed who his favorite player was could have been left out. Here is the transcription.

Ed Stefanski:  Welcome everybody – let’s get started!

[Comment From Steve] 
Do you view Andre Iguodala as the starting sg next season? If not does that mean Thaddeus will be the 6th man?

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The 76ers held a press conference yesterday to tell us something we were already 90% for certain was going to happen…Tony DiLeo will NOT be the head coach of the Sixers in 2009-10. Tony did not get fired, nor did he reisgn instead he “withdrew his name form consideration” and will return to his job as the team’s senior vice president and assistant general manager. It’s the first time we have ever heard that line. When in the history of sports did a current coach ever have to withdraw his name from consideration for a position that he currently holds? We have to say it was a sly little move by Ed Stefanski and the higher ups down at Comcast.
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For most colleges and universities around the United States students are either finished, or finishing up their semesters and waiting for their final grades to be given out. In the NBA only eight teams remain in the running for an NBA Championship, which means that there are 22 teams that are currently out of commission. Obviously, the Sixers are one of the 22 teams out of action after their series loss to Orlando last week and here at Philadunkia we have decided to hand out grades to the players on the team based on their regular season/post season production this year, as well as a few other factors.

Some players performed like Sean Penn in “Fast Times at Ridgemont High”, while others performed like Matt Damon in “Good Will Hunting”. There was a strict syllabus of expectation for players on the Sixers when the season started, and in order to get an A you had to play above and beyond your capabilities in nearly every category. The grades are in for Royal Ivey as he starts off this series.
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Don’t be so quick to chuckle at this proposal. We kicked it around a little bit here at the Philadunkia offices  before putting it out there and it’s not that crazy of an idea. Obviously it would have to be a sign and trade, but here’s why we think it could make sense for both organizations.

1) Neither player is exactly thrilled with the current team he is playing on.
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At this point we’re not even sure if Tony DiLeo is going to lose his job. You can easily make a case for both sides of that argument. We’d lean more toward the side of the argument that says the late season collapse and the dreadful Game 6 effort are evidence that it’s time for him to go, but we would not be furious if DiLeo was patrolling the Sixers sideline again next year. Still even though he technically is still the 76ers head coach, there has been a lot of talk about who should replace DeLio.

When / if DiLeo gets relieved of his coaching duties, the one name we keep hearing mentioned as a possible replacement for DiLeo is former Dallas head coach and current ESPN analyst Avery Johnson. There seems to be a good deal of momentum building for Avery in print, or the radio and on the streets. here in Philly. We believe that Eddie Jordan is a more logical choice given Stefanski’s and Jordan’s ties to the Nets organization, but Johnson suddenly seems like real a possibility.
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So long season.  I’ve always heard that you can’t be let down if you don’t expect too much, and boy did my expectations sure let me down this time.  Heading into game 6, I actually fooled myself into believing that the 76ers had a chance to beat the Orlando Magic without Dwight Howard and Courtney Lee.  How foolish of me.  How naive must I have been to have believed that a team at full strength, in an elimination game in their home building, could put forth the effort to defeat an opponent without two of their starters, including their best player?  The worst part about the Sixers embarrassing 114-89 loss, besides the fact that I’m forced to dwell on it until October, is that fact that I was actually convinced that the Sixers could defeat the Magic sans Dwight, and force a seventh game, and then even potentially surge into the second round.  However, my fantasy did not lost for long, and after the team came out flatter than a ten year old basketball, I was quickly dragged back down to reality and forced to accept another first round failure. 
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Stan Van Gundy is a clown. The manner in which he acted in response to Tony DiLeo’s comments on the refs Tuesday night was childish. After DiLeo rightfully called out the refs for both the elbow thrown by Dwight Howard and Howard’s tendency to stay underneath the basket for more than three seconds on both defense and offense, Van Gundy had this to say:

“Am I supposed to come up here and talk about the game? Or am I supposed to come up here and lobby for the calls I want the next game? Is that what it’s about now? We’re supposed to lobby for the calls we want the next game? Let’s just play the games. I guess that’s the only reason Dwight’s having success in this series. It has nothing to do with the fact that he’s good. We’re going to have the league look at Dwight’s elbow on Courtney Lee, too.”

This just shows you the type of coach that Van Gundy is. He starts being a hypocrite as soon as he comes on the podium. If he didn’t want to talk about the calls, than why even bring them up? He was definitely trying to send a message to the League offices or start something with DiLeo. Both are totally unprofessional.
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Apparently David Stern’s rules enforcer Stu Jackson is the only person who can stop Superman as Dwight Howard has been suspended for Game 6 of the Orlando Magic’s playoff series against our 76ers.

The NBA announced Wednesday that Howard will be suspended for his elbow on Sixers center Samuel Dalembert in Game 5 on Tuesday night.

The two got tangled up going for a rebound in the first quarter. Replays showed Howard’s elbow hit Dalembert above the shoulders. Howard drew a technical foul for the hit and in our opinion should have been run from the game at that moment.

Additionally, Orlando will also be without starting guard Courtney Lee, who suffered a fractured sinus after taking an inadvertent elbow to the head from Howard later in the quarter. Lee’s status for the remainder of the playoffs is uncertain.

The Magic lead the Sixers 3-2 in the best-of-seven series. Game 6 is Thursday, baby.