Sunday, April 15, 2007

Thank God the Sixers Playoff Run is Over

Dwight Howard dominated the game from start to finish | It was kind of a surreal day. A 3pm start on a Saturday afternoon. There were a few die hards with beers in hand, but the arena did not have the right feel. It did not feel like an elimination game. More like a matinée for the kids. I took in the spectacle with my young nephew. All of seven years old he told me "The Magic are gonna win". And so a horror flick unfolded. Dwight Howard beat up the Sixers' bigs like a school yard bully. It was another example of how inadequate Sammy the "WunderKind" is at center and how one dimensional Steven Hunter is for a 7 foot tall big. Howard schooled them and the double team was totally ineffective.
(AP Photo/Rusty Kennedy
The Orlando Magic will make it to the post season. Where they are most likely to be spanked by their opponent. Howard and Nelson are the only real ballers on the team. Head coach Brian Hill is a retread. He wins if he has talent not because he can coach. But talent is enough for the Magic to progress ... for now.

As for the Sixers, Thank God this Playoff talk is over! They are officially eliminated. It was fools gold. There is no solace in making the playoffs with a losing record. Such insanity would not be conceivable had the eastern conference been better. We can take a moment to congratulate them. They have taken the first major step forward in years. The Iverson era is over. The prima donnas are gone. Philly has a pro basketball team ... emphasis on the word "team".

But as painfully as those first steps forward were it is only the beginning. Now that the playoff run is over we can ask "Now What". That's what the Sixers faithful should be talking about. In the past our conversations were of the could-a-would-a-should-a variety. I'm looking forward to more insightful discourse.

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