Saturday, August 23, 2008

Jeff Ruland ... wasn't he that guy who ...

The Sixers Hired Jeff Ruland Friday.

It was day in June of 1986. Jeff Ruland would rue this day for the rest of his career ... ah well ... that wasn't very long (cut short by injury). Well the 76ers have not recovered from the events of that June day. I still meet people that tell me it was the last straw. They had had it with Harold Katz and the 76ers after the day we traded Moses Malone!

We did what?

In some circles you can still hear it referred to as "the trade".

We just traded Moses Malone for who? Yes, for Cliff Robinson and Jeff Ruland.

We did what?

And the #1 overall draft pick to Cleveland ... for What? Roy Hinson.

It was a real low moment in Sixers history. The Sixers have been trying to recover every sense. No longer the elite, but the "storied" franchises of the NBA. Translation 'they won the title once, but its been awhile'. Not since .... Moses. Who would have thunk it would be this long for the 76ers to win another title? Perhaps the trade was a curse and Jeff Ruland's return is the anti-venom.

Jeff Ruland - former head coach of the Albuqueruque Thunderbirds joins the Sixers coaching staff I guess you could spin it that way. Through-out his tenure here, Moe Cheeks' coaching staff has been made up of flashbacks of Sixers history. Ruland replaces ex-Sixers Henry Bibby. The mighty Moses is on the staff. It's supposed to be contagious ... being around players from the glory past. But Ruland doesn't quite fit the mold.

Some folks have not forgotten the past he represents.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The Sixers need this guy like I need the Swine Flu.

The day before the Sixers lost to the Magic 81-84 in the playoffs I met Ruland on the golf course. What is he doing the day before the most important game of the season playing golf?!

Then -- he tries to play through 3 groups in a row...who does this guy think he is?!

When we told him he's not representing the Sixers very well with how rude he is -- he said "I dont give a f*** about the Sixers"!

Maybe he should be figuring out a way to stop Howard down low...

Since talking to people about this encounter I've now heard three stories about how rude he is to fans...GET RID OF HIM!