Life on Mars

So you may have noticed my blog entries have been a little sparse lately. It's not that I have lost any love from my 76ers. It's because I've been away for awhile. Like in another country away. It was like I witnessed the Sixers first two games under the shadow of the Phillies championship and then I was whisked away to the planet Mars.

No one new much about Basketball there. They had ball games on TV, but it was this futbol thing they called it. Where guys run around for hours kicking themselves in the shins. There was no sports center. There was no NBA TV to tune me into what was going on with my beloved team. Just futbol ... futbol ... futbol.

So I had little time to reflect on the Piston's trade for AI or the Knicks finding a sucker for Zack Randolph. All I knew was gleaned from the boxes scores. My Sixers seem to be under achievers. There was no fast start as we had hoped. Different guys seem to lead in scoring every nite. They have crushed a few teams and inexplicable lost to poor teams.

I returned from the planet Mars this Sunday to take in a Sixers home game against the Golden State Warriors. I used to think that was a cool team name ... Golden State ... until I found out they called it golden state, because they didn't want to call it Oakland.

Anyway ... from Life on Mars to the Wac Center, here's what I observed Sunday.

(1) The stands where fairly empty ... perhaps this team does not have a big fan base. (2) That Brand guy is really good, but he not a beast ... not an unstoppable force that must be reckoned with on each possession (3) The team's slogan 'Run with Us' seems greatly at odds with the tempo of play they display (4) That Igoudala guy plays like he got a big fat contract and he couldn't be bothered that his jumper stinks and defenders don't respect his shot (5) Sammy is a beast on the boards (6) Their bench stinks ... how could they let leads evaporate so quickly (7) I'm not sure what a Mo Cheeks is or what he's doing out there (8) Wow that Tad Young guy plays like he came from Mars. Oh .. yeah Steve Jackson suxs.

But the Sixers did beat the GSW's 89-81 and they are above .500 after 13 games. So there is cause for optimism. But help me out here ... can you tell me if life on Mars has changed my prospective of what I'm seeing on the floor?