Big Mac or History?

This week wasn’t so bad here in Sixers Nation. The Detroit game was a big relief. The Sixers routed them 97-68 on the road. The five game losing streak really tested our faith. Waiting until after the All Star break extended the torture. The possibility of another road loss still loomed large despite the Sixers recent dominance over the motor city boys.

The win gave us a moment to exhale. Sure the same weaknesses were there, but the confidence the Sixers could beat a lesser opponent was back.

So I bounced down the WFC for the Thunder game with a lighter step. Few gave the Sixers a chance to win, but we all hoped they could. The west coast conference leader would be a signature win. Some called for the perfect game just to have a chance. But in reality only a normal day at the office or the #NightShift was needed. The loss in the final minutes brought back all the old ghosts of close games past. There were some fans around me that left that game visibly angered that the Sixers did not win. A few vocalized their displeasure towards coach, players or the team in general. I left thinking to myself. THAT WAS ONE HELL OF A BASKETBALL GAME. If you are a fan of basketball it was a great game to watch. That’s all you can really ask for If you’re paying to see it in person.

The Warriors game was the second nite of great crowds at the WFC. Wednesday nite was electric. And the fanfare and hoopla over the anniversary of Wilt Chamberlains 100 point game had the place all a buzz. We were all full of nostalgia as they recanted the Bill Campbell’s radio broadcast before the game started and flashed Wilt stats through out the game to attest to his legacy.

The Warrior did their part by keeping the game completive for a few quarters, but the Sixers 3rd quarter rush gave the crowd a quiet confidence of victory. We were all smiles to start the fourth period. Wilt had only 69 points to start that final period. The Sixers needed 25 points to equal Wilt’s final total. When it got close I noticed a sign held up by a member of the revolution;

WILT = Big Mac

When the Sixers had 97 points the significance of it all was clear to everyone, including the players. Lou Williams was jacking threes just to hit the number squarely. #FreeBigMacs, They surpassed the number. It would have been neat to finish the game with exactly 100 points, but the 105 was good enough. On the ride home someone on the radio posed a question I had not considered; “Do you keep the ticket as a souvenir or do you cash it in for a Big Mac?”.  Oh you gotta keep the ticket my friend says. I agreed, but the next day I pondered it again.

Big Mac or History?

Sorry dog. I already have a 2x2 inch piece of the floor from the game. I was hungry and that Big Mac was good.

Sixers–Wizards, Blow-out, Rinse, Repeat

I’m happy to see my Sixers get back in the win column again. I don’t care how bad the Wizards are. At some point you have to give the Sixers credit for not just beating a bad team but dominating a bad team. And the Sixers dominated a bad Wizards team.  

"If everybody's going to be selfish, it doesn't matter what the lineup is," guard John Wall said. "When you're a losing team, guys don't want to hang around with each other. Win a few games and we'll be OK."

I can’t image how hard it is to be a Wizards fan. Everybody knows what’s going on and they are hapless to change it. Wall’s attitude that winning mends all fences is sound, but I don’t see how that’s gonna happen. As Malik Rose said last nite, They have a bunch of young players and players on the last year or 2 of their contracts. All they are worried about was getting their points.

The Sixers and Wizards are polar opposites.

Like other fans out there, I want to see how the Sixers match up with some of the better teams. At this point in their maturation they need to learn how to adjust when teams exploit their weaknesses. We know they have a hard time with long teams. The Sixers are overmatch on the boards and get beat up in the post. They can’t get better at it without more experience.

But, as I said earlier, the Sixers should get extra credit for blowing out a bad team in a home and home tilt. So tonite …

Rinse, Repeat, blow-out

Sixers storm back in the 4th to sting the Hornets 101-93

Now that the Sixers have shown you then can match up to a team like Portland.
Now that the Sixers have shown you that they can win on the road.
Now that you have seen the Sixers beat a team they where supposed to beat on the road.
Now that the Sixers have shown how they respond to a tuff loss.
Now that the Sixers have shown you they can handle the lead in a blow-out
Now that the Sixers have shown you how they respond to back-to back games.
Now that you have seen the Sixers can take care of the ball.
Now that you see the Sixers are really serious about their team defense.
Now that you have seen them win when lead in scoring  by Williams, Igoudala, Holiday or even Hawes.
Now that you have seen the Sixers are playing as good as or better than the team that finished last season.
Now that you see the Sixers can come storming back to win in the 4th.
Now that the Sixers have shown they could reach above .500 earlier in a season that anyone can remember.

…. Any Questions?

…… Can you believe this?

Happy New Year Sixers Faithful

I had a great time on new years eve. I love watching a Sixers game before the ball drops.  And watching the Sixers drop the hammer of the Warriors just made my nite (107-79). My friend Ricky was lamenting the let down in the Utah game. Claiming they looked more like the old Sixers of the Eddie Jordon era than the Sixers team at then end of last season. Hey Ricky, they can’t win then all. The Sixers don’t get blown out often so that is what a loss is going to look like. And that’s what I think the season is going to look like. You can’t say the Sixers were lucky ‘cause Warriors stand-out start, Monta Ellis was out. That’s going to happen over and over this season. Stars will miss games and the rest of the team will have to suck it up. Utah did just that Friday nite. You gotta have some faith this season.

Early in the game, Sixers sideline reporter Meredith Marakovits showed a quote by new Warriors head coach Mark Jackson about placing a premium on defense over offense. And pointed to the seasons fast start as evidence of the new Warriors. The way the game started (Sixers 7 Warriors 20) you might have believed that quote about defense.

The Sixers starters could not make a shot and Stephan Curry was making them look really bad on the pick and roll. The Super Subs (Williams, Young, and Turner) came in and changed the tone of the game. The Sixers closed the gap by the end of the 1st period and forged a 7 point lead at the half. It might have been a bigger lead if the Sixers could make free throws. Contrary to Malik Rose’s opinion, I am not so sure that bad free throw shooting can’t be contagious.

But after the jump the Sixers made all of the Warriors talk about defense disappear. They started the 3rd period with a 13-1 run and the rout was on. Other than shooting better from the 3 point line than the foul line there was little to argue with about the Sixers performance. They corrected their defense against Curry and the 3 point shooting was outrageous.

You could see the frustration on Coach Jackson face. He’s going to find things are a lot harder than it looks from the broadcast booth.

Keep the faith Sixers fans.

76ers Stumble in Utah 99-102

Well I guess our wishes for the Sixers go above .500 was not to be.  I watched this one Tivo delayed. I probable started mid way thru the 3rd period. I resists skipping ahead. It looked like the Sixers had the game in hand.

I had a feeling this was going to be a loss when Iggy hits a 3 pointer, get’s fouled but failed to make the free throw. Then he comes down and misses 2 free throws on an ensuing possession … ugh!  No comeback tonite. No matter how much the Jazz wanted to give it away.

The good thing about the NBA and this expedited season is that you don’t have a lot of time to sit and ponder a loss. There’s another game tonite. The Sixers will be in Oakland to face the former broadcaster now coach Mark Jackson and his Golden State Warriors

Hmmm .. it looks like the Warriors new front office has there hands full with “Golden State Warriors Face Multiple Sexual Harassment Charges, According To Report”.

Sixers drop 1st game in Portland

Common sense tells me that the Sixers can’t win them all. Logic tells me that they would probably not win Monday nite against the Blazers. But I’d be lying if you told I didn’t expect them to pull out the game. Because the team I have come to love does not give up. Rarely do they fold like a cheap tent. Instead they just keep plugging away and something good happens.

Well I guess something good did happen, but it was just short of a win. The barrage of 3 pointers in the fourth when down by 15 was really good. But They just dug too much of a whole fueled by 20 turnovers. Jrue Holiday committed 6 turnovers! Much to many for your floor leader. He just did not seem himself. I kept waiting for him to take charge in the 2nd half. But it never came. Not what I was expecting from him either.

But I’m  going to keep a positive attitude. They made the game completive. Let see about a win in Phoenix.

Sixers finish Preseason with a sloppy win

It was a stark contrast to the previous tilt with the Wizards, but the Sixers did find a way to win (101-94). You had to know the Wizards would give more effort this time around after getting spanked last Friday.

Doug Collins said it best, the Sixers played poor defense, gave up too many offensive rebounds and had too many turnovers. You’re not going to win may games that way and everyone knows it. But is was a good thing in this regard, the humbling experience will help them focus. You’re not playing a team as dreadful as the Wizards every nite.

The other good you can take from the game was the play of Jrue Holiday. In a nutshell the win was all Jrue. He scored 15 points in the 4th period and limited the number of turn-overs. I think you are looking at the future. Holiday should be the Sixers 20 & 10 guy this year (Points & Assists). He is on the verge of superstardom.

Ok, preseason’s over. Let’s get ready to lace ‘em up for real.