Caution: Speed Bump Ahead

Today the MLK Day game is back in Philly. This is a great game to take the kids to. The Sixers do a good job of paying homage to Dr. King and the matinee start time (2PM) means the kids can stay awake to see the game.  

But over the years I found this 2 o’clock start to a bit of a speed bump for teams. The shooting at the start will be off. Often for both teams. Some teams shake off the slow start (A last second jumper from Dirk Nowitzki comes to mind). Other teams never adjust and get pasted.

It adds another wrinkle to the schedule in this wacky season.  There was no practice for the Sixers yesterday after a 2nd command performance over the Wizards Saturday nite. So you really have no idea what’s gonna happen here. I understand Andrew Bogut is expected to play. So the Sixers will have their hands full.

You will see more obstacles  ahead this week when you peek at the schedule. The Nuggets are in town Wednesday and the Hawks on Friday. Both winning teams. The Sixers match up well to them, but it’s not a given the Sixers will win. And then they Sixers travel to Miami on Saturday to end the week with back to back games.

So is this the week the Sixers don’t finish with a winning record? I don’t think so. But I can’t tell you for sure how that’s gonna happen. That’s all the more reason to watch. Heck, come on out to a game. This team deserves better attendance.

Sixers new look on NBA 2K10

  There’s alot more going on the the background than you might think when you make a uniform change. The blogsphere heard about the change last season. Then the NBA got ahead of the Sixers formal announcement when they did the annual photo shoot for rookies. Can’t Put Jru Holiday in last years uniform. So the picks were taken in the new Red, White, and Blue.

We are fortunate the guys at 2K sports had enough time to update the Sixers new look on NBA 2K10. Looks like they got the new floor in there too.

Iggy’s looking buff this year.

After further review …

Someone sent me this one via e-mail recently. Thought I would pass it along for laughs.

Harvey Pollack’s T-Shirt Crusade hits 6 Years!

Harvey Pollack’s world record run of consecutive days wearing a different T-Shirt will reach a span of six years today.

Over 2100 unique T-shirts! This one get’s filed under “Can you believe it” or just frickin’ weird.

Go Daddy

Sixers News Widget

Sixers beat Knicks the second time around in pre-season

I'm checking out the high-lites of pre-season and I'm getting excited for opening nite.

No more Wachovia Center ?

The massive slide in the economy can't help but trickle down to the world of sports. It's not ticket fees or merchandise sales that fuel the NBA. Its advertising. Spectator faces a challenge with the pending demise of Wachovia. The venue known as the Wachovia Center , formerly know as the CoreStates Center, will have to change its name. What do you do? I wondering if the name licensing agreement accounts for such an event.

Anybody big enough to buy Wachovia already has a stadium or arena don't they? I saw the Met's new stadium this summer. Citi field is slated to open in 2009. And Wells Fargo, the other suitor, has more than one area that bears its name. And what would you call such a place .... the chuck wagon?

Kobe Bryant - Dickipedia - A Wiki of Dicks

Kobe Bryant - Dickipedia - A Wiki of Dicks

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This was too funny not to share. In this spoof on Wikipedia Kobe's career is taken to task. All U Kobe player haters take note!

Sixers Widget

7-0@Home but the next 3 on the road

I'm a big believer in the basketball gods. Some heavenly body that watches over the karma of the game. The NBA schedule is one of those domains ruled by the basketball gods. Every team has a brutal schedule. But the brutality isn't measured out the same every nite. The basketball gods see to that. Back to backs ... coast to coast road trips ... Texas two steps ... home and homes ... 3 games in 5 nites. But some nites the schedule favors your team. The Sixers have been making hay at home ... winning 7 straight. I enjoyed watching them handle the Magic on Wednesday nite. You can thumb your nose at the opponents, but you gotta give them credit for taking advantage when the schedule favors them.

I appreciate Marc's comments about the schedule as he covers the team. He notes a rough ride to start their 3 game road trip starting in Golden State tonite. Golden State will be playing its fourth of five straight home games and the Warriors have been off since Tuesday’s 105-99 win over Seattle. Maybe they will be rusty after the layoff?

Playoff Bound

If you hadn't heard the Sixers have reached the 7th seed in the playoff chase. The ideal spot is the 6th seed to avoid Detroit or Boston in the first round. So if you are rooting for a playoff berth you want to see them pass another team.

Baron Davis is the best guard in the nba?

Okay ... were talking about this in the shop the other day.

Question:

Who's the better guard (1) Baron Davis or (2) Steve Nash.

What followed was a series of rhetorical questions like ... what do you mean better point guard or shooting guard? Baron Davis is better than Nash one on one. What do you mean better guard for his team? Baron Davis is a better defender. What do mean his the best guard in the nba ... period.

We all agreed that Davis had the better slam dunks and left it at that.

1,000 games ... Are you kidding me?

Last nite's game was the 1,000th regular-season Sixers game announced by Sixers radio play-by-play announcer Tom McGinnis. This is McGinnis' 13th season with the Sixers. Hard to believe it's been that long. I think the last announce was ... ah ... Neil Funk?

Any way kudos to Tom. I have to say he calls an excellent game. I recall the 1st time I heard him. It was amazing! In those days he called the entire game by himself! Not just the play by play. He did color, analyzed the game and sold popcorn at half time.

Madd Props for the Phils

Havin' given up on baseball too many years ago to count, I don't deserve a seat on the bandwagon. But I have to tip my hat to the Phillies. I didn't think they could it. But they made it to the post season after a 14 year hiatus. Best of luck in the post season.