|
Overall Win/Loss Record (as of November 30th): 9-6,
third place Atlantic Division
|
8
|
This
Month:
10
|
|
Team
Statistics and League Rank (as of November 30th)
|
Individual
Statistical Leaders (as of November 30th)
|
|
|
Worst Player of the Month: Andrew Bynum
Sure, some may say that it is unfair to label Bynum as the team’s
worst player because he has yet to play a game; however, that is the precise
reason why he should be named. The Sixers are banking their entire
future on a 25 year old big man who has shown that he has the goods to be a
franchise player, but has the injury record of a player ten years
older. What’s worse is that he will be an unrestricted free agent at
season’s end and eligible for a massive max level contract extension.
Thus the Sixers find themselves between a rock and a hard place: should
they risk investing on a player who has yet to play for them, but has such an
extensive resume (2 NBA Titles and an All Star selection) that they would
look like fools if they let him go? The Sixers’ future for next five or
six years has essentially been held hostage as it depends on the speculation
on whether or not Bynum will be the impact player they envision making the
possession of Bynum less of a blessing and more of a curse.
|
First Player of the Month: Jrue
Holiday
This is an obvious answer since Jrue Holiday currently leads the 76ers
in scoring, assists and minutes played. He has essentially become
Philly’s de-facto leader after the departure of Andre Igoudala to the Denver Nuggets and he has certainly proven that he is a worthy successor to the
throne. Holiday has certainly silenced his doubters on whether or not
he can run an offense and become a solid facilitator for his teammates as he
is currently ranks third in the league in Assists per game behind notable All
Stars Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul. It is because of his leadership that
the 76ers are currently 9-6 to start the season and with the eventual arrival
of big man Andrew Bynum on the floor, Philly will become a force to be reckoned
with in the league. Unfortunately, with Bynum sidelined for an
indefinite amount of time, all that can be done is speculation of a possible
future that may or may not arrive making Holiday’s efforts even more
important to his team.
|
|
|
Analysis:
The
76ers have picked up where there left off last season silencing their
doubters and detractors. Sure they do not have the most talented teams,
but what they lack in talent they make up for in heart and desire. In
what can be considered as one of, if not THE toughest division in the league,
Philly has managed to hold its own against three of the NBA's top teams and
do not nearly boast as much talent as their three division rivals--the Boston Celtics, the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets. All the credit has to
be given to head coach Doug Collins, who for the second straight season has
been denied the Coach of the Year Award despite making a team of
underwhelming scrappy players into one of the most dangerous teams in the
league. And by the look of things, Collins will continue to defy
expectations as his Sixer team posted a rather impressive start finishing
November with a 9-6 record.
The
Sixer's season started with a slight hiccup as they lost two of their first
three games losing both consecutively to the current Atlantic
Division leading New York Knicks (11/4, 11/5); however, Philly bounced back
winning their next three against as they beat the New Orleans Hornets
(11/7/2012), their division rival Boston Celtics (11/9/2012) and the Toronto Raptors (11/10/2012). They would unfortunately drop the next two games
against the Central Division leading Milwaukee Bucks (11/12/2012) followed by
falling to the Detroit Pistons (11/14/2012), but would bounce back yet again
winning three in a row and finish November winning six of their last eight
game. And all of this comes from a team that is greatly outmatched by
their opponents in terms of size and with no real legitimate post presence.
Right now the Sixers have been performing at such a high level as they
wait for their secret weapon to finally arrive who will transform this team
into a bunch of hearty scrappers into a true championship contender.
This "secret weapon" comes in the form of All Star and two
time NBA championship big man, Andrew Bynum, who will give Philly probably
its greatest big man since Moses Malone and once he returns from rehabbing
his injuries, all of the Sixers' oppoents better watch out!!
Bynum's
arrival will enhance an already strong 76er squad who has seen three of their
young players emerge into elite caliber players. Jrue Holiday, after
years of being under the huge shadow of Andre Igoudala has burst into the
scene becoming Philly's number one guy leading the team in scoring, assists
and minutes played. Sixers fans have also witnessed the ascension of
Thaddeus Young, who for most of career came off the bench, finally getting
his chance to start and has put up rather impressive number being second on
the team in scoring averaging a little over 15 per game while leading the
team in rebounds as well. The greatest improvement, however, has come
from a player who many deemed as a draft day bust after have a very
nondescript couple of seasons after being picked second overall in the
2010 NBA Draft. Evan Turner has redeem himself as he has exploded this
season posting career highs is scoring (14.9), rebounds (7.4) and
assists (4.2) while shooting a phenomenal .458 from beyond the arc.
Put
these three young rising stars next to an already established big man in
Andrew Bynum, the Sixers with have a four player core that will contend for
the Eastern Conference crown for years to come as all four players currently
range from 25 years old and under. Add the fact that these four guys
will be supported by one of the league's deepest rosters makes Philly an even
more dangerous foe. It consists of veteran swingman Jason Richardson,
two young and athletic wings in Dorell Wright and Nick Young, a sturdy young
work horse of a big man in Lavoy Allen, and possily one of the league's best
back up centers in Spencer Hawes. Once at full strength, this young and
talent Philadelphia 76ers team might even prove to be a dark horse spoiler to
not only win the Eastern Conference, but also represent it in the NBA Finals
for the first time since 1999. This current team can also be even
potentially stronger than the one of the greatest Sixers teams to ever grace
the court that consisted of hall of famers, Julius "Dr. J" Irving,
Maurice Cheeks, and Moses Malone.
However
everything hinges on the arrival of Andrew Bynum on the roster, because
without him, Philly is greatly outmatched and this exceptional 9-6 start will
soon go up in smoke. One can see how much of a heavy a toll missing
Bynum has weighed on this young Sixer team. Despite earning that
winning record to start the season, it is still early and the Sixers have
shown signs of wearing down. In all their games in November, their
opponents have shown a slight advantage in the areas of rebounding and
shooting despite being held to under 94 points per game in November making it
seem all but inevitable that the Sixers will collapse. With a rather
tough stretch heading into December, they could easily drop every game save
for let's say for the sake of argument, four games, dropping them from up and
coming contender to a struggling team barely treading water.
|
||
Saturday, January 5, 2013
SDH Presents the NBA's Worst to First for November: 10. Philadelphia 76ers
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment