2/12/13
The circus was in town and it featured an act called Lob City.
Lob city is what the Clippers are nicknamed for their highlight reel alley oops
and spectacular dunks. The 76ers were coming off in what they called a
“workman-like” win against the Charlotte Bobcats. It was an ugly win, but could
that mean that this game was set up to be a disastrous game? The Clippers are
one of the best teams in the Western Conference and are, for the most part,
fully healthy. Blake Griffin and Chris Paul are the face of the franchise right
now and they love putting on a show. They love to play fast and are an athletic
bunch. Caron Butler and Chauncey Billups both sat out for the Clippers due to
back injuries. Matt Barnes and former 76er Willie Green took their places in
the starting lineup.
Let’s just say that this game in general was pathetic to
watch. Turnovers were a factor in the first half, especially for the 76ers who
committed nine turnovers. Most of their turnovers were the dreaded live-ball
turnovers. That caused the Clippers to have 11 fast break points. The Clippers
easily attacked the basket, and it worked because they got to the free throw
line 15 times. That’s the amount of free throws the 76ers get on an average per
game. The Clippers were also giving the 76ers fits because the Clippers played
a wide defensive trap. Whenever the ball was in the corner of the court, two
players would trap that 76ers player and make it difficult to pass the ball to
a 76er player who was standing around doing nothing to help his team. The
Clippers led 56-33 at halftime. Paul led the Clippers with 12 points at
halftime while Nick Young led the 76ers with nine points.
The Clippers made the second half look like I was playing a
game of NBA Jam. They showed why they are called Lob City. Blake Griffin did an
incredible posterizing dunk on Spencer Hawes that made ESPN’s top ten plays of
the night. Also, DeAndre Jordan
had a dunk that was on ESPN’s top ten plays of the night with a putback dunk.
He ran from halfcourt and simply dunked the ball on a missed shot. It seemed
like the 76ers were mentally checked out once the Clippers were displaying
their lob city act. After Griffin posterized Hawes, you could see Evan Turner
on the bench hiding a smirk. Either he was impressed with Griffin’s
dunk or he was disrespecting Hawes. The 76ers may have had a nice fourth
quarter, but all of the starters for the Clippers were on the bench except for
Green. I call that fourth quarter a mirage. The Clippers won by a final score
of 107-90. Paul had a double-double. He scored 21 points and dished 11 assists.
Griffin finished with 20 points and nine
rebounds. Jamal Crawford collected 20 points off the bench. Matt Barnes ended
with 11 points. Eric Bledsoe had 10 points in the game. For the 76ers, Nick
Young finished with 29 points. Turner, Jrue Holiday, and Jeremy Pargo all
scored 10 points in the game. Holiday also
collected nine assists.
Overall, the 76ers are having trouble scoring points without
Thaddeus Young in the lineup due to his injury. They can’t seem to find any
offensive game without jacking up a hundred jump shots in a game, especially
those “long two point shots.” The bright spots for the
76ers were Nick Young, Arnett Moultrie, and Pargo. Young played like his alter
ego Swaggy P and put on a scoring display in the second half. Moultrie
is starting to prove why he should be a part of Doug Collins’ bench rotation.
He comes into the game and gets rebounds and scores easy baskets. Pargo, a guy
who signed a 10 day contract late this past week, is showing the 76ers that
he’s capable of being a backup point guard. The Clippers have a deep team. Most
of their bench players use to be starters in guys like Grant Hill, Lamar Odom,
and Crawford. Bledsoe, the backup point guard for the Clippers, has the
potential to become a starter for any team.
How do the 76ers turn
the page after this horrific display of basketball? Sound off and stay tuned on
Wednesday when the 76ers fly to Milwaukee to
take on the Bucks. This will be their last game before the all-star break.
Arnett Moultrie was indeed one of the lone bright sports here. In addition to cleaning up some on the offensive glass and capitalizing on a few easy looks; Moultrie stripped Blake Griffin cleanly on a nice baseline move by Griffin. This was a pleasant surprise. Thaddeus Young getting hurt should be looked at as a blessing in disguise because otherwise Moultrie would still be riding the bench.
ReplyDeletePargo also has looked the part of a capable back-up Pg which the sixers have been in need of all season. Pargo is head and shoulders above the hometown kid Maalik Wayns.
I know it may not be in Doug Collins blood, but, is it time for those beloved Sixers to tank? What is the market for a struggling Evan Turner? If I'm in that front office - I'm selling for pennies on the dollar. The Sixers have a host of off-season questions ahead of them with expiring contracts galore. By tinkering around with the system and line-up now can they get a step ahead of the rest of the league. A high lottery pick (Glenn Robinson III) could help convince Bynum to stay in town. Getting rid of Turner could leave room on the court for the emergence of the Nick Young show and allow for his resigning.
I agree with all of your points. To answer your questions, would it be wise for the sixers to tank? Honestly, I don't know. They're 3 spots from the 8th seed (could be 4 after tomorrow). Also, people still forget that The first round pick from the Sixers,is lottery protected for two years, top 11 protected in year three, top 8 protected in year four. If Magic don’t get a first from Philly by 2016, they get two second-round picks. It would be real difficult to stoop that low to still get a first round pick. I feel that the market is not of great value right now for Turner because next year will be his last year in his contract and usually those players aren't high value. I do like Nick Young, he's just a streaky player.
DeleteI understand it wouldn't be until next year, but wouldn't his soon expiring contract be something other teams look for as they are preparing for the subsequent free agent class to come off the books in the summer of '14? I remind you, that list could include a litany of superstars, stars and young budding assets. Like, just to name a few, LeBron, Carmelo, Bosh (potential early termination options), John Wall, Damian Lillard, Paul George, Danny Granger, Luol Deng, Rudy Gay (player option), Dirk, Pau Gasol Derrick Favors, DeMarcus Cousins, Greg Monroe, Varejao, Garnett.
ReplyDeleteI understand I am taking a deep look into the future, but why wouldn't other teams be doing the same?
Or maybe, that's why the Sixers are planning to hold onto him.
I just see it as this:
The Sixers have Turner through next year as a player who will have (barring some drastic 'turn' of events) severely underperformed his pricy #2 draft contract. Unless he gets traded. A change of scenery might be best for both parties NOW. Turner could be auditioned for a year elsewhere and then let go with ease. If the Sixers got back a similar contract with an expiry in 2013 it would allow plenty of cash for Bynum, Nick Young and Dorrell Wright.
With as many painfully contested fading twos Nick Young hoists I can live with it - knowing he simply makes more plays than Turner. More athletic finishing around the rim with a much smoother jumper. I don't care how many rebounds a guard can get if he can't do things he's required to do on a nightly basis. Seeing this disparity in polish and talent is elementary to me.
damn...i didn't know that 2014 is a deep free agent class too. all i heard about was 2013 was a big year. other then that, i agree with all of your points.
Delete