| AI Leads Sixers Back to the Playoffs….But There’s Still Turmoil Authored by Brian Poliakoff - May 16, 2005 - 10:34 pm
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Well unfortunately turmoil and Philadelphia sports always seem to find each other.
Inconsistent rotations, a blockbuster trade (if you want to call it that), unhappy role players and an extremely unhappy former all-star formed a dark cloud over what optimistic fans may and should view as a season highlighted by the elder AI’s relentless MVP-caliber play and the somewhat surprising growth of youngsters Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver and Sammy Dalembert.
So rather than lamenting on the bad, I’ll begin with a recap of the good.
The two AI’s really made it happen this season.
Rookie Andre “AI jr. or Iggy” Iguodala was the steal of the lottery last year. Who would’ve predicted that Iguodala would be the only Sixer to start all 82 games and turn out to be the team’s best, or perhaps only perimeter defender. This kid’s upside is ridiculous. He’s athletic, liked by his coach and teammates, and flies above the rim with poster-esque dunks night in and night out. Iverson even trusted the younger AI, throwing him lob after lob. He finished the season with averages of 9 ppg, 3 apg and 1.7 spg, respectively. If, or more likely, when he develops his mid-range game, AI Jr. will be an all-star.
Now to the face of the organization.
Iverson moved back to point guard for the first season since his rookie campaign and won his fourth scoring title (30.7 ppg), averaged a career high and team best 7.9 assists per contest and finished in the top five in the entire league in both assists and steals, making him the first player in NBA history to finish in the top five in all three categories.
I’m not done. He also was the MVP of the All-Star game, scored 50 plus points in consecutive games (54 at Milwaukee on 12/18, 51 vs. Utah on 12/20), and scored 60 against the Magic on 2/12. On 11/12 AI hit his first buzzer beater winning shot of his career against the Pacers. Oh and he also continued his magic touch in the playoffs, dropping 31.2 ppg and 10 apg against the Pistons and former coach/friend/enemy Larry Brown.
What makes these feats more impressive is that Iverson played a majority of the season hurt and did so with inconsistent rotations by his side.
Perhaps the only non-AI initialed Sixer with a consistent role this past year was Ashton-wanna-be, Kyle Korver. All kidding aside, the second year player really advanced his game this season. He set a new team record with 81 three pointers made and increased his scoring average to 11 ppg from just 4.5 in his rookie season. And yes, Korver went ice cold in the Detroit series, but I see that as a tough stretch that happened to come against the former champs and a great defender in Tayshaun Prince. It wasn’t an indicator of how he’ll grow.
Someone that has plenty of room to grow in terms of basketball IQ is Sammy Dalembert. Talk about a roller-coaster of a season. O’Brien had a very short leash with the Haiti native who looked brilliant on some nights and at other times seemed to get four touch fouls in two minutes of action. Yet, he still only has about six years of basketball experience in his entire life. And leading the playoffs in rebounding (12.8 rpg) against the Pistons proves Sammy’s upside is unlimited. You can’t teach jumping and blocking ability, and he has it. And how many 7-foot athletes are there in the NBA?
The last good thing to note about this year’s Sixers squad was the nice mix of solid vets and young role players on the bench. Yeah, the bench was short, but vocal mentors and Temple alums Aaron McKie and Marc Jackson came to play every night. Both were solid, all be it old and slow. Their knowledge of the game was a great asset, especially Jackson’s nightly advice to Dalembert.
Young bench players who were victims of O’Brien’s inconsistent rotations were John Salmons and Josh Davis. Both were able to contribute the few times they were called upon.
Now let’s shift gears to what didn’t go so well this year for the 76ers. Namely, the coach, CWebb, and Willie Green.
The turmoil begins with the next Matt Harpring or Keith Van Horn or Big Dog Robinson (insert laugh here) – CWebb. When Webber came in, Philly went nuts. Finally, another all-star with Iverson! Yet, what the Sixers got in return for Kenny Thomas, Corliss Williamson and Brian Skinner was a faded star who was limited to long jumpers and an inability to play anywhere above the rim due to chronic knee and ego issues.
With that said the Sixers went 17-11 with Webber on the team and earned the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. So we can’t knock Webber too much, or can we?
Coming in at second place in the ugly department has to be Jim O’Brien’s stubbornness in his rotations and style of play. He couldn’t decide on set roles until the Detroit series. And that was far too late to do that. O’Brien insisted on clogging the middle with his big men and then requiring them to run all over the perimeter on the pick and roll.
But guess what Jim? Your team is too slow and too inexperienced for that. Webber can’t move and Dalembert needs to be let loose so he can block shots at will. We saw a glimpse of adjustment by the coach in the playoffs. Let’s hope that adjustment becomes permanent next season.
That leads me to Willie Green. Green played great in the few games that Iverson was hurt and made some nice defensive strides in the playoffs. Fans and writers alike called for more PT for Willie. However, this is one area where I concur with Jim O’Brien. Green is too similar to AI. He needed the ball to succeed and presented a defensive liability when paired with AI in the backcourt. It’ll be interesting to see if Green is back next season.
As for next year, the Sixers have no first round pick, have no money (other than the mid-level exception) and have three important restricted free agents in Dalembert, Korver and Green.
Check back in a few days for my off-season forecast column that will discuss the 76ers’ limited personnel options. |
