1,2,3,4,5.... Sixers!!!! The 2014 Debut!.

After a long holiday season spent working crazy retail hours, I have returned to what I hope will be a regular schedule of basketball and nonsense. So a lot has happened since last time I posted, let me explain… NO, there is too much let me sum up.

1. Sixers stock watch

Here are my feelings on the roster, and I did it like stocks because I'm super clever.

MC Dub: STOCK IS WAY UP! I was totally in love with MC Dub a month ago, and yet I still like him even more today. The ceiling keeps creeeping higher and higher. Its amazing to think he was the 11th pick in this draft. He is now a lock to win ROTY, and might be the only starter who comes back next year. He also might be the only starter next season with more than a handful of NBA games under his belt.
Thad Young: UP! Since last time, Thad went crazy. He's played brilliant ball and won POTW. He's been fabulous, which almost guarantees he'll be traded shortly. More on this later.
Spencer Hawes: Flat. Spencer has been a little up and down lately, but he's still having a career year. His 3-point shooting is not a fluke, and he has made himself into one of the most unique players in the game.
Evan Turner: Down. All of my residual Evan love is gone. Doug Collins didn't do ET any favors, but coaching can no longer be to blame for Evan. He is a selfish and STUBBORN player. Why on earth would a guy who shoots under 30% take 3 three pointers a game? How is it possible to get your shot blocked more often than you draw fouls? It's crazy and I'm done.
Tony Wroten: Down. I know we all want Tony to be good, but he just isn't right now. I think all Sixer fans root for Tony to stick as the team's third guard going forward, but it seems unlikely that he'll ever been more than a 4th guard on a good Sixers team, given he can't shoot. Unless he or MC Dub develops their outside game, I don't think you can play them together, especially this season with ET on the floor.
Nerlens Noel: UP! Looks like their is a good chance the big man plays this season. A few flashes would really give the fans something to dream about, and would make this season seem a lot less bleak.
Lavoy Allen: Flat. I didn't care a month ago, I don't care now. Another guy I want no part of going forward.
Elliot Williams, Brandon Davies, Lorenzo Brown, Hollis Thompson, and James Anderson: UP! I am pretty confident that I could match their names to faces now, whereas a month ago I was reading jerseys to remember who was who, so good job anonymous bench.

2. Your 2014-15 Philadelphia 76ers (via trade)

A large part of being a Sixers fan these days is day dreaming about "the future", but what can we realistically expect to see next season. The most likely scenario is that the team will run out MC Dub, Noel, the 2 lottery picks, and a player to be named later as their starting 5. I wonder if the team would be better served turning some of those young players into 1 slightly older veteran.

I for one am celebrating every time the Timberwolves blow another close game. If the Wolves miss the playoffs again, I think that franchise would have to seriously consider moving Kevin Love, who would essentially be in the final year of his contract due to an early termination option in his contract. I would think if the 76ers went all-in and offered Thad and both #1 picks in next year's draft, then Minnesota would take the deal. It is interesting because I think most Sixer fans would feel like that is too much to give up. MC Dub, Nerlens and Love is a nice core, and they would just have to add wing players with their ridiculous cap space (about $30m). Perhaps just as important as Love's basketball skills is the fact that he is a Team USA guy, and makes the thought of landing a top tier free agent in the next few years a much more realistic plan. I can't imagine either player signing with the 76ers, but LeBron and Melo at least would politely answer the team's calls if we had Love and the ROTY to pair them with. A long shot to be sure, but chasing Love may be the Sixer's best move at this point.

A secondary trade target would be the Hawks' Al Horford, who may or may not be available depending on Atlanta's plans for the future. Horford would cost considerably less than Love, perhaps just the Nola first rounder. Big Al would work nicely next to the defensive minded Nerlens, and he could slide to center when Thad is on the court. The team would still need to add wings, but you could draft one with a top 5 pick, the other would have to be a free agent. Luol Deng, Danny Granger, Gordon Haywood, Avery Bradley, and Lance Stephenson are the top realistic options at SF/SG that will be available. A lineup of MC Dub, free agents X (lets say Lance), draft pick Y (lets say Parker), Horford and Noel with Thad and Tony Wroten coming off the bench ain't half bad. And I didn't even mention J-Rich hiding in the shadows.

A final option would be a deal based on the same thought process that leads to a Hawks deal, only sliding in Greg Monroe instead of Horford. This would have to be a sign and trade, and in suggesting this I am assuming Detroit will give up on trying to play Smith, Drummond and Monroe together.

I would go for any of these deals. I like the way those projected lineups look. I do not like the thought of starting 3 rookies next year, mostly because I'd much rather be half decent than terrible again.

3. Your 2014-15 Philadelphia 76ers (via draft)

Assuming the Sixers are going to keep all their picks, next year's starting lineup should be MC Dub, Noel, 2 lotto picks, and either Thad or a free agent. The possibilties are endless, and for a fun waste of 20 minutes go here and play with the lotto machine. Some fun lineup thoughts:

The All-Duke draft:

MC Dub
Rodney Hood
Jabari Parker
Thad Young
Nerlens Noel

The best case scenario (The Pellies fall apart and ends up giving us the #6 pick):

MC Dub
Dante Exum
Andrew Wiggins
Thad Young
Nerlens Noel

What if Embiid is the best guy:

MC Dub
Gary Harris
free agent (i hope) Hollis Thompson (i hope not)
Nerlens Noel
Joel Embiid

My only problem with these youngster heavy lineups is that there is no natural pecking order. You do run the risk of a Sacremento Kings type situation where every guy thinks he's the best guy and nobody plays as a team. Now, with MC Dub being such a good passer, and Noel being a defense first type player, I don't think that will happen, but I do worry about it.

4. I know I just said trade for Love, but…

Is Kevin Love that good? How about Kyrie Irving? This question can be asked of many players, but I feel like Love and Irving might be the 2 most overrated players in the league. I love watching both guys, and they are both assets to the league. Last October they were placed 8th (Irving) and 11th (Love) in ESPN's #NBARank. So what is my problem with 2 young, exciting, universally respected players? They are LOSERS! If you are one of the best dozen players in the world, you should probably be able to make the playoffs in a league where more than half of the teams qualify. These guys, do a million things well, but the only thing that really should matter is wins and losses, and these two just don't win. So until one of these guys makes the playoffs, I'm going to question whether they are really that good.

Let's start with Love, here are the Timberwolves finishes in Love's first 6 seasons in the NBA.

'08-09: 24-58, 11th in the Western Conference
'09-10: 15-67, last in the Western Conference
'10-11: 17-65, last in the Western Conference
'11-12: 26-40, 12th in the Western Conference
'12-13: 31-51, 12th in the Western Conference
'13-14: 19-21, 11th in the Western Conference

Never higher than 11th? That's unbelievable! This season looks like the first time the Timberwolves will win more than 40% of their games in a season since drafting Love. Stars should raise their teammates games, and Love does not do that. I think he may end up the second best player on a contender, but not a number one guy. Not a chance.

Kyrie Irving has a similar resume filled with team failure. He hasn't been around as long as Love, but he does get to play in the mediocre Eastern Conference, so it's just as egregious. Here are the Cavs' results in the 3 years Irving has been there:

'11-12: 21-45, 13th in the Eastern Conference
'12-13: 24-58, 13th in the Eastern Conference (10! games worse than last year's awful Sixers team)
'13-14: 15-25, 10th in the Eastern Conference (2 games ahead of the Sixers)

A top ten guy wins games, these guys don't. Until they sniff the playoffs, or a .500 record, I refuse to rank them as "Stars".

I think next week, I'll give a list of guys who deserve a bit more respect based on how well their teams finish. I want to do some research, but I have a feeling Iggy and Josh Smith will be featured.

5. That magical time of year, The Royal Rumble!

I know this is a basketball blog, but its MY basketball blog. I LOVE the royal rumble, first of all its the kickoff to the best part of the wrestling year. Second, its one of the only times you can gamble on wrestling. Plus, this year is one of those wide open years where 2 or 3 different guys could win. My house will be rooting hard for Daniel Bryan, who was a bad guy just long enough for me to take my kids to the show and watch them be mad when they couldn't cheer for him. My son called me Wednesday afternoon well he finally saw the end Monday Night Raw, with Bryan turning on the Wyatt Family. Needless to say he was excited, and Daniel Bryan is beloved around these parts. Maybe one day we can get him to root for the Sixers that hard! Finally, in any Royal Rumble conversation I have, I feel it required to talk about the greatest performance in the history of the Rumble. I am talking about 1992, when Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan were amazing as Ric Flair won a shocker of a Royal Rumble. And yes, I think Gorilla and Heenan were probably better at what they were doing than Flair was. Enjoy: