Last time we met, I was feeling pretty down about our boys, but a recent surge in competency capped by Wednesday night's big win has me feeling pretty good about our boys in red, white, and blue. I only could listen to the second half of Wednesday's win on the radio, so I'll leave recapping the game to the rest of the guys around here. Let's get going
1. I want the Sixers to come to Jesus
Jesus Shuttlesworth that is. We should sign Ray Allen. Seriously, just offer him $8 million for the rest of the year, and give him a secret promise that we will buy him out before the playoffs so he can play for a contender in the playoffs. I just would like one grown-up around to help develop these kids. I feel a veteran leaser is essential, especially since there are signs of life lately on this roster MCW is putting up crazy numbers (crazy good aside from his FT shooting), KJ McDaniels is playing well enough that he may end up the first 2nd rounder since Landry Fields in 2010-11 to make the NBA All-Rookie first team, Nerlens Noel is starting to play like a 1st overall pick worthy prospect and is also a contender to make the NBA All-Rookie first team (If both guys made it, they would be the first teammates to share the honor since Durant and Jeff Green for Seattle back in 2007-08), Tony Wroten (before getting hurt) looks like a legit 3rd guard and not just a fun gunner for a shitty team, and Henry Sims is back to looking like a competent NBA rotation big man. So this season should be all about getting the most from these young players, therefore we should sign Allen to serve as a mentor to these youngsters for a few months to help nurture them along in their development.
Off the court, you are talking about a 18 year veteran who has been an All-star and has been a role player, a man who knows the NBA from all angles. On the court, Allen is the greatest 3-point shooter of all time, and he still commands respect from the opposing defense and would provide much needed spacing for the rest of the team to operate. I would overpay Allen (our only chance of signing him) and give him Hollis' minutes (sorry buddy, can't make an omelet you know).
2. Bring on THE THUNDER!
Our next victims are the Oklahoma City Thunder. I am super glad to see that Kevin Durant is back in the line-up, because I wouldn't want the Thunder to have any excuses after we whip their candy asses on Friday night. By the way, Durant announced he had broken his foot back in October and is back already, but the Emperor of 2 Continents Joel Embiid broke his foot in June…. huh. Anyway, I found a speech for Coach Brown before Friday night's game.
3. Fun with Player Comps
Just want to take a second to take stock of what we have, so I'm going to name a Sixer and then a comparable NBA guy, and you ask yourself who you would rather have, and remember this is for posterity, so please be honest. (Take age and contract into account)
- MCW or Elfrid Payton Answer: MCW. Sorry about that, just me trolling for a second. I promise to be serious from here on out. I don't like Elfrid a little bit, but after the draft I could not resist.
- MCW or Mike Conley Answer: Conley. If I asked you to name the 10 best PGs in the game, I'm not sure either guy makes the cut, but the big differentiator between these two players is that Conley can consistently hit 3-point shots, and MCW can not. Now don't get me wrong, MCW is a hard worker, and couldn't work out this summer due to shoulder surgery, but he needs to improve his outside game by a tremendous amount before he can be considered a better player than fringe all-star types like Conley, Lawson, or Jrue Holiday.
- Nerlens Noel or Larry Sanders Answer: Noel. Two big men who should end up as regular selections to the All-NBA defensive teams. Nerlens gets the nod over Sanders due to higher offensive ceiling and so far he hasn't done any crazy hoodrat shit to potentially ruin his career. Plus, Noel is a lot younger and a lot cheaper.
- Tony Wroten vs. A good backup PG/6th man Answer: Not Wroten. I really like Tony Wroten, but when I compare him to the guys you think of when you think of bench scoring; Swaggy, Barea, Waiters, JR Smith, Jamal Crawford, Reggie Jackson, Isiah Thomas… essentially any ball-handling bench scorer, he comes up short. Tony, like MCW, needs to work on his jumper and consistently be able to knock down 3s, or he'll never be any more valuable than he is today.
- Henry Sims vs. Zaza Pachulia Answer: Sims. Sims is young and cheap. There are a ton of veteran bigs that play 6-12 minutes a game yet still earn $3-6 million per season. Henry gives you at least 80% of the production, for less than 40% of the cost.
- Joel Embiid vs. 2001 Shaq Answer: Embiid. Long live the Emperor!
4. Looking to the draft
It may be a tad early, but big boards and mock drafts are coming out pretty regularly now, and its damn near impossible to not read them all. The funny thing is that they all seem to agree that Duke freshman Jahlil Okafor is the top prospect, but would the Sixers really draft a 3rd center? Is it too soon to draft based on positional needs, is that ever a good strategy? Why can't we just get a no brainer guy?! I'm rambling…. Anyway I'll keep posting videos of the top prospects as the season goes along. Okafor is linked above.
5. Back on with @whizwitradio
I'm going back on @whizwitradio this afternoon, so check it out at Whizwitradio.com
6. SIXERS
