April Month In Review

April is always one of the best months in sports simply for what's going on. Baseball season is beginning, the NBA and NHL playoffs are just getting going, March Madness rolls over into April; for those of you in college towns, spring football holds their first practices and of course the NFL Draft.

With that said, a lot has gone in CuseAdelphia during the month of April. Six CuseAdelphia teams are in action and winning. Now this post comes in May, the day of the 76ers elimination from the playoffs, but the Sixers reached the playoffs for the first time in several years.

The 76ers, the Flyers, and Syracuse Lacrosse are all having tremendous bounce back years after terrible 2007s for those teams.

The 76ers completed only a five game turnaround, but their late season surge through March and April put them in the playoffs for the first time since 2005. The youthful bunch of players created some lasting memories with Andre Iguodala's thunderous slams down the lane and Thaddeus Young's emergence.

The Sixers under new GM Ed Stefanski reached the playoffs looking to pull off an absolute shocker by taking down the two seeded Detroit Pistons. Things looked good early for the 76ers after Game One. A frenetic comeback in the Motor City meant Philly would head into Game Two with a 1-0 lead.

Game Two ugly. Sixers lose badly.

Game Three. Things are much different. Mo Cheeks' crew figures out what they did in the second half of Game One and blow the Pistons out of the gym.

Then things got ugly. Really ugly again. For the next three games it would be terribly ugly.

The Pistons outscored the Sixers by 19 points in the second half of their Game Four win. Game Five was domination all game; Pistons by 17.

Game Six was the worst of all. The 76ers season was officially declared dead at 8:12 PM EST. A 10-0 lead for the Pistons was essentially as close as Philly would get the rest of the game, Pistons win by 23.

Syracuse Lacrosse has also made a very solid turnaround. After a 5-8 season in 2007, the Orange rebounded in 2008 in impressive fashion. SU finished April undefeated, beating their opponents on average 14-6.

The Orange have dominated behind the likes of Tewaaraton Trophy nominees Mike Leveille and Steven Brooks. Leveille has a team leading 61 points while Brooks has anchored the midfield all year. In goal, John Galloway has played increasingly well as the year has gone on.

The 'Cuse capped off the perfect April with an absolute handling of recent pain in the UMASS 16-3. The Orange scored the first nine goals of the game and scored more goals in each quarter than UMASS had the entire game.

Philadelphia's team in orange- the Flyers - also completed the best turnaround in the NHL this year. The Fly Guys were last, dead last in the entire NHL in 2007, but managed to reach the playoffs as the sixth seed in the East.

Being the sixth seed is one of the best seeds you can be in the playoffs. Often the third division winner is always barely worthy of the playoffs, and this year was pretty much no different. The Capitals needed a long winning streak at the end of the year to reach the playoffs, but that streak ended at the hands of the Flyers.

Seven games, several blown leads, one Alexander Ovechkin explosion, and one Daniel Briere goal scoring binge later the Flyers were moving onto the next round.

Now throw in four more games, three of which are Philly wins, lots of angry Canadians, some more blown leads, no Briere scoring binge, but rather one by R.J. Umberger and you get a 3-1 series lead against the Montreal Canadiens.

One CuseAdelphia team already has won a title. The Syracuse women's Lax team took home a Big East Championship in South Bend in dominating fashion. A 22-7 blow out followed by a 12-6 victory over rival Georegtown and the women have an automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.

Basically every scoring record you think of, Tewaaraton trophy nominee Katie Rowan broke it.

Two CuseAdelphia teams used April to get off to extremely solid starts.

The Phillies finished out April 15-13. Now that doesn't seem too impressive, but when you look at their past four Aprils, it's rather impressive. 11-14 in 2007, 10-14 in 2006, 10-14 in 2005, 10-11 in 2004. You get the picture.

The Phillies did it in probably the most improbably way: great pitching from both the starters and bullpen. The entire staff has posted a combined ERA of 3.79, the lowest its been in years.

The relievers have been much better; the Phillies' pen ranks first in the National League in ERA. J.C. Romero, Brad Lidge, Chad Durbin, Rudy Seanez, and Tom Gordon (minus the first week) have been lights out.

Cole Hamels is throwing his name in the hat for Cy Young during the early season with his 2.70 ERA and 36 strike outs in April.

Chase Utley and Pat Burrell have provided MVP moments throughout the entire month as the two are near the top of practically every offensive category. Utley ends the month with a major league leading 11 home runs.

The team that plays across the parking lot, the Philadelphia Soul of the AFL has been blistering hot. Two QB's Tony Graziani and Matt D'Orazio have combined for astronomical numbers in leading the Soul to an undefeated record through April.

Bon Jovi's team finished off the month with a 57-28 romping over the previously undefeated Dallas Desperados. Philly held Dallas scoreless in the first quarter, a monumental task in of itself.

The other football team in Philadelphia just completed the 2008 NFL draft with some disputed success. The Eagles set themselves up for a monster 2009 draft with the acquisition of the Panthers 2009 first round pick. The Iggles also got another second round pick in the same deal when trading away their first round pick to Carolina.

Now the Eagles only got one player that will have an immediate impact this year with DeSean Jackson, but it's still a major accomplishment to get one of the most explosive players in the draft half way through the second round.

The Birds also grabbed DT Trevor Laws who's a workhorse on the defensive line.

The later round picks weren't anything special, but the Eagles overall had a solid draft.

No matter how good all of CuseAdelphia's teams did, there's going to be a few bad notes that cannot go unmentioned.

In the same NFL draft, no members of the Orange heard their names called for the first time since 1975. Taj Smith, Jameel McClain, DoWayne Davis, and several others eventually found a home, but it wasn't for NFL draft level money.

Orange fans also learned they might hear the name of one of the fabulous freshmen from the 2007-2008 seasons. Donte' Greene declared he's making himself eligible for the 2008 NBA draft, but he left some hope for Orange fans when he didn't sign an agent.

Greene's team also found themselves sitting at home from the NCAA Tournament and NIT Tournament finals which both took place in April.

Finally on a sad note, we remember John Marzano who was found dead in South Philly home. The cause of his death hasn't been revealed yet.

76ers Need to Take Game Three Tonight

The 76ers are almost facing a must win already in Game Three tonight. Yes, they've shown the ability to win in Detroit.

But let's face it, Philadelphia needs to take at least of their three home games to win this series, if not all of them.

That's going to be a tough task after the way Detroit completely took every 76er starter out of the game. The Philadelphia top five tallied just 38 points, the lowest total in the playoffs in the last two years.

Detroit limited the 76ers transition game in Game Two and completely shut the Sixers down in the half court.

I don't have much too say pre-game on this one since its already less than two hours from tip and about nine people are going to read this from now until then.

I will give a prediction though.

CuseAdelphia Prediction: Pistons 98 76ers 88. The Sixers will win one of these two home games. I'm thinking it's Game Four.

Pistons Preview Game Two

The 76ers look to defy all odds and take two from the Pistons in Detroit. Most experts, media members, average Joes picked the Pistons to win this series in four or five games.

The Sixers will try to make all the haters look like idiots tonight by jumping out to the 2-0 lead and forcing the Pistons to play at least six games if they want to win the series.

So what do the 76ers need to do to make it two in a row?

The 76ers need to be able to take the ball inside without Rasheed Wallace being a big time defensive factor. 'Sheed blocked seven shots and forced the Sixers to change their game plan at times because of his presence.

Sammy Dalembert and Reggie Evans need to draw Wallace away from the basket, opening up the lane for the more athletic Sixers' guards and forwards to move through the paint freely.

The 76ers also need to shoot better from the field. They shot just 43% from the field in Game One and that's not going to cut it in most games against the Pistons.

The 76ers forced the Pistons into 39% shooting in Game One and the 76ers only won by four points. It's going to be tough to keep the Pistons down around that mark consistently as the Pistons shot 45.8% from the field during the regular season.

Each game the 76ers will need someone off the bench of have a very, very strong game. In Game One, Philadelphia got that from Reggie Evans. He scored 11 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, he also hit two key free throws. They'll need one of either Evans, Thaddeus Young, Lou Williams, or Jason Smith to contribute each game to have a chance in this series.

The Piston's bench is too good with Jason Maxiell, Ronny Stuckley, and Lindsey Hunter for the 76ers to survive without strong contributions from their sixth men. In Game One, the 76ers' bench outscored the Piston's bench 22-17.

Philadelphia also needs to finish every transition opportunity they get. The Pistons are very solid in the half-court defense which means the 76ers' transition game must continue to be their strength.

They Call Him Mr. Big Shot

But tonight he didn't show why. Chauncey Billups missed 3 of 4 free throws and an easy layup in a span of a minute late in the fourth quarter tonight and passed on what could have been a foul-line jumper as the clock ticked away. In incredible fashion, the Sixers came back from 15 down and stunned the Pistons in their playoff opener, 90-86. It was Philly's first playoff win in the Palace and it was certainly unexpected.

It was also Philly's first nationally televised game of the season, not counting NBATV. They are proving themselves to everyone, not just the Sixers fans any more.

I knew going in that this was the best-case scenario for the Sixers, who proved late in the season that they couldn't beat the Cavs, struggled against Orlando all year, and well... the Celtics were the other option. Okay, no words necessary. Let's go Hawks!

Back to the game. The Sixers came out running. Thaddeus Young was hitting shots and things were clicking on all cylinders. But Andre Iguodala struggled early and Andre Miller wasn't looking for his shot, so soon things were all Detroit. The second half was most interesting, with run after run until the Sixers quietly took control. A 27-point fourth quarter to Detroit's 16 clinched it. As did Philly's defense down the stretch. I was nervous when Sammy Dalembert committed that extremely stupid and completely obvious offensive foul when he could have easily passed to the guy cutting to the basket. I was nervous for the entire fourth quarter when I started to smell victory. I was nervous. And I think the Sixers were too, but those nerves are what drove them to what many call the incredible, unbelieveable, huge upset that we just watched unfold.

My favorite moment HANDS DOWN of this game was when Reggie Evans-- a just-under 47% free throw shooter-- hit a pair and then Chauncey Billups (Mr. Big Shot, 92% from the line) missed a couple. Reggie Evans was a star in this one with 11 points and 14 boards. He averaged just five points during the regular season. Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams also looked more seasoned than they are. The team as a whole played like they were more seasoned, so kudos to the coaching staff and players with the little playoff experience they have for getting the guys ready.

It's the second straight victory in the Palace for Philly, who downed Detroit 83-82 on March 12th.

All that said, the Pistons will come out firing on Wednesday. Stealing two games is nearly impossible; winning the series is still a long shot. This W feels good for now, but it's nothing to celebrate. The Sixers have to stay focused, get back to work, go out and get it done.

With the win Philly becomes the first lower seed to steal homecourt advantage.
BELIEVE!

76ers vs Bobcats: A Game that Means Nothing, a Post That Means Everything

One major thing can be taken from a game that basically means nothing for both the Charlotte Bobcats and the Philadelphia 76ers.

The 76ers are struggling after going on a monster roll through the months of February and March. The Sixers have lost four of five including a tough loss in the waning moments against Cleveland. Originally, I thought the 76ers loss against the Cavs was good for the team because it ensures the Sixers will play the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs, a team the 76ers can beat.

I'm now somewhat back tracking on that thought. Yes, I'm glad the 76ers get to play the Pistons, but what I didn't realize at the time was the loss was the Sixers fourth in five games. You want your team to have confidence heading into the playoffs and losing four of five before the season finale can put a damper on your confidence.

Tonight's game will be important for the 76ers to win if and only if Mo Cheeks plays his starters and doesn't get a disproportionate number of minutes from his bench tonight. If he does go to the bench early, then it's key the 76ers are leading at the time the starters head to the pine.

Other notes for tonight: Charlotte is 31-50, fourth in the Southeast conference. The 76ers hold the season series 2-0. A win would also give the 76ers a .500 record for the first time since 2004-2005 when they finished 43-39 when they lost to Detroit in the first round in five games.

76ers Better off Losing?

I never want a team to lose on purpose, but every once in awhile it can be better for a team to lose. Last night may be one of those cases. Now I didn't want to see them lose in the way did, because it's a tough loss to swallow, but their playoff situation did improve.

The loss sets up a date with the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs. As I eluded to yesterday in my welcome back post, a first round matchup against Detroit wouldn't be that bad for the Sixers. Mo Cheeks's squad has taken on the Pistons three times since they started playing well in late January. The 76ers have won two of those three meetings, and looked really good in the last two meetings which Philadelphia both won.

A 76ers win last night would have kept the possibility of playing Orlando still open, something Philadelphia doesn't want. The Magic have won three of four meetings this year as the last two wins were in very convincing fashion. The Magic create a lot of matchup problems with the Sixers between Dwight Howard's post presence and the many guards and SF's Orlando has that can drill threes all game long and get to the paint if necessary.

So maybe this loss wasn't totally bad because I think the 76ers have a much better chance of getting out of the first round of the playoffs against Detroit than Orlando.

Unsung Heroes

... Hero.

Rodney Carney is his name, fooling the Pistons is his game. What's encouraging about this one is, Willie Green sat out. Andre Miller left in the fourth quarter. The Pistons came back and took the lead as the Pistons do. But the Sixers fought through it and got the W. Rodney Carney had 16 points and played some great defense.

So far Philly is 1-1 in Judgement Week. After getting embarrassed by the Celtics on Monday, the Sixers clung to a lead and eeked out a one point win, 83-82. Detriot just looked confused. Not at all like themselves. Maybe they won't sweep Philly in the playoffs.

The Celtics, however... now THEY are GOOD. And I mean very good. Just a quick note about that game-- Sam Cassell's past in the then First Union now Wachovia Center absolutely haunts him. He picked up three fouls in about two minutes the other night.

So what happened?

The Sixers are actually looking like a legit squad. What's even better-- Ed Stefanski didn't pull the trigger on any silly trades before the deadline passed. Everything is safe, at least for this season.

Philly's put together a nice little streak as of late, winning 8 of 10 since giving up a 20 point lead in a loss to Atlanta on February 4. And they've beaten some good teams: Orlando, Dallas... ok, so just the Magic and Mavs. Anyway, during that time, Andre Miller has been OWNING the competition. His PPG is up to 19.8 for February. Through January, Miller was averaging 15.8 PPG.

Honestly, Miller's numbers for February have padded his season stats. Check out this line: 19.8 points, 8.8 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. The point guard is shooting 84% from the charity stripe and 57% from the floor this month. The change can't be explained, but it is absolutely for the better.

Enough on Andre Miller... now to the rest of the team. The Sixers have *skyrocketed* to third in the Atlantic division. That's basically like second place. I don't count the Celtics.

The Sixers are also in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. However, unless they finish fourth or fifth they probably won't get out of the first round. Things are just so shaken up now because it remains to be seen how much better Ben Wallace will really make the Cavaliers. I think the Sixers could play the Celtics tough because of the rivalry-- no way there would be a sweep. The Pistons would absolutely own the Sixers. But a Magic matchup would be intriguing.

Oh what a great segue. Ironically Philly beat Orlando 101-89 last night at the Wachovia Center just five days after losing to the team in Florida. The Sixers starting backcourt outscored Orlando's 52-2. I am not kidding. That is a factually accurate statistic people. Miller and Green destroyed Nelson and Evans. Granted Maurice Evans played just ten minutes in the first half. But still, that's an incredible number.

Things are on the up in Sixerland. The team is also playing as just that-- a team. Stat lines are incredible... last night, forced 20 turnovers and only had 11. Andre Miller is becoming an assist machine. The weapons are firing from all angles. Last night it was all about the guards/swingmen-- Willie Green, Andre Miller, and Andre Iguodala each scored over 20.

One more game left in February-- hopefully the Sixers can leap their way to another victory this month.

Sixers = playoffs?

Am I getting ahead of myself? Yeah, probably. In fact definitely. But, I can't help but be excited about this nifty 5 game winning streak going into the All-Star break. And if the season ended today, we'd be the 8th seed in the East. That's pretty cool, considering what most experts predicted of us this year.

With the Flyers in struggle mode, it's nice to see the Sixers streaking toward a possible playoff push. And now since it looks like the Nets are shipping Kidd off (I don't know the details of the whole Devean George deal), they probably aren't going to get better. 3rd in the division and 8th in the conference ain't too far-fetched when you've got a bunch of equally-mediocre teams around you.

Here's to hoping we keep Andre Miller through this season and make a serious run at getting into the postseason and then losing to Boston or Detroit in the first round! You know, I hope we get in and play the Celtics in round one. If the Warriors can top Dallas, I see no reason why we can't do the same to Boston, especially given the heated rivalry where anything can happen. Good luck to the Sixers in the second half. Let's do it for Mo Cheeks.

-ajd

The Sixers Confuse Me

Let’s face it—the Sixers are not a very good team. That’s no secret. And it’s not just their 18-29 record that shows that. It’s the team’s inconsistency. The past two games have shown an incredible wave of inconsistency.

Wednesday night Philly achieved its greatest margin of victory – 43 points – in its 12 seasons at the Core States/First Union/Wachovia Center. The Sixers beat the Bucks 112-69. Granted the Bucks are bad, plain and simple, and every team has nights when it struggles to score. But to win by 43 points feels good no matter what. The scoring distribution was incredible, with seven players in double figures but no one with more than 20.

Stat Line:
- Andre Iguodala: 18 points, 6 boards, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks
- Andre Miller: 14 points, 7 assists
- Thaddeus Young: 14 points, 8 rebounds
- Sammy Dalembert: 12 points
- Rodney Carney: 12 points
- Reggie Evans: 13 points, 9 rebounds
- Willie Green: 10 points

POST – KORVER RECORD: 5-12

That brings me to the Sixers next game against the Magic—a 108-106 loss. I watched parts of the game on League Pass… the feed was terrible, so I only ended up seeing about half the game. But I watched most of the fourth quarter. Philly stuck with Orlando the whole game. It was close and for a minute there I thought Mo and Company would pull out the victory. That was partly because I couldn’t see the score properly on the tiny screen and thought the Sixers were up two when the game was actually tied.

Why was Lou Williams shooting the ball with 30 seconds left? He should know better.

Why the silly foul on Hedo Turkoglu with 2.4 seconds left? Frustrating way to lose.

Thaddeus Young is adjusting to his new starting role. I don’t really have anything else to say about the flow of that game. But the closeness of the contest made me believe for a couple hours that the Sixers were still a contender.

Stat Line:
- Andre Miller: 23 points, 11 rebounds, SIX turnovers
- Lou Williams: 20 points, 2 steals
- Thaddeus Young: 15 points
- Willie Green: 12 points
- Andre Iguodala: quiet, 11 points, six assists
- Sammy Dalembert: 10 points, 9 boards
- Reggie Evans: 9 points, 7 rebounds

It was eerily reminiscent of a similar night seven years ago. Friday February 2, 2001. The division-leading Sixers hosted the lowly Magic. The game went into double overtime, with Philly eventually prevailing. Friday February 1, 2008. The lowly Sixers host the division-leading Magic. The game should’ve gone into overtime.

NOTE TO ANNOUNCERS: LEARN HOW TO PRONOUNCE “IGUODALA.” IT’S EE-GOO-DOLLA, NOT IG-WA-DOLLA OR IG-WA-DALLA. It’s been driving me crazy for forever. Give yourselves some credibility and pronounce his name right PLEASE!!!

POST – KORVER RECORD: 5-13

Orlando Magic Scouting Report

The 76ers host the first place Orlando Magic tonight. The Magic have really cooled off since opening the season 16-4; they have gone 13-14 since then. This is first meeting between the two teams this year.

Orlando has a pretty simple offensive game plan. Give the ball to Dwight Howard and if he can't get a good look, kick it for a three. The Magic have three players averaging at least two three balls a game and six players taking at least two three pointers a game.

Hedo Turkoglu is having a fine season for the Magic. His eighth NBA season has definitely been his best. He's averaging 19.4 points per game, more than four points a game better than any previous season.

Dwight Howard has been an absolute monster and has quickly turned into one of the premier centers in the NBA. He's scoring 22 points a game, pulling down a ridiculous 15 rebounds, and blocking two and a half shots per game.

Sammy Dalembert will be over matched against Howard, but should put up a solid fight. Dalembert might be one of the few centers that might be able to contain DH12 because of his Sammy's impressive size.

Former SuperSonic Rishard Lewis is the Magic's second three point threat. He'll shoot seven threes a game and drain about 2.5. Lewis is averaging 18 points per game, down a little from his days in Seattle, but he doesn't have to carry as much of the scoring load in Orlando.

Keith Bogans out of Kentucky is the last three point threat for the Magic. Bogans has slowly turned into a solid role player after being a star for the Wildcats back in college. Bogans is averaging a lick under 10 points per game.

Philadelphia native Jameer Nelson is having another solid season for the Orlando. The St. Joe's product is averaging 11 points and six assists per game.

Even though Orlando hasn't been playing that well since mid-December, they should be able to get out of Philadelphia with a win.

Milwaukee Bucks Scouting Report

The 76ers take on the Bucks tonight. Here's a short little look at the Bucks so you can get familiar with Milwaukee.

Milwaukee is on last place of their division at 18-28. The Bucks have lost seven of their last nine games. The last meeting between the 76ers and the Bucks, Milwaukee won 87-83. The Bucks are 5-21 away from home.

Milwaukee's latest struggles come without leading scorer Michale Redd who is out with a knee injury. Without Redd, the Bucks don't have much fire power.

Mo Williams is their second leading scorer at 16.7 points per game and leads the team in assists at 6.7 per game.

Their front court features a diverse group of players. An alien (Charlie Villaneuva), a Chinese man (Yi Jianlian), and an Australian (Andrew Bogut). Together they form a solid group of fairly young forwards.

In the backcourt, Charlie Bell (the link is definitely worth a read) joins Mo Williams. It's been recently documented that Bell is having one of the worst season ever in the NBA.

Despite Philadelphia's struggles since the Kyle Korver trade, the 76ers should have the upper hand in this game since Milwaukee has not been playing well on the road and without Michael Redd.

Double Dose: a Loss and a Win

One point in the last 4:59 seconds of a game isn't usually going to add up to a win... and the Sixers learned that the hard way in an 89-81 loss to the Knicks Friday night. Each quarter was fairly close but the numbers all added up in the Knicks' favor.

Stat Line:
- Andre Iguodala: 24 points
- Willie Green: 13 points
- Sammy Dalembert: 12 points
- Andre Miller: 10 points

The Sixers are up 2-1 in the season series with one game to go on February 20.


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Saturday night the Sixers found themselves on the other side of the scoreboard, beating the Bobcats 103-96. The W snapped a three game losing skid for Philly, whose total team effort is to thank for the victory. The Sixers were down by as many as eleven points in the first half, but fought back. Usually they are the team giving up the lead, not coming back from a deficit.

Stat Line:
- Andre Iguodala: 33 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks
- Andre Miller: 23 points, 9 assists
- Sammy Dalembert: 14 rebounds
- Lou Williams: 12 points

Note: ThadYo started the game.

POST-KORVER RECORD: 4-12
(once again batting .250)

One More for the Loss Column

The Sixers actually didn't play a terrible game. They were outscored by seven in the second quarter, but hung close other than that. The result, however, was still an 86-78 loss to the Pistons last night.

Stat line is well-distributed...
- Andre Iguodala: 15 points, 5 assisits
- Willie Green: 15 points
- Lou Williams: 13 points
- Andre Miller: 11 points, 5 assists
- Sammy Dalembert: 13 rebounds
- Reggie Evans: 11 rebounds

Observations from ESPN.com & the Sheed:
"Philadelphia has lost 10 of 12 and what few fans turned out left in droves in the fourth.
'They definitely need some help,' Pistons forward Rasheed Wallace said. 'I guess it's all on management now and what they're going to do.'"

POST-KORVER RECORD: 3-11

76ers Abandon Attempt to Acquire All Four Korvers

Philadelphia-- The 76er's trade of Kyle Korver ended former General Manager Billy King's longtime goal of signing all four Korver brothers. The 76ers acquired Kyle Korver from the Nets who drafted him 51st overall in 2003 for an undisclosed amount of cash.

The 76ers traded Kyle to the Jazz for a first round pick and Gordan Giricek. New Sixer's GM Ed Stefanski quickly cleaned up Billy King's mess by ending the 76ers quest to have all four Korver brothers play for the 76ers.

The 76ers had planned on going after two of Kyle's brothers who played each other last night in the Missouri Valley Conference. Kaleb Korver is a freshman guard for the Creighton Blue Jays. He's seeing a modest 12 minutes a game and averages 3.5 points.

"I saw him when he was a freshman back in high school in Pella, Iowa. He looked like he could turn into a lottery pick out of high school, but with the new age rules, he had to go to college. It seems like he might not pan out to be a superstar, but could become a solid role player," says the former GM Billy King.

The 76ers also fell in love with Kirk Korver, a senior at Pella High School who also has a sweet shot. The 76ers think he could have supplanted Kyle as the team's top three point shooter.

"I've never seen a guy shoot the rock like he can," says King, "He will be something special."

The final brother Klayton Korver is a senior three point threat for the Drake Bulldogs which had the 76ers willing to give up everything they had to trade up to the number pick and draft Klayton. Klayton has reached double digit points seven times this year which makes Billy King think he's a project 100% worth developing.

"Some guys come out of school raw despite having four years in college. It will be our job to work him into a better basketball player and into our rotation," says King.

When chairman Ed Snider saw a napkin that Billy King had written down a potential roster containing all four Korvers he fired King on the spot.

"I was getting tired of people thinking we had Ashton Kutcher on the team so the thought of having four players that looked like him was upsetting. I knew right then and there King had to go," says Snider, "I thought King was a great GM despite letting Allen Iverson go and letting the team struggle through one the worst stretches in team history. I hope King can continue his dream to have all four Korver's united under one roof somewhere else."

All quotes are fake. This story is completely fake.

Former Coach Haunts Sixers

Jim O'Brien had a dream. A dream to coach for the team he grew up watching: The Sixers. Jimmy O got that gig, only to be fired after just one season at the helm. The firing came during a time when former GM Billy King was on a hire-fire binge that saw Philly go from Larry Brown to Randy Ayers to Chris Ford to Jim O'Brien to Mo Cheeks between the 2003 offseason and the start of the 2005-2006 campaign.

Yesterday was Jim O'Brien's first time coaching in Philadelphia since the team fired him, and you can bet the Pacers 110-103 victory was sweet for him.

The Sixers beat themselves in essence. Indy sank 14 three balls to the Sixers' four. Philly's not a strong team from beyond the arc. We all know that, and at this point not much can be done about it. What the team can do, though, is make its free throws to compensate for opponents' extra points. The Sixers were just 21-34 from the line. No can do.

Stat Line:
- Andre Iguodala: 23 points, 2 assists
- Andre Miller: 21 points, 5 assists
- Sammy Dalembert: 13 rebounds (oh, you want the negative stats too? 5 points, 4 turnovers, 5 fouls)
- Lou Williams: 14 points (but 2-6 FT)
- Thaddeus Young: 13 points, 7 rebounds
- Gordan Giricek: 2:42 filling the stat sheet with zeroes.

Sidenote: the Sixers honored Bobby Jones at halftime. Jones was Sixtn Man of the Year on the 1983 championship team. This season the Sixers are celebrating the 25th anniversary of their last championship (and the last major league title for the city...) by tanking. Cool. I just really hope that two years from now this team is finally strong again. They have showed signs of brilliance. If Stefanski can keep the key pieces and finish the puzzle up with trades and free agents, things will be okay.

POST-KORVER RECORD: 3-10

Sixers Avoid Sweep

The Sixers did something last night that they haven't been able to do all season: beat the Raptors. The 99-95 victory was the second in three games for Philly, who has struggled mightily in the calender year 2008.

The Sixers showed signs of themselves, allowing Toronto to climb back into a game that a second-quarter surge had put them in charge of. Philly had an 86-66 lead at the 8:11 mark of the fourth quarter, but the Raptors used a 22-6 run to come within 92-88 with 1:06 to play. The Sixers were able to hold on though, which is a good thing.

Again, this game was the picture of team basketball. At least from the starters. None of the five had more than three fouls. The starters also combined for ten steals.

Stat Line:
- Willie Green: 23 points (tied season high)
- Andre Iguodala: 20 points, 6 assists, 5 steals, 8-16 FG
- Andre Miller: 20 points, 3 steals
- Sammy Dalembert: 14 points, 13 rebounds

The Sixers finish up the season series against the Raptors at 1-3 for the fifth straight season.

Observations:
- The game was the Sixers' 42nd. Therefore, in the second half of the season, Philly is 1-0.
- Gordan Giricek scored a couple points!!!!!
- Rodney Carney played!!!!!
- Chris Bosh was relatively inaffective through the first three quarters. He still finished with 25 points.


POST-KORVER RECORD: 3-9.
Batting .250!


Observation from a very long time ago, making its debut in the print world: A Raptor is a dinosaur. Chris Bosh plays for the Raptors. Chris Bosh looks like a dinosaur. The long neck, the face, think about it. Chris Bosh is a Raptor.

A Fourth Quarter Falter

The Sixers lost to the league’s best last night, 116-89. A drudging, yes. But not until the fourth quarter. The Celts were actually down at halftime and led by just three at the start of the final frame. But a 38-16 outburst was enough to push Boston to it’s NBA-leading 32nd victory.

The Sixers fall to 15-25 and are just one game away from the midway-point of the season. Whoever predicted 30 wins for this team might be right on target.

Kevin Garnet only had 11 points and six rebounds. But add eight assists to that.

Stat line:
- Andre Iguodala: 17 points
- Sammy Dalembert: 12 points, 10 rebounds
- Andre Miller: 12 points, 4 assists
- Jason Smith: 10 points

POST-KORVER RECORD: 2-9

Victory is Sweet.

Especially when it's the first in a little over two weeks. The Sixers won a great one, 111-107, over the Rockets last night. The W marked Philly's first in the calendar year 2008, and they did it in team fashion. 111 points -- a sign of great team basketball. I'm gonna put the stat line a little further up in today's post...

- Andre Miller: 26 points, 6 assists, 3 steals
- Lou Williams: 18 points, 6 assists, 3 steals
- Sammy Dalembert: 19 points, 6 rebounds (after two straight 20-rebound games...)
- Andre Iguodala: 17 points
- Willie Green: 15 points
- Thaddeus Young: 12 points, 5 rebounds

111 points is a season high for the Sixers. Just a night after they only put up 82 points, the Sixers showed signs of life. The game was dominated by the Rockets, and Houston led by 16 in the third quarter. Philly had a role reversal and, instead of coughing up a lead, came back and won. The Rockets committed nine turnovers and had a five-minute scoring drought in the fourth quarter. Philly outscored Houston 37-22 in the final frame.

The bottom line is that this game was fun to watch. And games haven't been fun to watch lately. The Sixers finally proved that they can win without Kyle Korver and that they can score points without the sharp shooter. Philly took only four long balls but hit three of them. And easing their way back into it is fine with me. The team shot almost 50% from the field and shared the basketball.

There is life in this team! The Sixers sweep the season series with the Rockets and have some momentum going into Friday night's game at Boston. Should be a fun one.

POST-KORVER RECORD: 2-8

Close Doesn't Cut It

The Sixers only lost by seven, 89-82, to the Spurs last night. Seems like an accomplishment, as San Antonio is a power house. But "close" and "accomplishment" don't change the number in the win column.

Nonetheless, there was at least effort. The Sixers were up 65-64 at the start of the fourth quarter, but Manu Ginobili hit four three-balls and that was that.

Philly has still yet to win in 2008, with games coming up at Houston tonight and Friday at Boston. The road only gets tougher, literally. The loss to the Spurs marks the seventh in a row to begin the new year.

One has to wonder when this team will win again. Will this team win again? TANK! TANK! TANK! <--- not to be taken seriously. I don't think the team should purposely tank. Because they won't get a high draft pick. That's just the way things work in Philadelphia. The Sixers are tanking. What is sad is that (for the time being at least) it isn't on purpose. The team is really just bad, plain and simple. They are not good at basketball. But they players on the whole are not terrible. There's just some people missing. The off-the-bench spark left when Korver did. Lou's not as explosive.

Stat Line vs. San Antonio:
- Willie Green: 21 points
- Andre Iguodala: 19 points
- Sammy Dalembert: 12 points, 20 rebounds (second straight game for Sammy with 20 rebounds)

POST-KORVER RECORD: 1-8