76ers gets Ish Smith back!

[benji]

I'm going to say that Canaan, Landry and Stauskas scoring 55 on 20/32 shooting along with Thompson, Stauskas and Canaanan bombing in 10/18 threes had quite a bit to do with the Sixers win. (Not to mention the non-Hollinger favorites of the Suns shooting 33%.) dat ish smith magic amirite

[Spree#8]

Canaan, Landry, Stauskas and Thompson hitting shots obviously had a lot to do with the win and Ish obviously had a lot to do with collapsing the defense and freeing them up for those shots. I can recall at least a couple of hockey assists as well as the 5 normal ones he had. Importantly, he is able to make an accurate pass after collapsing the defense inside while Wroten would throw the ball either out into the stands or right to the opponents roughly 90% of the time he attempted to pass out.

D'Antoni's views and earlier comments on post-up iso heavy offenses make some people think Okafor could be trade bait. With an actual PG on the team now, I think there will be an attempt to get him involved in pick and rolls/fades much more often instead of just throwing him the ball in the post nearly every possession he's out there. All of that might be irrelevant unless/until he can improve on the defensive end though.

The Sixers won yesterday because they resembled themselves from the end of last season - pushing the pace, driving to the rim, bombing threes, hustling and switching aggressively on defense. It's probably the only way they can compete against NBA teams in their current form. Noel is perfect for this kind of basketball, Okafor throws a wrench in it all. With Brown's favorite words being "pace and space", D'Antoni on board now and bringing Ish back - who won't be all that useful as a "dribble past halfcourt, throw it to Okafor, stand and watch" guy - Hinkie/Colangelo might be working the phones already.

[benji]

Can you imagine the teeth gnashing if they deal Okafor in his rookie season though? I feel like they have to wait for Embiid and Saric before they can pull the trigger.

[Spree#8]

I think it depends on what they'd get for him. More protected future picks? Yeah, the media will rip them to shreds. Some young player who has already shown something promising and happens to fit the rest of the team? I imagine the reactions would be more sensible. The problem is that Okafor might not have the trade value to bring in someone like that. I'd have to assume that the other 29 GMs can see what many Sixers fans see just as well. Jah has severe issues as a player which may or may not be correctable and those off-court antics surely don't make him any more attractive.

I still think it's more likely that one or more of the bigs gets moved during the draft or offseason rather than this season to accumulate more data they can evaluate them and the progress (or lack thereof) they're making. Hinkie doesn't have a habit of getting rid of his prospects so early unless they refuse to sign the special. I'm just worried that Okafor's value may only go down if he doesn't show improvement during the remainder of the season and if there's a strong offer out there to be had, Philly should probably take it. If Embiid can play at all, it's painfully obvious they can't keep all three anyway.

[Kevin]

Any news on Saric playing in the NBA?

[NovU]

He plans to join the team in summer 2016. He's doing something like 12 ppg 5 reb per game in 21 mpg. Last time I checked, has more turnover than assists. Hits freethrows at rate of DeAndre Jordan. Potential Allstar!

This guy's drawing comparison to Gallo just with less shooting and more focus on rebounding(perhaps like Mirotic). He'll probably be more effective as a PF. The problem is the 76ers now have 4 bigs with chemistry issues to come. I have a feeling one or two will be gone before rookie contract is up.

[mp3]

He plans to join the team in summer 2016. He's doing something like 12 ppg 5 reb per game in 21 mpg. Last time I checked, has more turnover than assists. Hits freethrows at rate of DeAndre Jordan. Potential Allstar!

This guy's drawing comparison to Gallo just with less shooting and more focus on rebounding(perhaps like Mirotic). He'll probably be more effective as a PF. The problem is the 76ers now have 4 bigs with chemistry issues to come. I have a feeling one or two will be gone before rookie contract is up.

See.... tanking really works...

Great job Philly

[NovU]

Hello benji. What daaya say naw?

[iamSamke]

Saric yesterday scored a game winner in Euroleague game against Crvena Zvezda from Serbia... Why Dario, why?

[benji]

Hello benji. What daaya say naw?

The Sixers started the 2013-14 season 4-2. (3-0)

[NovU]

Meanwhile in Hinkie's dream...