Sun Dec 20, 2015 11:22 am
Simmed Game
ATL - 25 17 14 24 I80
PHI - 28 25 25 28 106
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (20pts, 17reb, 2blk)
Record: 8-6
Sun Dec 20, 2015 11:35 am
Mon Dec 21, 2015 3:16 pm
Simmed Game
PHI - 26 14 22 24 86
MIA - 22 28 25 18 94
POTG: Dwyane Wade (18pts, 1reb, 7ast, 1blk)
Record: 9-7
Mon Dec 21, 2015 10:32 pm
Philadelphia 76ers fans celebrated today with the news that one of their favourite players of the past decade was heading home. Veteran swingman Andre Iguodala had been traded to the Sixers from Golden State in exchange for Robert Covington, Nik Stauskas, a 2017 first round pick from Oklahoma City that the Sixers held the rights to and their own 2017 second round pick.---
It's a surprising move from the Warriors' perspective because Iguodala was a key part of their 2015 championship winning team and was named the Finals MVP. He has been the ultimate sixth man for them and it seems like this deal was motivated solely on financial considerations, rather than them not wanting to keep him.
The upcoming off-season is going to be critical for them with superstar point guard Stephen Curry coming out of contract, as are big man Andrew Bogut and Iguodala. After handing out large contracts to Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Harrison Barnes over the past two years it seems as though they needed to move either Bogut or Iguodala in order to preserve enough cap room to pay Curry.
In the end they chose to trade Iguodala because Bogut plays a more critical role for them. They already lost Marreese Speights at the start of this season to free agency and needed to keep Bogut to ensure their big man stocks didn't dwindle even further. Meanwhile, they will be hoping that Iguodala's role can be adequately filled by either Covington, Stauskas or Kent Bazemore. Having to give up Iguodala will hurt for them, but it will be a lot less painful than if they were to lose Curry.
One of the main reasons the Warriors agreed to this deal would have been because both Robert Covington and Nik Stauskas have team options in their contracts for next season and won't take up very much cap room. Covington proved himself to be a solid, if not inconsistent scorer with the Sixers during their few years of awfulness. He should be able to at least match Iguodala's offensive input for Golden State, if not better it.
Stauskas could really flourish in the Warriors system. He never really got a genuine shot at playing consistently with the Kings or Sixers. Perhaps he can finally become the player that everyone thought he would be after an impressive college career with Michigan. If either Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson can take him under their wing and help him gain confidence, maybe he'll be able to recapture the type of form that saw him named Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year in 2014.
Warriors general manager Bob Myers was regretful that Iguodala had to leave, but was realistic about his team's financial situation, "We're sorry to lose a player and person as highly regarded as Andre is, but the price of success is usually that everyone wants to get paid. Unfortunately keeping Andre was a luxury that we couldn't afford", he said today. "We're sad to see him go, but we thank him for all his efforts whilst wearing the Warriors jersey and wish him all the best in the future."
The Warriors currently sit in fifth spot in the western conference with a 10-5 record. They are striving to get back to the top of the mountain after getting eliminated by Oklahoma City in the conference semi finals last season as they attempted to defend their 2015 title.---
Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie seems to be on a roll lately with his roster moves. First his taking of Brandon Ingram with the eighth pick in the draft is looking like an absolute steal as the former Duke forward has been on a red-hot scoring streak in recent weeks and looks like a future all-star. Also on draft night he managed to turn Joel Embiid into Eric Bledsoe and Devin Booker. The former has also been heating up recently after a slow start and the latter is emerging as a key bench scorer.
Next he persuaded guard Eric Gordon to swap New Orleans for Philadelphia and the sharpshooter has settled in quickly and has been a key in the Sixers' strong start to the season. Gordon has been plagued by injuries for most of his career, but after nearly two months in Philadelphia he hasn't even had a cold. Everyone is hoping for his sake that his run of good health continues for a long time.
This latest move should not only help his team on the court, but also give it a huge psychological boost off it as well. Iguodala played in Philadelphia for eight seasons after being drafted in 2004 with pick number nine and was a fan favourite due to his work ethic and great character.
He was traded to Denver as part of the Dwight Howard-Andrew Bynum mega trade in 2012 and then signed with the Warriors in 2013. He lost his starting spot to Harrison Barnes but stayed committed and led his team to the 2015 championship. He starred for the Warriors in that series against Miami and was deservedly named the Finals MVP.
Iguodala seemed really excited to return to Philadelphia, "This is a blessing for me. I had three wonderful years with Golden State and I can't thank all those guys enough for everything they did for me. But now I feel like I'm heading home. To be honest I always wanted to spend my entire career in Philly and was shocked when I got traded. I got no hard feelings though because God clearly had a plan for me and I got to enjoy the best moment of my sporting career with the Warriors. I can't wait to meet all the guys and hopefully do my part to get this team to similar heights."
It's unknown whether the veteran will return to his starting role with the Sixers or simply continue what he was doing for the Warriors and let Brandon Ingram continue to develop. Either way he will have far less pressure on him this time around with a much better team around him and the likes of Jahlil Okafor and Brandon Ingram taking all the media focus. Iguodala made his only career all-star appearance in his final season as a Sixer the first time around, but is unlikely to be in contention in the future now that he is entering the twilight of his career.
His role on this young team is simple: Set the example for the young guys to follow and show them all how a professional NBA player should act both on and off the court. He will join fellow veterans Samuel Dalembert and Carl Landry as part of the leadership group within the locker room and act as a mentor for rookie Brandon Ingram.
The Sixers have had a promising start to the new season and currently sit fifth in the eastern conference with a 9-7 record. They are hoping to make it to the conference finals for the first time since 2001.
Golden State receive
Robert Covington - 25 - SF - $2.1m - 2 years (2nd year TO) (75)
Nik Stauskas - 23 - SG - $6.8m - 2 years (2nd year TO) (71)
Thunder 2017 first round pick
Sixers 2017 second round pick
Projected line-up:
Andrew Bogut - Draymond Green - Harrison Barnes - Klay Thompson - Stephen Curry
Bench:
Robert Covington, Langston Galloway, Austin Rivers, Kent Bazemore, Kevon Looney, Nik Stauskas, Festus Ezeli
Philadelphia receive
Andre Iguodala - 32 - SF - $11.1m - 1 year (78)
Projected line-up:
Jahlil Okafor - Nerlens Noel - Brandon Ingram - Eric Gordon - Eric Bledsoe
Bench:
Andre Iguodala, Tony Wroten, Dario Saric, Devin Booker, Carl Landry, Samuel Dalembert, Jerami Grant
Tue Dec 22, 2015 12:37 pm
Simmed Game
CHA - 17 24 35 12 88
PHI - 21 27 32 25 105
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (20pts, 12reb, 5ast, 2blk)
Record: 11-7
Wed Dec 23, 2015 4:01 pm
Thu Dec 24, 2015 9:41 am
Simmed Game
MEM - 30 21 22 34 107
PHI - 18 22 20 13 73
POTG: Zach Randolph (20pts, 15reb, 5ast, 2stl, 1blk)
Record: 12-8
Fri Dec 25, 2015 8:46 pm
Simmed Game
PHI - 18 28 32 21 99
CHI - 19 17 24 24 84
POTG: Eric Bledsoe (22pts, 2reb, 5ast, 2stl, 2blk)
Record: 14-8
Sat Dec 26, 2015 12:01 pm
Simmed Game
ORL - 17 18 10 24 69
PHI - 19 16 22 24 81
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (13pts, 9reb, 1stl)
Record: 15-9
Sun Dec 27, 2015 10:06 am
Simmed Game
DET - 15 30 21 22 88
PHI - 21 19 26 27 93
POTG: Nerlens Noel (11pts, 17reb, 2blk)
Record: 17-9
Mon Dec 28, 2015 11:29 am
Simmed Game
PHI - 25 30 20 26 101
MIN - 16 23 26 25 90
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (25pts, 14reb, 3ast)
Record: 19-9
Mon Dec 28, 2015 12:49 pm
Mon Dec 28, 2015 9:23 pm
Tue Dec 29, 2015 11:15 am
Simmed Game
DET - 30 24 16 24 94
PHI - 27 22 25 26 100
POTG: Reggie Jackson (25pts, 4reb, 2ast, 1blk)
Record: 21-9
Wed Dec 30, 2015 12:45 pm
Simmed Game
PHI - 28 21 23 17 89
GSW - 21 14 19 30 84
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (21pts, 12reb, 3ast, 1stl, 1blk)
Record: 23-9
Thu Dec 31, 2015 11:58 am
29/12/16
Twitter NewsAdrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
News: Sixers waive veteran Carl Landry, sign forward Marvin Williams to 1yr/$3m deal. Landry hadn't played a minute all seasonAdrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
Williams had been without a team after the Hornets opted not to re-sign him after last season. Last chance in NBA for former no. 2 pick?
Sat Jan 02, 2016 11:53 am
Simmed Game
NYK - 21 19 24 15 79
PHI - 30 21 25 28 104
POTG: Eric Bledsoe (20pts, 4reb, 2ast, 3stl, 1blk)
Record: 25-9
Mon Jan 04, 2016 3:09 pm
- San Antonio legend Tim Duncan extended his stay in the NBA into a 20th year
- DeMar DeRozan will be in Toronto for another four years. His partnership with rookie Jaylen Brown has been exciting Raptors fans
- Chicago re-signed veterans Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson. Rose received a shorter contract due to his injury history
- Oklahoma City fans received great news with stars Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka both re-signing for a further four years. The reigning champs also re-signed superstar Kevin Durant to a long-term extension last year
- Milwaukee locked in the Greek Freak to a five year deal. It's a huge step for a franchise that has struggled to hold onto it's star players in recent years
- Golden State surprised nobody by re-signing superstar Stephen Curry to a five year mega deal. The 2015 MVP apparently left some money on the table to help ease the Warriors' cap worries
- Utah extended French big man Rudy Gobert's contract by five years
- New Orleans took a positive step to reassuring Anthony Davis of their commitment to being a playoff team by extending the contracts of Tyreke Evans and Jrue Holiday by a further four years
Thu Jan 07, 2016 8:52 pm
Simmed Game
CHI - 13 16 23 20 72
PHI - 26 15 16 24 81
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (13pts, 13reb, 1ast, 4blk)
Record: 26-10
Sat Jan 09, 2016 4:56 pm
Simmed Game
TOR - 11 21 27 18 77
PHI - 29 22 29 21 101
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (10pts, 10reb, 6ast, 3blk)
Record: 28-10
Tue Jan 19, 2016 5:13 pm
The Utah Jazz today made an bold move by acquiring all-star point guard Kyle Lowry from the Toronto Raptors in an eight player deal. As well as Lowry, the Jazz also receive Cory Joseph and veteran duo Nene and Amare Stoudemire. In return the Raptors received Dante Exum, Trey Lyles, Joe Ingles, Raul Neto and future first round picks from Oklahoma City and Golden State that the Jazz held the rights to.-----
Utah fans will be a bit reluctant to see Exum go as he is a former number five overall pick and had been viewed as the future of the franchise at the point guard spot, especially with Trey Burke leaving for Portland over the off-season. His two seasons in the NBA have been rather uninspiring though and Jazz management clearly felt that they needed a more experienced player to run their team. It is a bit of a risk trading for Kyle Lowry as he could decide to opt-out of the player option in his contract after this season, but if the Jazz can convince him to stay in Utah he can be a huge part in their push to be a regular playoff team in the ultra competitive western conference.
He led the Raptors to the playoffs in 2014 for the first time in seven years and was named an all-star starter last season for the eastern team. His toughness, leadership and determination to win should help him set a great example for his new teammates to follow. So far this season Lowry has been more productive than Exum in scoring, rebounds and assists, but will probably have to increase his offensive output a bit further now that he is back in the tougher western conference.
Nene and Amare Stoudemire are both handy pick-ups in this deal as well. Both have plenty of playoff experience and they are both on relatively cheap expiring contracts, which reduces any financial risk for the Jazz. Perhaps they can help mentor the likes of Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert and Damian Jones and help them all take their games to the next level. Cory Joseph is a solid acquisition too. His past experience with the San Antonio Spurs backing up Tony Parker has made him one of the most reliable reserve point guards in the NBA.
The Jazz currently sit in ninth in the western conference with a 17-21 record. They are four games behind Sacramento and the LA Clippers in the race for that coveted eighth playoff spot.-----
For Toronto this deal is very much about the future. They are having a miserable season, finding themselves rock bottom of the eastern conference with a dismal 10-30 record. They clearly realised that they will be fighting it out for the first overall pick with Dallas and Denver for the rest of the season so they decided to cash in on the expiring Lowry and stock up on young talent and draft picks. They could be only the fourth team in the last fifty years to receive the first pick in two consecutive drafts - after Houston, Orlando and Cleveland.
They recently re-signed DeMar DeRozan to a long-term contract and now have a new younger core consisting of Dante Exum, Jaylen Brown, Jonas Valanciunas, Trey Lyles and Gary Payton II around him. They will be a big player in the 2017 draft with three first round picks (their own, the Warriors' and the Clippers'). They could also have over $30 million in cap room to work with if they find a deal to get rid of DeMarre Carroll and his monstrous contract before the trade deadline.
Acquiring the likes of Exum, Ingles and Neto follows a familiar strategy for Toronto of favouring international players over Americans, perhaps to lessen the homesickness element that could potentially cost them in free agency. Getting Trey Lyles in this trade was good for the Raptors because he is a native Canadian and should be comfortable sticking with the franchise for the long haul.
One player who will be happy to see this deal happen is Gary Payton. The former Seattle legend will be happy because this trade because it will more than likely give his son Gary Payton II a much larger role in the Raptors' rotation now that Lowry and Joseph are gone. He could prove himself to be a solid backup guard at NBA level.
Toronto receive
Dante Exum - 21 - PG - $4m - 1 year (TO) (77)
Trey Lyles - 21 - PF - $2m - 1 year (2yr TO) (75)
Raul Neto - 24 - PG - $1m - 1 year (TO) (71)
Joe Ingles - 29 - SF - $2m - 1 year (71)
GSW 2017 First Round Pick (via Utah)
OKC 2018 First Round Pick (via Utah)
Projected line-up:
Jonas Valanciunas - Trey Lyles - Jaylen Brown - DeMar DeRozan - Dante Exum
Bench:
DeMarre Carroll, Patrick Patterson, Gary Payton II, Delon Wright, Lucas Nogueira, Joe Ingles, Raul Neto
Utah receive
Kyle Lowry - 30 - PG - $12m - 1 year (PO) (84)
Cory Joseph - 25 - PG - $15m - 2 years (PO) (78)
Nene - 34 - PF - $6m - 1 year (75)
Amare Stoudemire - 34 - C - $6m - 1 year (74)
Projected line-up:
Rudy Gobert - Derrick Favors - Gordon Hayward - Alec Burks - Kyle Lowry
Bench:
Cory Joseph, Nene, Damian Jones, Amare Stoudemire, Rodney Hood, Bryce Cotton, Tibor Pleiss
Wed Jan 20, 2016 12:50 pm
Simmed Game
PHI - 23 24 27 27 101
LAL - 29 28 13 30 100
POTG: Jahlil Okafor (25pts, 9reb, 3ast, 4blk)
Record: 29-11
Thu Jan 21, 2016 2:43 pm
Simmed Game
HOU - 18 20 29 28 95
PHI - 28 22 22 26 98
POTG: Dario Saric (19pts, 10reb, 2ast, 1blk)
Record: 31-11
Sat Jan 23, 2016 8:53 pm
Simmed Game
PHI - 27 27 18 18 90
CHI - 29 30 23 26 108
POTG: Jimmy Butler (30pts, 8reb, 4ast, 2blk)
Record: 32-12
Tue Mar 08, 2016 5:04 pm
Simmed Game
MIA - 17 21 30 22 90
PHI - 26 20 29 18 93
POTG: Eric Bledsoe (14pts, 10reb, 8ast, 1blk)
Record: 34-12