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76ers flunk chemistry

    by Will Bunch | Columnist
    Published 

The start of the 76ers season was totally subsumed by the Phillies in the World Series; now we're all paying attention, and it's not good, especially for a team that many thought could even make it to the Eastern Conference finals (sigh). Had I been focused enough to write a season preview, I would have remarked that the Sixers were going to be a fascinating experiment this year, a collection of intriguing, young talent trying to go far without a true superstar, something that doesn't happen in the NBA. Now we're seeing why it doesn't happen.

Your 2008-09 76ers are flunking chemistry, badly:

The Sixers had 17 points in the second quarter, were outscored 30-13 in the final one. And while their turnovers were significant, their defensive breakdowns smacked of a team not very sure of who is supposed to be where, a team that loses 50-50 balls from indecision and a lack of confidence more than a lack of effort.
"Everybody," Iguodala said, "is playing a little bit uncomfortable.
"We've just got to find ways to continue to work hard and get through the rough times."
The good news is that there is plenty of time for that. November games count, of course, but if the losses lead to some conclusion, some solution to this Rubik's Cube of a team, then last night was not the waste of time it seemed.
You just would like to see even a hint that it is leading somewhere. And soon.

It's still early, but as Yogi Berra sort of said, it gets late early around here. The NBA is a funny game: The formula for winning seems to be: Draft one incredible all-time superstar like Jordan, get a guy who can grab his occasional misses like Pippen (or Rodman), and then just three warm bodies, or in the case of the 2000-01 Sixers, one guy who takes every shot and four defensive standouts. A team of five "pretty good" players seems too hard to properly assemble. The greatest tragedy -- it turns out in hindsight -- was the expensive re-upping of Andre Iguodala when he now seems a horrible fit for a team that instead needed a true perimeter shooting guard.

For coach Maurice Cheeks, for now -- the only thing is to go back to the lab.