Size and Wingspan

[Fire BK]

After featuring a mercurial star (Iverson) at SG for an entire era, the Sixers have finally evolved into a particularly large & lengthy starting roster.... IMO ,this is an overlooked virtue of Stefanski's tenure thus far....

A. Miller 6-2, 200,
Iguodala 6-6, 207
Thaddeus 6-8 220
Brand 6-8 254
Sammy 6-11 250

Speights 6-10 245
J. Smith 7-0 245
Lou 6-2
Ivey 6-4
Rush 6-6

WG 6-3
Evans 6-8 245

This is arguably the biggest starting 5 in the NBA.... Taking a page from Phil Jackson (9 chips), big guards can represent a huge advantage in this league (see Ron Harper, MJ, Brian Shaw, Kobe.... not to mention Magic, Oscar Robertson, Chauncey Billups etc)....

Size is especially key for defensive purposes. This is where R. Ivey's limited value will shine, for example. Moreover, Iggy & Thad will cover so much ground on the wings, it's scary.... We have a big team now. It's beautiful. And it's not a coincidence. Kudos again to Stefanski. Speights can play both PF-C positions off the pine. Now suddenly, this team becomes quite versatile. Elton Brand's girth appears the perfect compliment to Iggy/Thad/Sam's lankiness. So is anyone else curious how the new Sixers' height, length and width will all mesh & matchup? I see special things.

Impressively, the Sixers were 7th in the NBA last year in points allowed per game (96.2). I don't see how this figure doesn't slice even further with Elton Brand in tow and Iggy sliding over to the SG. Thoughts?

[Stanford]

I think wingspan would be even more impressive.

[Fire BK]

I think wingspan would be even more impressive.

Great point. Duly noted in the topic's name.

Here's a blurb from DraftExpress regarding this:

In short, height is almost meaningless- standing reach and wingspan are far more important when calculating a prospect’s “true size”.

Elton Brand plays as big as any player in the league despite being substantially undersized- perhaps as short as 6’6 according to some. Yet his insane length practically makes him a 7 footer on the floor, and thanks to his smaller stature, he has coordination and quickness that only a select few of the really tall guys in the league possess.

[freshie2]

Nice post. This is something I've tried to spell out in the discussions regarding the SG spot. Length is not only important defensively, but also in the half court and late in games. Whistles are swallowed, and smaller shooters have a much more difficult time getting a quality shot late in the game. This is one reason that Iverson was never huge in last possessions, and the same reason I'd prefer Iguodala to Iverson when it comes to a last possession shot. Iverson has more moves and quickness than Iguodala, but like the move or not, his step back jumper (as a 6'6" player with a high release point) is a much better shot than Iverson often will get. The length discussion also was a huge consideration against the Pistons last season. If Iguodala was the 2 and Thad the 3 last year, either Iguodala or Thad would have matched up against Hamilton, and should have had an advantage inside as opposed to being matched up with Prince/McDyess. The length will be huge, and should be further addressed as they acquire a replacement for Miller at the point.

[76ciology]

I believe in terms of length, I think the Lakers are no.1 with..

Fisher 6'0
Kobe 6'6
Odom 6'10
Gasol 7'0
Bynum 7'0

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

Most certainly, Andrew Bynum makes them a hell of alot better. Just by pushing that **** Vladmir Radmonvich out of the way. Inspite of being 6'10, he can't D or rebound. In terms of length, yes the Lakers are taller. But the one thing the Sixers have that no other team in the league has, is big man depth. And that wins titles as well.

[The Guilty Party]

I believe in terms of length, I think the Lakers are no.1 with..

Fisher 6'0
Kobe 6'6
Odom 6'10
Gasol 7'0
Bynum 7'0

+1.

[chrice]

Having a big wingspan helps for me, but overall height also has a good number of advantages. Especially when it comes to passing, blocking, or just contesting shots. Assuming they both have the same reach, Taller people with shorter wingspans have an advantage over shorter people with longer wingspan when it comes to timing. There's more room for error for them. They also don't have to leave the floor as early, and can maneuver their arms at different angles because of where their shoulders are.

[jmon]

I put more value in standing reach for bigs than any other measure they do besides weight probably.

There are always exceptions though like that kid Landry in Houston. If I remember correctly, his standing reach was less than many guards and he doesn't seem to have many problems at the 4. That has a lot to do with weight though.

[geiger]

It's not arguably anything. It's a standard sized NBA line-up. Almost every team in the league has a line-up with those measurements. Detroit has 6-3 Billups, 6-7 Rip, 7-0 Rasheed, 6-9 Prince, and 6-9 McDyess for example. Celtics have 6-2 Rondo, 6-5 Allen, 6-10 Perkins, 6-8 Pierce, 7-0 Garnett.

[jmon]

It's not arguably anything. It's a standard sized NBA line-up. Almost every team in the league has a line-up with those measurements. Detroit has 6-3 Billups, 6-7 Rip, 7-0 Rasheed, 6-9 Prince, and 6-9 McDyess for example. Celtics have 6-2 Rondo, 6-5 Allen, 6-10 Perkins, 6-8 Pierce, 7-0 Garnett.

He did list weights as well. Miller, Iguodala, and Brand are all pretty much tanks for their positions.

[geiger]

Iggy is 207 pounds - pretty standard weight for a SG, and lighter than guys like Roy, Carter, Kobe, etc.

Miller is overweight. His weight is not a good thing. That's why he can't keep anyone out of the lane.

As for Brand, he's a big boy, that's true - he's definitely undersized for a PF height wise, but he makes up for it with a big, wide, strong body and very long wing span.

[jmon]

Iggy is 207 pounds - pretty standard weight for a SG, and lighter than guys like Roy, Carter, Kobe, etc.

Miller is overweight. His weight is not a good thing. That's why he can't keep anyone out of the lane.

As for Brand, he's a big boy, that's true - he's definitely undersized for a PF height wise, but he makes up for it with a big, wide, strong body and very long wing span.

Iguodala was 217 when drafted. He hasn't slimmed down. There is absolutely nothing average about his size at the SG position.

Have you seen Miller's post game? His weight has something to do with that. Miller wasn't poor on defense last year either. He is a smart player who pushes penetration towards help.

Height doesn't matter for Brand. He plays at 6-10 at least. His basketball height isn't undersized at all.

[geiger]

Brand is a 6-8 PF. That's undersized for his position. The fact that he plays with heart and has a long wing span doesn't change that fact.

Miller can't keep guys out of the lane - the fact that he needs to push penetration toward help, shows he's not a good defender. He might be a crafty veteran, but he's still not a good man defensive player. When you push opposing PGs toward help instead of staying in front of them, that frees them up to either draw fouls on your big men, or to drive and dish to open 3 point shooters, which is exactly what happened to the Sixers last season.

As for Iguodala - http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/p ... atsId=3826

Sixers list him at 6-6, 207 pounds. That's all I have to go by. He measured out at 6-5 1/2 and 217 at pre-draft camp. Even if he's 6-6 and 217, that's still smaller than Brandon Roy, Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, Stephen Jackson, Kevin Martin, Joe Johnson, Kevin Durant, Ronnie Brewer, Rip Hamilton and Morris Peterson among others. And about the same size as guys like Mickael Pietrus, Ray Allen, DeShawn Stevenson, etc. So yeah, Iguodala has the average size for an NBA starting SG. Not small - not big. Prototypical.

[jmon]

Brand is a 6-8 PF. That's undersized for his position. The fact that he plays with heart and has a long wing span doesn't change that fact.

Is Dwight Howard, at 6-9 is undersized as well for a center?
Okafer at under 6-9 is undersized as well for a 4?
Al Jefferson at under 6-9 is also undersized for a 4.?

Jason Smith is more undersized at the 4 position in reality than Elton Brand is. Brand plays BOTH longer AND bigger than Smith.

A 7-5 wingspan + 6-8 w/o shoes + 9-2 standing reach = able to play the 5, which Brand did primarily for a season in his career if I remember correctly a few years back.

Brand is probably the most well documented "not undersized undersized" players out there.

Miller can't keep guys out of the lane - the fact that he needs to push penetration toward help, shows he's not a good defender. He might be a crafty veteran, but he's still not a good man defensive player. When you push opposing PGs toward help instead of staying in front of them, that frees them up to either draw fouls on your big men, or to drive and dish to open 3 point shooters, which is exactly what happened to the Sixers last season.

We won't agree here no matter what. Our arguments will be purely subjective. My eyes have shown Andre Miller to be an above average defensive player. Yours haven't.

http://www.82games.com/0708/07PHI2C.HTM
http://www.82games.com/0607/06PHI1C.HTM

Those are the only somewhat relevant numbers I can think of.

As for Iguodala - http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/p ... atsId=3826

Sixers list him at 6-6, 207 pounds. That's all I have to go by. He measured out at 6-5 1/2 and 217 at pre-draft camp. Even if he's 6-6 and 217, that's still smaller than Brandon Roy, Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, Stephen Jackson, Kevin Martin, Joe Johnson, Kevin Durant, Ronnie Brewer, Rip Hamilton and Morris Peterson among others. And about the same size as guys like Mickael Pietrus, Ray Allen, DeShawn Stevenson, etc. So yeah, Iguodala has the average size for an NBA starting SG. Not small - not big. Prototypical.

I think Iguodala looks like a tank for the most part.

Post pertinent link/image I could find...

http://www.draftexpress.com/gallery/Gen ... 659125.jpg
via
http://www.draftexpress.com/article/DX- ... ntly-2930/

That seems to indicate Iguodala is above average for an NBA SG and actually seemingly closer to an average SF taking into account his weight and wingspan.