Time To Give Mo The Axe

[ChuckS]

I think Mo has done a good job. Earlier in the season, he had this team rebounding and playing great defense, and we were competitive in every game. Some statisticians will insist that it was fool's gold and the result of an easier schedule, but that is only slightly true.

I think it is Ed Stefanski who must go...if you want to see respectable ball this year.

Everyone else here, however, should be happier than pigs in poop. He is doing just what most have been screaming about for two years. One of the Philly writers just wondered why so many who wanted just what Ed has delivered are now complaining.

With the old "play the puppies ploy", he has, in effect, mandated that we tank the season. His one personnel move was also called for last year by fans who wanted Oden. He got rid of a good player, Korver, and the team got worse. Some, who hate watching bad basketball, might have mitigated the harm by playing Gordan Giricek, who is infinitely better than those I have been watching.

But of course not. He wants to see and evaluate the younguns. Go to freakin' practice then Ed. I already saw Kenny Payne and Sharone Wright. Why does everyone have to suffer? I know...I know...you want to give the fans hope. I hope! I hope! I hope that someday in my lifetime they will play like Durant and Horford. But they stunk earlier. They stunk last game. They may even stink next game. How many leads does anyone need to see dissipated until realizing that they are not yet ready for prime time? Are you not a basketball expert? Pay freakin' attention!

In typical Philly fashion, we blame all our problems on Willie Green and Reggie Evans. (Once it was Eric Snow.) They are certainly not perfect players. But they were part of the unit which built a 17 point lead in the first quarter last game, not among the three stooges who depleted it in five minutes, simultaneously dooming us to defeat. By the way. I love you Mo, but what coach calls a time out with his team decimating the opposition while building that lead?

Now suddenly it is also dump on Iguodala time. Can anyone who has played the game tell me you think he should be happy with what he is enduring. He is too good for this crap. I believe it could be even worse if he, too, suspects it is not all happening by chance. At least I can vomit in the privacy of my home.

[P2K]

Because I cannot stand another coach who constantly puts his players in a bad position, who constantly puts his team in a bad position, and a coach, no matter what roster is handed to him, that STILL finds a way to lose more games then win.

OR: I think, that, in the 3 years Maurice Cheeks has been here? If we didn't fire Jim O'Brien. We would be carrying the Larry O'Brien trophy in Philadelphia IMO. Yes, I said it, we would've been NBA champions.

What magical potion would Webber have gotten his hands on to make his knee better? Because that would be the only chance the Sixers would've been even just a contender.

NBA Champs. Jim O'Brien is all of a sudden Red Auerbach.

[wtwagon]

Did the Blazers even play the Lakers in the playoffs under Mo or is Dedicated wrong as usual?

Wasn't that Dunleavy coaching?

[sixers_610]

I know Dunleavy was with the Blazers the year the Lakers went to the Finals making that big comeback in the fourth quarter..

[sec-106]

Didn't Mo sing the National Anthem during the Playoffs?

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

Not that it leads to basketball victories.

[barkley34]

Did the Blazers even play the Lakers in the playoffs under Mo or is Dedicated wrong as usual?

Cheeks' 1st year they got swept in the 1st round against the Lakers.

[STChaser]

The difference was Ginobili's threes," Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said. "We doubled down on Duncan and took a chance, and he made the threes.

Gee, that's never happened before. Seems like this is a broken record. Every team we play against burns us the same way. You'd think that at some point, Cheeks would go away from this strategy



STChaser

[tk76]

I though most teams bring the double or rotate so that you need to make 2 passes to get an open shot. The way we doubled seemd too easy to hit the open shooter, since it was right in the line of sight.

It was more like daring him to shoot- which might have been a good with his hand injury and horrible shooting night- if he hadn't of already hit 2 consecutive 3's...

[dond]

Come on you guys ....

Admit it ...

No-one on this forum has any idea of what good coaching looks like or consists of. You just go by results. If the Sixers lose it is bad coaching. Of course, once you have decided a coach is bad ... even if they begin to win games you won't change course and say it was due to good coaching. Then it consists of great play by one or more of your favorite players.

Sad, but true ... coaches (head coaches, especially) take the hit if things do not go well.

Now, don't get me wrong ... you may be entirely correct about a coach. If his team is losing, he may be a bad coach ... but you don't need to point out strategic incidents that justify that evaluation. THEY ARE LOSING ... that is the basis for all of this.

Now, I do not exclude myself from those without a clue ... I also do not know what good coaching looks like. I just do not choose to pile on coach Cheeks without that clue ... at least until he gets some players to work with. I prefer to, instead, look at some of the signs of some things I value on a basketball team ..... defense - they seem to be playing pretty good defense (not perfect, but pretty good), effort - they seem to give a good effort each night (they seem to like coach Cheeks and play hard for him), team play - they seem to share the ball.

As far as I can tell, with my limited knowledge (like us all), they excel in every department except skill level and coach Cheeks cannot fix that.

Now, you may say (or should I say continue to say) coach Cheeks didn't do this or did this or whatever in some situation and my answer to that is twofold.

First - Without the effort the team exerts and without the defense they play, they would not have even been in a position to win the game, much less make some minor adjustment at the end of the game to bring home a win. And, the coach is largely responsible for the effort and defense.

Second - We (that includes you) are not knowledgeable enough about the intricacies of NBA basketball strategies to warrant calls to fire the coach over a minor defensive adjustment that you think should have been made.

Sorry, about the length of this posting ... but you pushed my button (FIRE THE COACH) again and I couldn't help myself.

[tk76]

Dond, I wasn't calling for Mo to be fired, I was just discussing the plays and strategy. In fact, I have posted before that I don't want to see him fired during this season.

I hope we soon find a low post player who demands a double team and puts the opposition in a similar bind.

I think we can discuss plays and statagy here without being the world's expert- it is a basketball forum, and we are supposed to discuss these things.

[dond]

I thought I would bring back this thread because some of you may wish to review your past posting on this topic and perhaps give us an update.

Sorry, as you know, I just cannot help myself on this topic ... lol

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

Sure. We just lost to the Timberwolves by 15+ and Ed still gave the guy an extension. He and Billy really have alot in common.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

how do you know how much the posters know about coaching or what they're basing their opinions on?

that's a really condescending post Dbodner

[IggyTheBEaST]

Sure. We just lost to the Timberwolves by 15+ and Ed still gave the guy an extension. He and Billy really have alot in common.

Not a fair statement. The extension was used mainly to not shake things up. Mo has a good relationship with the roster and Ed feels he is doing well with the youngsters. A 1 year extension wasnt a bad idea to get more time to evaluate our situation. We dont know how free agency and other issues will pan out and once we do, we can sign the appropriate coach for our squad

[Johnny Broad-Street]

sorry...mistyped. I meant dond.

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

No, you meant "dedicated"

The record is in itself, he's 70-120 something as our coach. With a team O'Brien took to the NBA playoffs. Come on now, be serious.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

no...I was referring to dond's post.

I got in trouble last time I questioned you...wouldn't dream of rocking the boat again.

i'd just be interested to know what available coach could do more with what we have had since he came. I don't love Mo guys, but it's all relative

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

Again, I repeat. Same Squad as a 43-39 team that challenged the Pistons, we slid into the lottery.... Same squad, different coach, different result.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

I'm not going to rattle them off because every time someone uses facts to discuss something with you you disappear, but I will say there were many other factors that aused that slip