Are you guys happy ?

[Salvistine24]

stchaser...i think ur scenario is right on with what will happen in terms of personell but i think ur selling alot of teams short...honestly, i think if we played denver in a 7 game series we lose in 6 at best...

they are still way over .500 in a much tougher conference...personally i think a great pf and a center like camby would make the sixers contenders for the foreseeable future...camby has his injury issues however and would be a short term solution...ideally, i would somehow acquire him and draft my center of the future now who is more of a prototypical big man...if i could get okafor as well, id really like our core for title hopes(altho it is totally unfeasable considering our financial situation and trade assets to have both...just think similar players to camby)...

i think u might and its a long shot might get through the east with okafor, iggy, thad, miller, and sam but i really think sam is not a guy you win titles with...i cant remember a player like sam ever winning a title and he is still wildly inconsistant...i can not see him maintaining a high level for a 7 game series let alone a playoff run...

[Sixerscan]

i think u might and its a long shot might get through the east with okafor, iggy, thad, miller, and sam but i really think sam is not a guy you win titles with...i cant remember a player like sam ever winning a title and he is still wildly inconsistant...i can not see him maintaining a high level for a 7 game series let alone a playoff run...

Sam would be the 5th best player in that lineup. Plenty of 5th wheels that didn't have a skill as effective as Sam's defense and rebounding have won titles.

The problem would be the top 4 probably aren't good enough, unless Okafor returns to where he was last year and Thad becomes a monster.

[Salvistine24]

i dont disagree that hes the 5th wheel in that lineup but thats the point...u dont win titles with ur center being the 5th wheel...hes got to be one of the top 3 wheels...sam is an avg player and can get a team to the postseason...he might even win a round...but if our goal is to win a title and that should be the goal, it isnt going to happen unless we miracuously land tim duncan here

i agree the other 4 guys arent good enough either but they have room to grow over time and their ceilings are higher than sam...plus they are the types of players u win with...a defensive post up pf, a slashing guard, a passing pg who can score when needed, and hopefully a do it all sf...we could use a shooter off the bench agreed, but as its been stated by others, teams win with dominant bigs and our center cant be the 5th wheel in our lineup if we plan to win imo

[tk76]

I want a championship as much as anyone- but we need to be realistic. We should be aiming at having a good young team with 5+ year window of opportunity. If somehow we got Okafor 9which I don't see happening) we would have an amazing core of players age 27 and under.

We still would not have a superstar, but we would have plenty of time to add that last peice when one hits the trade market- and we should have cap space, an extra 1st and young tradable players to be ready to make that kind of move that would propel us over the top.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

I think if we are patient an opportunity will present itself

[Sixerscan]

i dont disagree that hes the 5th wheel in that lineup but thats the point...u dont win titles with ur center being the 5th wheel...hes got to be one of the top 3 wheels...

Then just call Okafor the center. They'll likely be doing similar things anyway.

but if our goal is to win a title and that should be the goal, it isnt going to happen unless we miracuously land tim duncan here

Regardless of whether Sam is here, we would probably need to miraculously land a player like Tim Duncan to realistically win a championship. If you traded Dalembert for a center like Tyson Chandler, we wouldn't miraculously become a title contender.

[CPops57]

You would be very hard pressed to find champion (outside of the pistons, who are the exception) who didn't draft an all-league caliber player themselves, most of which come from the top 5.

Given that the Sixers aren't in position to draft top 5 anytime soon, it would be useful to study the Detroit model a bit more.

In a very general sense, the Sixers are somewhat like the Pistons before they got Rasheed Wallace.

(Note that I'm referring to a broad overview sense, not a "Dalembert is as good as Ben Wallace was" sense...)

[Salvistine24]

sixercan...i think im not explaining this right in words (i see how ur interpreting it)

i agree we more than likely need a duncan/garnett/amare...i dont post here too much but when im with friends im highly critical of the talent level on this team...in fact, i thought theyd be one of the 3 worst teams in the league this season

that all being said, i think with okafor and chandler going forward, theres more room for growth and those guys might become top level players as with our young guys...i dont think this team is a title contender for atleast 3 years...but that doesnt mean im happy sitting with sam for 3 years when in the end, he isnt a player who fits what a longterm goal of winning is (a bruising defensive center with a post game)

if that means trading him now, drafting a hibbert and going through those growing pains or acquiring chandler, i would do it...not saying it wins us the title next year but it sets us up better for in 3 years when we are on the cusp of winning (at that point sam will be in his 30s)

this team is growing and is progressing and im extremely impressed but i know that they arent close to being to the top level yet...im just saying, why keep around a guy who imo is going to be the hole on your team down the road when we should be using this time now to find the guy who can be the force at center down the road

[Johnny Broad-Street]

I agree. If we concentrate on defense and sharing the ball, we could play with just about anyone (After some additions I mean). The style is all I refer to

[STChaser]

stchaser...i think ur scenario is right on with what will happen in terms of personell but i think ur selling alot of teams short...honestly, i think if we played denver in a 7 game series we lose in 6 at best...

You're probably right BUT what if we played that series with Okafor or Josh Smith in our lineup? That changes the equation in my view dramatically - and that's what we could potentially be looking at next season.

Also, I hear what many of you are saying about Sam being a weak link. However, I wonder how much better he would look if he were playing alongside a decent PF like Okafor. A lot of contending teams don't even have legit 5's at all but rather use their 4's (Duncan, Sheed, Jumaine O'neal, etc) to fill the role of the Center. Because Okafor has been used in that fashion, I wonder how pairing him up with Sam would alter this team's dynamics.

STChaser

[Johnny Broad-Street]

With the way we're trying to defend, Okafor would be a huge help now. I wasn't that into him as an addition, but his value to a team like ours compared to some is pretty high, IMO, now that we know everyone's bought into defense more

[tk76]

Not that I am advocatind this approach...

but if we relinquished our rights to Iguodala and let him be a FA, would that remove his 8M cap hold?

That would give us 18M+ cap space to throw max money at Okafor or Brand.

Would that be better or worse than negotiating but then being forced into a sign and trade if he demands the max and threatens to sign a 1 year tender (to be a FA in '09)

[CPops57]

With the way we're trying to defend, Okafor would be a huge help now. I wasn't that into him as an addition, but his value to a team like ours compared to some is pretty high, IMO, now that we know everyone's bought into defense more

I realize that good defense does create more offensive opportunities, but I'd still be a bit nervous about the possible lack of half-court offense if Okafor was the big addition.

It's not something I'm dismissing. It's just something that I'd want to analyze a lot more before I'd make up my mind on.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

THis is a good point CPops...but maybe this is where a Biedrins addition comes into play a bit. Maybe there's an Igoudala move or something that facilitates...

[Johnny Broad-Street]

Oops....I meant Dalembert

[bebopdeluxe]

I am happy...

Happy that the team has tried to win the past two springs....

Happy that we have some REAL young talent...that is learning how to win (as opposed to tanking for ping-pong balls)...

Happy that we are a young team with talent that is actually materially improving forward, as opposed to teams that have consistently had high draft picks and major young talent (such as Chicago or Atlanta), and are either going nowhere or actually regressing...

At this point in this team's development, I am WAY happier that we are actually winning games against teams like Detroit and Phoenix. and that these young guys are going to get playoff experience. I have ZERO desire for a 22-25 win team that MAY (might, possibly...use whatever qualifier you want) get more ping-pong balls and have the chance to make a top-5 pick that may or may not pan out...

We've got enough young guys - we don't need another 19-year-old that we can all sit back for two years and PRAY he is our savior. This team is getting on with the serious business of growing up and getting better...and with cap room this summer (and a little luck), Eddie can find us - as opposed to some 19-year-old - an established player who can help this team take the next step from playoff team to a team playing meaningful games in May and June.

So...I am happy.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

Love that post. Really well said. Someone should send that to the Sixers

[dond]

i really think the WHOLE front court needs to be changed w thad shifting to the 3, and replacements at the 4 and 5 who can win a title (and no, ive said before i dont think athletic sam gets us anywhere near a title esp against the west bigs and/or garnett nd sheed in crunch time)

This is basically my feeling on this also. While I like what Sam brings to the team, I don't feel you can have a center who does not pose a threat on offense against a top team. That jump shot of his is ok but not a real consistent weapon. His little hook shot is in its' infancy. About all he has are put backs and dunks. The only way it could possibly work is if they get a huge PF who can dominate on offense.... good luck with that.

The bad news is it would probably take years to groom a center to be a dominant force regardless of who they draft and Dalembert is beginning to get real effective with what he does. So, it would be somewhat drastic to cut him loose.