Written by Dave Homsher on Wednesday, 05 November 2008 Category:Sports Hits:8355

Shockingly, the 76ers signed the biggest available free agent this offseason in Elton Brand, and I haven’t written a single word about it.  So, per popular request (OK, so maybe it was a whim of my own and not so much anyone else’s request let alone a popular one) here are Homsher’s thoughts on the Sixers and everyone else this early NBA season. 

1. The Sixers are going to be an entertaining, competitive team this year.  The addition of Elton Brand immediately makes them a contender in the East.  Last year’s team was the #7 seed in the East and took the Pistons to 6 games in the 1st round of the playoffs.  However, their half court offense was ABYSMAL.  They were able to compete because they were young and fast, and could score on the break.  Now, with Brand, they have a threat in the half court offense.  I expect the young players to take the next step improving as well.  The Gladiator, Thadeus Young has shown a much improved J early in the season.  Lou Williams is one of the fastest players in the league and is going to be a key component as the 6th man.  The 76ers have a very solid starting 5 with Dalembert, Miller, Brand, Young, and Iguodala.  For the first time in years, they have a solid bench to go with it including Williams, Reggie Evans, 1st round pick Maurice Spaetz, Kareem Rush, and Donyell Marshall.  (Willie Green still sucks).  However, this new mix will definitely take some time to gel.  I predict that the team flounders around .500 for the first 30 games before they hit their stride.  By season’s end they will have 47 or 48 wins and enter the playoffs as a hot #4 or #5 seed.  As far as contending for the East crown, they are probably a year away, but they should make a lot of progress this year, perhaps even earning a spot in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. 

The Beast of the East?

2. Boston has a terrific chance to repeat, but I believe that they only have a 1 year window in which they can win another title.  Ray Allen looked like he has some serious mileage on his legs for the first 3 rounds of the playoffs last year.  Paul Pierce still has a lot of game, but he’s not even close to the player he was 5 years ago.  Much of his success now is based on craftiness and guile.  KG still has 3 good years left at least, but as was shown in Minnesota, he can’t carry a team when he’s the top dog.  With the Big 3 aging and on the backside of their primes, I suspect that if the Celtics don’t win this year, we won’t be seeing another title from them. 

3. Expect the Man-Bear-Pig Kevin Durant to take another major step towards superstardom.  Durant averaged 20+ points per game as a rookie in quite possibly the worst situation of all time with a horrifically bad team and an owner who was selling out an entire city as he was pushing to relocate the Seattle franchise.  In his second season, expect Durant to be around 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists per game.  As he continues to bulk up and get stronger, I think next year in his 3rd season he officially makes THE LEAP and starts terrorizing the NBA to the tune of 28+ PPG and BEASTING opponents nightly. 

4. Greg Oden, WHAT’S GOING ON?!  I wish I didn’t but I agree with a lot of the points Bill Simmons made in his article here:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3683493

Other than the NCAA title game, I’ve yet to see him dominate an opponent, and it appears that his chronic injury issues might derail a potentially superstar career.  It’s also entirely possible that he might be past his prime, since he looks like he’s about 45 years old. 

5. I love Dwight Howard, but for the life of me I can’t figure out why he isn’t better.  I know what you’re thinking, the guy averaged 20 and 14 last year, terrific numbers for any big guy.  But why isn’t he scoring 30 every night?  Why isn’t he getting 20 rebounds?  He’s bigger than everyone, he’s faster than everyone, and he’s a better athlete than everyone.  Shouldn’t he be KILLING people?  Is he simply too nice?  Is he trying to just “fit in” instead of “taking over” for the Magic?  Is he a follower and not a leader?  Is he OK with just being an all star, instead of pushing himself to be a hall of famer?  I haven’t heard anyone else asking these questions, and maybe I’m talking out of my a$$, but I know some of you are wondering the same things. 

Why doesn't Superman don his cape every night?

6. Allen Iverson was just traded to the Detroit Pistons for Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess.  I will now crush my head in my passenger side door.  My favorite player of all time gets traded to one of my most hated teams.  DISGUSTING!!  Trying to be objective, this trade is PHENOMENAL for the Pistons.  They are picking up an extremely hungry, title-starved hall of famer in a contract year.  The people who suggest Iverson has lost a step haven’t been paying attention.  Iverson averaged 26+ a game last year with the Nuggets, and his shots were WAY DOWN due to playing with another offensive-minded star in Carmelo Anthony (19 shots per game compared with 23 or 24 most years).  AI was STILL 3rd in the NBA in scoring!!  Jason Maxiell was already taking most of McDyess’ minutes anyway, and Iverson is a MASSIVE upgrade over Chauncey Billups.  The best part about this trade for Detroit is that if for any reason it doesn’t work out, Iverson’s $20 MILLION comes off the salary cap at the end of the year, and the Pistons can invest that in rebuilding for the future.  Either way, you can expect the Pistons to compete with the Celtics and the Cavs for the Eastern Conference Championship in the playoffs. 

7. The Houston Rockets might be the leagues most intriguing team.  Adding Ron Artest and his terrific all around game to Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming and a very solid cast of role players makes the Rockets a threat to win it all.  However, considering that Artest almost always blows up, and that McGrady and Yao collectively are never healthy and never win in the playoffs, consider me a skeptic until they come up big in the postseason. 

8. The 5 most underrated players in the NBA are as follows: David West, Jose Calderon, Al Jefferson, Gerald Wallace, and Brandon Roy. 

9. The New Orleans Hornets are for real.  Their entire team is back from a squad that made the Western Conference Finals last year.  Now, they’ve added the new Robert Horry to the bunch with the acquisition of James Posey.  He plays great D, hits big 3 pointers, and won NBA titles with the Heat and the Celtics.  With Chris Paul basically doing whatever he wants at all times, the Hornets are Homsher’s current pick to take home the crown.

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