| 11 March 2010
At this rate the League will investigate soon.
Sixers (23-41, .359) were brutalized by Bobcats way more than the 87-102 final score could tell.
Sixers made a quick work of themselves (lol), traling by fourteen at the end of the first quarter (23-37), a period in which they let Charlotte connect 4/5 from downtown and take thirteen free throws (!!!).
The trend didn't stop in the second quarter, and by halftime (44-62) Stephen Jackson had 19 points, Wallace 13, Bobcats shot 5/8 from behind the arc and had 22 free throw attempts. On the other side, Sixers were 1/8 from three and had turned the ball over eleven times.
We were really "sending a message".
THREE ANSWERS
1) No, no mention of "mismatches" this time to explain the rotations. The best of Jordan's repertoire came before the game, when he said that the team is with him.
Jordan denied that he had lost the team, which was also reported yesterday. "I don't know where that comes from," Jordan said. "Guys just put it out there: 'Your team is not listening.' It's total crap."
Good times.
2) Yes, Jodie Meeks is officially the new World B. Free. His shot attempt/minute ratio is something I've rarely seen in the NBA. And believe me, I'm a fine garbage time analyst, I do love to see what happens in those situations, it's not like I stop to pay attention, rather the opposite. 16 minutes played as a Sixer, 9 shots attempted (2 made). Awesome.
3) Yes, Mark Zumoff & Ed Pinckney, I perfectly understand that you can't badmouth the product (= Sixers) that your employer (=Comcast) is putting on the market, but how about simply doing your job and sometimes express some (even soft, ok?) criticism about the crap you are paid to watch and comment? (more after the jump)THREE QUESTIONS
1) Is Eddie Jordan the #1 tanker ???? I'd tend to say so, as Carney was the only Sixer who came to play in the first half (10 points) and he was kept on the bench for the whole third quarter, when Bobcats' lead balooned to twenty-nine (56-85). Rodney was put back into the game with 7.26 left in the fourth, with Sixers trailing by nineteen.
2) How far can this tanking go? Our next opponents are Cleveland and Miami (= two easy losses), then we'll have a tough stretch (LOL) with a two game homestand vs NY and NJ, and then a trip to the MSG. We absolutely need to find a way to lose two of those three. Going 0-3 would be a dream, a tanking masterpiece.
3) Why did Iguodala (76%) shoot techs all season when there are FOUR players that have a higher percentage from the line ???? Green 84%, Williams & Carney 82%, even Dalembert, 80%. Yesterday Iguodala was 1/5 from the stripe. Ok, back to FTM (Full Tanking Mode).
REASONS
Why we lost the game
A 'small' disparity in energy and toughness: at a point in the third Bobcats had doubled us in free throws attempted (10/16 vs 26/32), outscoring us by sixteen points only in this category.
Our defense consisted basically in fouling them, better if they had already scored, while our offense was based on launching bricks from the perimeter (2/16 on threes, then I stopped counting)
To be optimistic
We took losing seriously. Seriously !!
To be worried
If Sixers fire Jordan before the season ends, the new coach might "energize" the players, making them win some useless games.
