Monday Night Links
November 23rd, 2009 | by Kevin Hanson |This just in: The Sixers are awful. In ESPN’s latest Power Rankings, the Sixers fell from 23rd to 27th, which means only three teams are lower. If you’re a glass-half-full guy, the good news is that two of the three teams lower than the Sixers are in the Atlantic Division — New York and New Jersey. And the Sixers have been consistent in the fall from mediocrity (pre-season 14th of 30): Week 1 (15), Week 2 (17), Week 3 (23), Current (27).
The Sixers, who have lost six of their past eight games, face the Washington Wizards Tuesday night. Last year, the Sixers swept their four games against coach Eddie Jordan’s former team, who are currently 3-9.
After tomorrow’s game, the Sixers face four tough opponents to close out the month: Boston (10-4), Atlanta (11-3), San Antonio (5-6) and Dallas (10-3). If it’s any consolation to you (it’s not for me), the five-win Spurs, who many have ranked as one of the top two teams in the West, are perhaps a bigger disappointment than the five-win Sixers.
Andre Iguodala has shot a pitiful 28.2% (11 for 39) from the field in the Sixers’ last two games (losses). Iggy says, “I think the only positive is that we haven’t had a game where all five guys have played well, shot the ball well.” Is that really a positive?
When asking the question of what’s wrong with Thaddeus Young, Kate Fagan of the Philadelphia Inquirer says it’s three things — “new systems, smaller defenders, and what appears to be a change in preshot rhythm.”
One recent positive has been the improvement in Elton Brand’s play. In his past three games, he’s averaging roughly 20 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks while shooting 52 percent from the field.
If you missed it this weekend, here’s the video of Knicks guard Nate Robinson shooting on the wrong hoop:
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Tags: Andre Iguodala, Eddie Jordan, Elton Brand, ESPN Power Rankings, Nate Robinson, Thaddeus Young
