will we ever win?

Philadelphia 76ers season preview

Longtime reader, nevertime commentor, JW provides the breakdown:

As the Sixers prepare for the upcoming NBA season, you can't help but notice all the changes that have been made with this team during the off-season. Among the biggies is Eric Snow out to Cleveland and Coleman dumped in Detroit for Corliss Williamson. But perhaps the biggest and most obvious change is the hiring of new head coach, Jim O'Brien. Labeled as a "players coach", O'Brien plans on being just that in Philly. He has said numerous times that he wants to let AI get out and run, and also wants the team to play the way 'they' want to play-not conform to his system.

Positional changes include Allen Iverson running point, as opposed to his normal shooting guard role. This will most likely lead to a more unselfish AI and a faster pace of play for the Sixers. I for one really like this change because it allows other players to get involved in the offense and for opposing defenses to fear AI passing skills as well as his scoring. It should make the team a lot more balanced and make AI a better overall player too.

Also, the Sixers new rookie Andre Iguodala will be starting over the aptly named "Big Dog". Iguodala couldn't help but be noticed during the preseason games. Taken with the Sixers first pick in the draft, the forward from Arizona is not only well built for a young player, but also seems to be very athletic as well. He will no doubt be a big help to Kenny Thomas on the boards as well as getting a solid 8-10 points a night. Speaking of Kenny Thomas, I feel that this could be his best year yet in the league. After a good year last year, the 5th year player out of New Mexico is poised to take the leap into consistent double-double territory. Hopefully he can stay healthy along the way.

The Sixers will try out this "new-look" for the first time at home on Friday November 5th when the Phoenix Suns come to town so it will be interesting to see if these changes bear any fruit. My prediction for the season is that the Sixers will play their normal "roller-coaster" basketball but finish strong with a 4-5 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Go Sixers!