OT - Sixers

[Rey]

Lost his # duke

 

[old duke]

Please tweet him then.

 

[Rey]

Simmons vs Ingram tonight on ESPN2 at 8:30 pm ... pick 1 vs pick 2.

btw, Kris Dunn was awesome last night ... I see why the Sixers wanted to grab he and Simmons in the same draft.

 

[old duke]

My son alerted me about Dunn, so I watched some highlights. He and Mudiay had a battle, huh?
I think BC blew it by not trading what he had to do to get Dunn, and Dunn was upset, as you saw on draft night that they didn't gt him. I don't know why BC is so hesitant, since they have so much $$$, and have to spend it.

 

[Rey]

Woohoo ..

Dario Saric said he's going to join the 76ers.

All of the sudden, the 76ers have a lot of excitement. On top of this news, Saric was named MVP in the Olympic Qualifier with averages of 14 points, 10 boards and 2.2 assists. He's looked tremendous recently in international play could could threaten Gerald Henderson for the starting job. He'll be one of the best players to watch in Brazil next month.


Source: Euro Hoops

 

[old duke]

At least one good thing lately.

 

[Rey]

Further impressions on Simmons after several summer games: The good - world class passer! His vision of the floor and his anticipation are phenomenal. Too bad this summer league squad can't shoot worth a lick, otherwise he would be averaging close to 10 assists per game. His rebounding is also on point ... he has a knack for positioning well along with using his body for boards. It's not out of the realm of possibility that he ends up one of the leaders in triple doubles ... even as a rookie. He has excellent hands; huge, quick hands to pick up loose balls ... once he gets the ball he's off the other way in transition which is a strength. Plenty to like so far!

The bad: Not aggressive enough as a finisher. Can drive past people, but tries to finesse the ball into the hoop once he gets close to the rim. With his size and leaping ability he needs to just go strong and either jam it or draw the foul. Maybe once the regular season comes around he won't settle for floaters like he has so far. He's way too unselfish at this point ... yes, he's a great passer, but in the NBA you have to take the wide open 15-20 footers. The #1 pick in the draft has to make those when given to you. The turnovers are also going to be there as a rookie ... he's often too careless with the ball and while figuring out what he wants to do. That's mostly just lack of focus ... because once he does see the play he's just fine. As a rook though it wouldn't shock me if he's among the leaders in turnovers.

The Sixers should really be fun to watch this year ... and if Embiid is healthy, watch out ... they may even make a little noise.

 

[old duke]

Rey, Ben Mclemore, SG? Kings want to trade him. Is he a great shooter?

 

[Rey]

Rey, Ben Mclemore, SG? Kings want to trade him. Is he a great shooter?

Not a fan duke

 

[old duke]

Nieither is my son. He does like Gary Harris though. He thinks we just get through this year, and get 2 Guards next year.

 

[Rey]

Looks like Simmons will be shut down for the rest of the Summer League. Good move by the Sixers, he has nothing else to gain by playing with scrubs. His game will be setting everyone up while driving to the basket as a Point Forward. He got his feet wet in the Summer League's ... he has nothing more to gain here. Next order of business is to trade one of the bigs ... but I haven't heard any legit hot rumors yet. Looks like Oklahoma is shopping Westbrook because they will likely lose him after the season (slight rumblings about he in Philly) ... but if he goes anywhere it's likely Boston. Philly isn't a great fit for him anyhoo as the plan is to have Simmons run the O most of the time. If you trade for Westy it would mean he would control the ball 90% of the time he is in there ... that wouldn't work here.

 

[old duke]

Super DARIO IS HERE!

 

[NDIrishGuy]

Colangelo was saved from an awful move by the Spurs. Word is the Sixers offered 2 year $30M to Ginobili. I get that Ginobili is a Proven Veteran (TM) but that would've been an awful move. He is clearly backsliding and his only use is the role he has on the Spurs, small amounts of playing time only.

 

[old duke]

I think he took a risk, unless BB highly recommended it, plus it drove up the price that S.A. had to cough up.

 

[Rey]

Sixers have a load of cap room still left and still a huge need at Guard. They can do some massive overpaying and still be way under ... problem is there is nothing out there.

 

[NDIrishGuy]

Sixers have a load of cap room still left and still a huge need at Guard. They can do some massive overpaying and still be way under ... problem is there is nothing out there.

After the way Simmons has been passing in the Summer League, I'd rather they save the cap space and let him showcase some talents and attract some quality free agents, vice just Proven Veterans (TM). I think players are going to see that playing with Simmons will be heavenly. Dude absolutely has court vision. Shot needs work (not broken but needs work). I think he is going to be quite exciting to watch. I cannot wait to see him with some NBA talent around him.

 

[Rey]

Simmons will indeed make things easier for everyone else. I expect a guy like Jared Bayless to have a career high scoring year (probably 14-15 ppg). He's an excellent spot up shooter and will have a ton of open looks every game. Really excited about seeing how Saric fits in ... I think his best spot will be PF as he can stretch the floor for guys like Embiid and Okafor down low with his outside shooting ability and excellent passing ability. As for Simmons himself, I don't expect much more than around 12 ppg as a rookie. While his shot isn't broken, he doesn't have much touch at the moment. It wouldn't shock me if Simmons opens the year at SG/2 ... Covington at the 3, Bayless at the 1, Saric at 4 and Okafor at 5.

Lineup 1
PG Bayless (shooter)
SG Simmons (ball handler/passer/slasher)
SF Covington (shooter/scorer)
PF Saric (passer/shooter/rebounder)
C Okafor (scorer)

Bench
PG Sergio Rodriguez (ball handler/passer)
SG Stauskas (shooter)
SF G Henderson (slasher)
PF N Noel (rebounder/blocks)
C J Embiid (scorer/rebounder/blocks)
** Embiid compliments Noel better than Okafor because he has range on his jumper - (better for spacing)

 

[eaglesnut]

Colangelo says Okafor can knock down the 15-18 footers. He was a rookie, BTW. A fact seemingly lost on many because he's so freaking good already down low.

 

[Rey]

Colangelo says Okafor can knock down the 15-18 footers. He was a rookie, BTW. A fact seemingly lost on many because he's so freaking good already down low.

That would be great if he can set up 15-18 and bury the J's ... the problem I see with him is that he doesn't move well at all without the ball. He's slow in rotations and he's not very good at moving the ball to others. He can score which is great but he needs to improve in other areas from his rookie season ... I think he will be much better this year with a guy like Simmons drawing the attention off of him on O. Ditto with Saric as it will give him even more room to operate in the middle. I am very excited about this team going forward.

We may still be a year away from making playoffs, but I have a feeling we will win quite a few more than last season and make it more attractive for free agents next season.

 

[Rey]

So, day off and watching a bunch of Eagles/Sixers vids ... I'm seeing something that will cause Simmons a ton of problems on the Offensive End at the pro level. Most of his drives are going left, yet he "never" finishes those drives with his left (always switches to the right hand for the shot). I don't think he can use his left around the basket ... that's a huge problem as he's using the wrong hand every single time he drives to the cup. When he does drive to the right he's ok, but he doesn't seem anywhere near as comfortable going right and the few times he does ... he cradles the ball for some reason and prefers to pass instead of finish. Long story short he's a walking oxymoron ... I have no clue why he can't use his left at the basket when he shoots all his jumpers and free throws left handed? Very weird and explains why he was only able to average 10 points in the summer league.