Brand eager to prove his worth in Philadelphia

In barely a year, Elton Brand has already experienced the full range of emotions from Philadelphia sports fans. He watched and listened to the unbridled joy that followed the Phillies' World Series championship and he heard and felt the disappointment when his debut with the 76ers was derailed by a second straight season of injury.

"It was so great to see the people dancing in the streets for days after the baseball championship, because they're so proud of their city and they live for their team," Brand said in a telephone interview. "And that kind of intensity is what made it so rough when I couldn't play and couldn't do my part.

"Those fans are rough and tough. They'll put it right in your face. I appreciate that, because last season was heart-wrenching for me, too."

That it came in the first of a five-year, $80 million free agent contract that he signed to jump from the Los Angeles Clippers made it especially difficult for everyone to swallow. Brand played in only 29 games last season and was a shadow of his former self.

After suffering a dislocated shoulder on Dec. 17, Brand chose to rest for six weeks and returned to the lineup for seven mainly ineffective games before shutting himself down to have surgery.

"I felt like I did the right thing in that situation," Brand said. "You give it a try and see if you can come back and contribute in any way possible. In that way, I think I was like (Orlando's) Jameer Nelson. He had a similar injury in February and he came back to play in the NBA Finals for the Magic."

Instead, after being a regular 20-point, 10-rebound performer over his first seven NBA seasons, Brand was able to post averages of just 13.8 points and 8.8 rebounds last season. That came after he missed the final 74 games of the 2007-08 season in LA with a torn left Achilles tendon.

"Working out this summer, six months after the shoulder surgery, I've got the full range of motion back in my arm and I'm feeling like my old self again," Brand said. "It's just not my shoulder that feels good. It's also my legs. In a way and for the long term, it might have been a good thing for the shoulder happen. It slowed me down and gave the Achilles a chance to fully heal. Now I've got my movement and my explosiveness back and I'm ready to prove some things to a lot of people."

What Brand, 30, would like to disprove most is the theory that circulated late last season when the Sixers made their playoff push -- that the team was actually better without him in the lineup and that his low post game doesn't mesh with the run-and-slash styles of young burners such as Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young and Louis Williams.

The Sixers were eliminated in the first round for the second straight season, this time after taking a 2-1 lead on eventual Eastern Conference champ Orlando.

"That was the most difficult season I've ever had, even tougher than missing the whole year before with the Clippers," Brand said. "I heard the stuff from the fans, about how 'we never should have never got this guy.' But I'm telling you that was just one year.

"I spent so much time thinking about my teammates and how I can help win ballgames. I'm not saying we definitely win the Orlando series, but I would have liked to have been out there helping, fighting with the guys. They played great. They had that 2-1 lead. I know that if I was healthy, I could have added something."

Brand believes his low post skills can be combined with the open court ability of Iguodala and his teammates in the new motion offense that will be played under new head coach Eddie Jordan.

"It's not a case of us having to choose one or the other -- half-court or running -- anymore," he said. "It's the Princeton offense. It's motion. It's gonna give a lot of different guys a chance to be playmakers and it's going to bring out the best in everybody's games."

After being put through several workouts by Jordan this summer, Brand is convinced that the Sixers are now on the right track.

"I saw the schemes and I loved it," he said. "Now we're going to have spacing where everybody can use their talents. Andre Iguodala can do everything out there. Lou Williams is gonna be able to slash and score. I'll be able to cut into the post and not just be standing there on the block where the defense can get you with a double team.

"Look, the truth is that in the Playoffs no team that plays just the run-and-gun has been able to go far, go all the way. You've got to be able to play some kind of inside game in the Playoffs and I believe I can do that and so can Samuel Dalembert."

The Sixers are convinced that Jordan's motion offense will lessen the effect of losing veteran point guard Andre Miller, who signed with Portland after two years of guiding the Philly offense. The belief is that Williams and rookie Jrue Holiday, while not being classic decision-making point guards, can use the motion offense and their speed to distribute the ball and get to the rim to finish.

A year ago, the Sixers went into the preseason as a trendy pick to make a big move up in the Eastern Conference standings and were never able to live up to the hype. Now the East has grown even stronger with Shaquille O'Neal going to Cleveland, Rasheed Wallace to Boston and Orlando getting Vince Carter.

"I think we're better off without the high expectations from around the league," Brand said. "But that doesn't mean I don't have them myself. I know we're gonna surprise folks. We still have to grow together, but I think of lot of those guys grew last year in the playoffs. They're working hard. I'm working hard."

He's driven by a hunger to put last year's disappointment behind.

"I have a big appetite," Brand said laughing. "I can eat a lot. And I'm hungry right now."