E-News Sign Up
RSS Feeds
Print
Share on Facebook
ShareGargano: I'm Impressed
It’s nice to see a man in charge who knows his job title. Billy King – your new President and Cleaner Upper of the Mentor’s Mess – has demonstrated two things this offseason: The Sixers are his team and he’s more than just a suit. After plotting a four-team deal that was more impressive than the Lufthansa job, it seems Handsome Billy has got some grift in his game, a little con in his four-button Corneliani.
And the Sixers have life.
It’s taken weeks, not years, but this franchise has emerged from the Brown Ages. Hate to kick a man when he’s in Detroit, but it’s nice to have a modern thinker in that office. Never mind that Billy King was always in that office, right next to heady personnel man Tony DiLeo, their voices clanging off deaf ears like a Keith Van Horn three in the playoffs. Hate to kick a man when all of New York is already kicking him but $11 million and change a year provides a nice cushion. Obviously, there’s a lid for every pot, even if the pot is a spaghetti strainer and couldn’t post up a rigatoni.
What’s not to love about this trade? The Sixers get a second scorer, a legit 20 a game guy. He’s not a maybe scorer like Van Horn or a has-been scorer like Toni Kukoc or a Stockton-Malone-get-ya-wide-open scorer like Matt Harpring. Glenn Robinson has one of the best mid-range games in the league, and he’ll go behind the arc once in a while, too. He’s a little mean, which means he won’t slink with shattered confidence or backboards, or sulk about plays being run for him or play passive aggressive (except maybe on defense). He’ll demand his shots and take his shots, and that’s exactly what the Sixers need. Indeed, he’s not without a few fleas – he’ll slack on dee and he’s been known to take a couple of games off and he’s suspended for the first three games for an uncool act (shoving his girlfriend).
But let’s boil this deal down to the bare bones: At the very least, the Sixers gained on the length of contracts. Plus, they added a homecoming big man in Marc Jackson, who can play in this league under the right circumstances, which he showed his rookie year in Golden State. Speaking of circumstances, maybe Big Dog feels like a pup again like he says, now that he’s out of hoop hell in Atlanta. That Hawks team was nightmarish, just like the Bucks were two years ago when George Karl imploded and Sam Cassell and Ray Allen got hurt and they had no big man. Remember Dog when it took the Sixers seven to beat Milwaukee en route to the Finals? Dangerous player.
While we’re waxing nostalgically, remember Game 6 against Detroit? I’ll forgive you if you can’t recall Van Horn in that game or that series. In fact, the only Van Horn sighting the entire postseason was the 18-(point), 18-(board) display against New Orleans. Now KVH is a friendly ghost so I’ll resist the Big Dog metaphors, but there are so many things I won’t miss -- to be petty, the Buddy Lee haircut and the high socks and the wince after he picks up his second foul three minutes into the game or the hissy fit at the ref after picking up his fifth, even though the guy he’s guarding has a slap mark as pronounced as tire tracks. I won’t miss his refusal to shoot or demand the ball or the fact that he has weaker hands than a grandfather clock. I won’t miss his shot being swatted or him being late on a screen and roll or his disappearance in the playoffs. I know I sound like Kenyon Martin, but really, the only thing more hollow than Van Horn’s numbers are those chocolate bunnies.
Please, do not pull a Larry Brown and blame Allen Iverson for Van Horn’s troubles as a Sixer. Larry skewered Van Horn after one particular playoff game and told the world he had his number called plenty. He tells the New York Post all the plays were ran for Iverson and tries to take Van Horn off the hook – it’s a bigger lie than when Brown said he didn’t know his responsibility in Philadelphia, which is akin to Castro saying he doesn’t know his title.
As for AI, let’s finally see if he can play with someone else who needs the ball. I’m betting yes. Certainly, AI went through his selfish stage. He wanted to win the scoring title. He wanted to take all of the shots. But if you didn’t notice Iverson’s all around floor game from late December on, you’re not paying attention. He made it a point to get his teammates involved and took his shots in the flow of the game. For further proof, look at the two Sixer blowout wins against Detroit that Saturday and Sunday in May – Iverson chalked up double digit dimes. Wrap-arounds to Kenny Thomas, drive and dishes to DC for easy baskets, drawing the defense with penetration and finding the open man, AI did it. What AI lacked was the kick-out, so when he drives he can push it out to the perimeter and have someone knock down an open jump shot, preferably a three. Well, the Sixers have that player now.
Suddenly, strangely, the Sixers have players. More importantly, they have direction, something that the wishy-washy Brown always squashed. Kenny Thomas’ deal might have been a tad excessive, but he’s a young power forward coming into his own. He’s relentless on the glass and he can finish a little around the basket. If Aaron McKie can make a healthy comeback, and a couple of the young players blossom (I’m betting on Sam Clancy) the Sixers could be right back challenging the Nets and the new archenemy Pistons in the junior circuit Eastern Conference. Certainly the Nets are strong, but they need Alonzo Mourning to be healthy and someone else to step up on the perimeter. The Pistons will be great, but it’s a question of when and how Brown handles those young players and young players who shoot treys (Prediction: Once upon a time, Larry loved Chauncey Billups; he will hate him by the holidays).
Meanwhile, the player the Sixers need to acquire in the final piece of the puzzle, as they say, almost came with Big Dog and Jackson. Had Billy King been able to acquire Keon Clark, too, I would have immediately pushed for a “the” to be inserted between his first and last name. The Sixers could use an athletic shot blocker in the middle, and Clark, a quick jumper, would fit that bill perfectly.
One thing’s for sure, Handsome Billy’s not done. King and DiLeo have proved they are creative and brash, and sport a vision. I’m impressed.
And the Sixers have life.
It’s taken weeks, not years, but this franchise has emerged from the Brown Ages. Hate to kick a man when he’s in Detroit, but it’s nice to have a modern thinker in that office. Never mind that Billy King was always in that office, right next to heady personnel man Tony DiLeo, their voices clanging off deaf ears like a Keith Van Horn three in the playoffs. Hate to kick a man when all of New York is already kicking him but $11 million and change a year provides a nice cushion. Obviously, there’s a lid for every pot, even if the pot is a spaghetti strainer and couldn’t post up a rigatoni.
What’s not to love about this trade? The Sixers get a second scorer, a legit 20 a game guy. He’s not a maybe scorer like Van Horn or a has-been scorer like Toni Kukoc or a Stockton-Malone-get-ya-wide-open scorer like Matt Harpring. Glenn Robinson has one of the best mid-range games in the league, and he’ll go behind the arc once in a while, too. He’s a little mean, which means he won’t slink with shattered confidence or backboards, or sulk about plays being run for him or play passive aggressive (except maybe on defense). He’ll demand his shots and take his shots, and that’s exactly what the Sixers need. Indeed, he’s not without a few fleas – he’ll slack on dee and he’s been known to take a couple of games off and he’s suspended for the first three games for an uncool act (shoving his girlfriend).
But let’s boil this deal down to the bare bones: At the very least, the Sixers gained on the length of contracts. Plus, they added a homecoming big man in Marc Jackson, who can play in this league under the right circumstances, which he showed his rookie year in Golden State. Speaking of circumstances, maybe Big Dog feels like a pup again like he says, now that he’s out of hoop hell in Atlanta. That Hawks team was nightmarish, just like the Bucks were two years ago when George Karl imploded and Sam Cassell and Ray Allen got hurt and they had no big man. Remember Dog when it took the Sixers seven to beat Milwaukee en route to the Finals? Dangerous player.
While we’re waxing nostalgically, remember Game 6 against Detroit? I’ll forgive you if you can’t recall Van Horn in that game or that series. In fact, the only Van Horn sighting the entire postseason was the 18-(point), 18-(board) display against New Orleans. Now KVH is a friendly ghost so I’ll resist the Big Dog metaphors, but there are so many things I won’t miss -- to be petty, the Buddy Lee haircut and the high socks and the wince after he picks up his second foul three minutes into the game or the hissy fit at the ref after picking up his fifth, even though the guy he’s guarding has a slap mark as pronounced as tire tracks. I won’t miss his refusal to shoot or demand the ball or the fact that he has weaker hands than a grandfather clock. I won’t miss his shot being swatted or him being late on a screen and roll or his disappearance in the playoffs. I know I sound like Kenyon Martin, but really, the only thing more hollow than Van Horn’s numbers are those chocolate bunnies.
Please, do not pull a Larry Brown and blame Allen Iverson for Van Horn’s troubles as a Sixer. Larry skewered Van Horn after one particular playoff game and told the world he had his number called plenty. He tells the New York Post all the plays were ran for Iverson and tries to take Van Horn off the hook – it’s a bigger lie than when Brown said he didn’t know his responsibility in Philadelphia, which is akin to Castro saying he doesn’t know his title.
Gargano believes that now when Iverson drives, he'll have someone that can knock down the open jump shot - Glenn Robinson. Allen Einstein/NBAE/Getty Images |
Suddenly, strangely, the Sixers have players. More importantly, they have direction, something that the wishy-washy Brown always squashed. Kenny Thomas’ deal might have been a tad excessive, but he’s a young power forward coming into his own. He’s relentless on the glass and he can finish a little around the basket. If Aaron McKie can make a healthy comeback, and a couple of the young players blossom (I’m betting on Sam Clancy) the Sixers could be right back challenging the Nets and the new archenemy Pistons in the junior circuit Eastern Conference. Certainly the Nets are strong, but they need Alonzo Mourning to be healthy and someone else to step up on the perimeter. The Pistons will be great, but it’s a question of when and how Brown handles those young players and young players who shoot treys (Prediction: Once upon a time, Larry loved Chauncey Billups; he will hate him by the holidays).
Meanwhile, the player the Sixers need to acquire in the final piece of the puzzle, as they say, almost came with Big Dog and Jackson. Had Billy King been able to acquire Keon Clark, too, I would have immediately pushed for a “the” to be inserted between his first and last name. The Sixers could use an athletic shot blocker in the middle, and Clark, a quick jumper, would fit that bill perfectly.
One thing’s for sure, Handsome Billy’s not done. King and DiLeo have proved they are creative and brash, and sport a vision. I’m impressed.
|
Anthony Gargano is best known in Philadelphia as a midday host on the all-sports 610 WIP. The South Philadelphia native returned to Philadelphia in 1999 after writing for five years in New York and three years in Chicago. He returned to write for the Philadelphia Inquirer before joining WIP. Gargano currently writes for several national magazines, including Philadelphia Magazine. More from Gargano on the Sixers |
