Eddie Blogonator

The Sixers are Fantastic

August 21, 2008 6:36 PM

I mean, you know, I like the team and all. Exciting times.

But what I'm really talking about is the fact that Ed Stefanski and the PR staff just hosted a conference call for bloggers. Took just about 25 minutes and nothing was off-limits.

I think it offers the team a connection to the passionate blogging public that is not available any other way.

And they handled the whole thing with a smile. I didn't feel for one second that in the minds of PR man Michael Preston, or Stefanski himself, they were talking to the JV.

It was just a GM and some bloggers having a conversation. That would not have happened two years ago. The Sixers deserve some kudos for being web-savvy.

The talk itself had a number of interesting ideas.

One thing I was curious about was the role of Thaddeus Young, one of my favorite young NBA players. The Sixers became a good team last year pretty much when they started playing Young long minutes, and he mainly got those minutes at power forward. At that position, as opposed to the small forward, it doesn't matter as much that he's not a lights out shooter and has a mediocre handle. Also his speed as a slasher really hurts a lot of other fours.

But now the team has Elton Brand, who is clearly the starting, and ending, power forward. Stefanski himself says that a big part of the reason Brand came to the team was because they had done some winning late last year. But if you bench Thaddeus, or move him to another position, is Brand still joining an exciting young team? So, what is Thaddeus's role now?

"That will shake itself out in preseason," says Stefanski. "Elton Brand is out starting power forward, and I expect that if you asked him Maurice Cheeks would tell you that he envisions Thad at the three, if he had to guess right now. Thad has been working very hard this summer on his handle, and there is no question his handle has gotten better. But only in the preseason can we see how that translates to games. Also, he can play four at times when Elton Brand is getting a break. And don't forget that, especially in the East, sometimes Elton will be able to play some at center."

Some other highlights:

• Stefanski said the Sixers would not have signed Theo Ratliff if Jason Smith had not been injured, and that injury could also mean some NBA playing time for promising rookie big man Marreese Speights.
• Stefanski confirmed that Andre Miller does not have an agent at the moment. Miller had been represented by Lon Babby. When he has an agent, they will talk about an extension.
• He does not anticipate any more deals, although when Willie Green came up, Stefanski said that the team didn't plan to trade him, and he'd get an opportunity to play. Which struck me as notably not the same as saying we think he's a big part of our future. That all makes sense, too. Any GM would prefer those touches go to Louis Williams, Andre Iguodala, Elton Brand, Thaddeus Young and the like.
• Stefanski thinks the Sixers can still run, even with Elton Brand. He points out that Samuel Dalembert is a very fast big man, and if Brand is the trailer on the fast break, that's not the end of the world.
• On the topic of players heading overseas in bigging numbers, Stefanski more or less read from the NBA hymnal: "I know the NBA is the greatest league in the world," he says. "The best players in the world want to take a shot at the NBA." True. Except for Josh Childress, Carlos Delfino, Carlos Arroyo, Earl Boykins, Juan Carlos Navarro, Primoz Brezec, Nenad Krstic, Bostjan Nachbar, Loren Woods etc.
  
• Asked why the Sixers never made an offer to Josh Smith, after courting him, Stefanski said the Sixers love Smith, but suspected the Hawks would match any offer they made. They had also never been certain who might enter unrestricted free agency, and were thrilled when Elton Brand entered the market. Asked later if he thought the Hawks got Smith at a bargain rate, Stefanski said he thought the Hawks were very pleased to have been able to match an offer to Smith, instead of negotiating themselves.