MVN - Most Valuable Network

Former Sixers playoff performances

The Sixers did not make the playoffs this year, but many former Sixers did.  The most notable of them due to the magnitude of this year’s season were obviously Allen Iverson and Chris Webber.  Iverson’s Nuggets were eliminated in five games against the San Antonio Spurs while Webber’s Pistons attempt to eliminate the Bulls tonight in Chicago.

Iverson averaged 24.8 points per game in 50 regular season contests with the Nuggets.  His average shot attempts dropped to 18.9 a game.  Yes, you read that correct.  His performance in Denver was reminiscent of his rookie season where he averaged 23.5 points and 7.5 assists in 19.8 shots per game.  His average shots rose to around 22 for the playoffs, but his shooting percentage dropped and his scoring went with it.  Except for a 11-for-22 performance in the sole victory in which he scored 31 points, Iverson struggled and the Nuggets did not win another game.

Another former Sixer who is no longer playing is Golden State Warrior Matt Barnes.  His Warriors squad was eliminated from the playoffs this week by the Utah Jazz, but not before the Warriors took down the NBA’s #1 team - the 67 win Dallas Mavericks.  Barnes had a breakout year under Don Nelson.  His 9.8 points came in almost 24 minutes per game over 76 contests.  As the 8th man in the rotation, those are solid numbers.  When he got the chance to show what he could do with a team that liked to run, he turned in some big performances.  It makes you wonder what would have been if Mo Cheeks started him at the small forward position to compliment Allen Iverson and Andre Iguodala instead of starting Kevin Ollie.

There’s no love lost on Matt Barnes.  He sat down for an exclusive interview with HoopsAddict, and Si.com’s Chris Mannix also has a piece on Barnes.  The essence of Barnes’ motivation seemed to be a spite factor for Coach Cheeks.  Speaking about Cheeks’ disrespect, Barnes said (from page 2 of the Mannix article), “The stuff he did to me lit my fire. Whenever I was tired, I thought of him.” 

The same stuff he did to Barnes by disrespecting him was done to Andre Iguodala.  Recall the blowout loss at Memphis on January 18 and how Mo sat the Andres to start the second half.  Mo’s greatest coaching strategy is stomping on your ego.  It was that moment that Iguodala and the team as a whole started to play better.

Speaking of disrespect, Mo’s benching of Webber in the fourth quarter was the beginning of the end for the washed up power forward.  CWebb’s production per minute is equal to or slightly behind Antonio McDyess.  The veteran-laded Pistons were the perfect match for Webber.  Looking for a situation that nurtured the status quo, there may not be a more complacent team in all of sports than the Detroit Pistons.

Other Sixers still playing man the point for the Cleveland Cavaliers - Larry Hughes and Eric Snow.  The Cavs were struggling this year and hit their stride when they moved Hughes to the point and started Sasha Pavlovic instead of Snow.  Snow is a quality player and will make a great coach in the NBA, but the limitations to his game were holding back the Cavs.  With Sasha out there, LeBron James has more weapons to work with.  Hughes is an average point guard and has been one of the most disappointing players over the past 2 years, but the Cavs are still playing.  Disappointment is short lived in the Eastern Conference.

The moral of the story is to value what you have and be the best you can be.  It can be argued that GM Billy King and Coach Maurice Cheeks have been sorely lacking in that department.  If they’ve learned any lessons in this, it comes in the value of taking risks.  That’s why giving Andre Iguodala some time at the point this season was instrumental to his success.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 17th, 2007 at 8:36 pm and is filed under Matt Barnes, Billy King, Mo Cheeks, Chris Webber, Allen Iverson, Eric Snow, Larry Hughes, Sixers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.