Buzz On Broad

Sixers Hire Hinkie, Optimistic for Future

The search for a new general manager and president of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers, the third-most winningest playoff team in NBA history, has come to a close.  Former executive for the Houston Rockets, Sam Hinkie, ultimately got the coveted open  job.

Hinkie, replacing president Rod Thorn and general manager Tony DiLeo, is known league-wide for taking the Moneyball approach.  Essentially, he focuses on statistics and analysis when evaluating players throughout the league.  

Hinkie will be tested early, as his first move will be in hiring the next coach for the Sixers.  His second move might be just as important, deciding the future of Andrew Bynum on the team.

Matt Rappa is a contributor for Buzz on Broad. You can find him on Twitter at @mattrappa.

The Sixers Welcome The Delaware 87ers

(via NBA)

On Saturday, the Philadelphia 76ers announced the acquisition of the Utah Flash from the NBA D-League. The Sixers ownership announced that they have acquired the Utah franchise, and will now be known as the Delware 87ers.

The 87ers will play at Bob Carpenter Center in Newark, Delaware, beginning in November. Sixers Owner Josh Harris knows the importance of the acquisition of a D-league franchise. The move will certainly help the Sixers development.

"We believe that the ability to own and operate our own NBA D-League affiliate will strengthen our player development... and be a tremendous asset to the entire Sixers organization. We are particularly excited that we can situate the team in the welcoming, nearby state of Delaware, especially since there are so many Delawareans who already are avid 76ers fans."

The Sixers also named Aaron Moszer the 87ers team president, who will take over immediately. Sixers co-owner Adam Aron spoke about Moszer:

“Aaron Moszer brings a wealth of sports industry knowledge to the Delaware 87ers, particularly in the successful start-up of a minor-league team as an instrumental part of the Aberdeen IronBirds’ inaugural season. With a strong track record in sales, corporate partnerships and management, we are confident that he will make the Sevens a household name in Delaware and the surrounding area.”

 

Doug Collins Is Officially Out As Head Coach

Doug Collins and Philadelphia 76ers have had a disappointing season, going just 34-48. As many reported, it was believed that Collins would no longer be head coach of the Sixers, but stay with the team. Today, owner Josh Harris officially announced that Collins will no longer be the head coach.

Collins will remain with the Sixers as an adviser to Josh Harris. Collins actually made the decision that this was his last season during the Sixers road trip around Christmas time. Collins stated that he wanted to go out with dignity:

"I talked [a few] months ago to Tony DiLeo and Rod Thorn and I said I wanted to figure out an exit strategy. I wanted to go out with dignity."

Owner Josh Harris explained the situation:

"At the end of the day, he's a proud father and he wants to spend more time with his family. Doug is a 24/7, 100mph guy, which i really appreciate. He doesn/t want to be coaching next year anywhere. He's not planning on coaching anywhere else. It was a personal decision for him. I want to make that clear. I would love to have Doug Collins back as my coach next year. This is his decision. He's not being pushed out."

NBA To Air Documentary On Doctor J

The NBA and NBA TV have announced on Monday their latest original documentary. Their newest documentary will be titled "The Doctor". 

The documentary will cover the Philadelphia 76ers Julius "Dr. J" Erving's on and off the court challenges, as well as rare footage of his playing career. The Sixers and the NBA are celebrating the 1983 title's 30th anniversary.

The documentary will air in between games 2 and 3 of the NBA Finals, Monday June 10th at 9pm, the film will be 90 minutes.

The official NBA press release explains more about "The Doctor" after the jump.

Source: Doug Collins To Resign

(via USA Today)

In a disappointing season for the Philadelphia 76ers and head coach Doug Collins, things may have changed on Sunday night. According to Yahoo! sports, Doug Collins has reportedly informed Josh Harris and the Sixers front office that he will be resigning.

Collins, 62, has one year left on his four year contract, in which he can potentially work in the front office if he chose. 

More to come.

Sixers End 3 Game Losing Streak With Double Digit Win

Final: Sixers 97, Wizards 86

The Sixers showed some fight early in this game, something we haven't been used to seeing over the last 3 games. In the 2nd quarter the Sixers fell behind 13 points, but they ended the half on a 20-8 run to cut the lead to one. The Sixers outscored the Wizards 26-16 in the 3rd quarter and in the 4th they pushed the lead to double digits sealing the win.

Asserting themselves over an inferior team was something that that we needed to see from this team. It shows us that the Sixers aren't as bad as their past 3 losses made us think. More importantly, the Sixers can be a good team if they get a total team effort.

All but one of the starters scored in double figures with Jrue leading the way with 22 points. Thaddeus had another solid performance with 18 points and 13 rebounds. The most disappointing  stat of the night was Evan Turner's inability to score a point. It is actually difficult to go 0-11 from the field but Turner found a way to do it. He did chip in with 7 assist, but the goose egg he put in the stat sheet is unacceptable.

The Sixers will play their final home game of the season on  Sunday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The 1983 championship team will be honored at halftime of this game also. With this being the final home game and the championship team being in the building, I would expect the Sixers to put on a show.

Thaddeus' Strong Performance Negated By Another 20 Point Loss

Final: Hawks 124, Sixers 101

The end of the season can’t come soon enough. An 8 point half time deficit turned into 20 by the middle of the 3^rd quarter. Thaddeus’ big first half gave fans false hope thinking that maybe he could carry the team the whole way. However, like most good teams, The Hawks keyed in on the hot player and made others beat them. With the rest of the team shooting 34%, Thaddeus’ 6 points in the second half wasn’t nearly enough

This might sound familiar, but the problems tonight were poor outside shooting from the starters (besides Thaddeus) to go along with poor play from the big men (besides Thaddeus, again). Jrue and Evan struggled from the field shooting a combined 8-26 for 21 points. Damien Wilkins was 0-7 and Spencer was 2-6. Dorell Wright and Nick Young picked up the slack scoring 15 and 19 respectively, but when your starters struggle like this, it’s nearly impossible to win.

There was a play in the 4^th quarter when Ivan Johnson, who didn’t have position, grabs an offensive rebound over Lavoy Allen and Arnett Moultrie. That just about summed up the way the game was going. Frustration leading to poor play has defined this team lately. Jrue most of all looks like his shooting slump is getting to him. As ugly as this seems, this is a great experience for Jrue. At a young age he’s dealing with the pressures of having to carry a team with little help. This may be the lone bright spot in a season that hasn’t gone exactly as planned.

The Sixers will go on the road for their next game against the Wizards. These aren’t the same Wizards we are used to seeing. John Wall has erupted these pass few games and has this team playing extremely well as this season comes to an end. Anything but 100% against this team could end up in another 20 point loss.

Sixers Lack Of Effort Evident In Loss To Nets

Final: Nets 104, 76ers 83

As the first half ended the Sixers were down 56-38, but those aren't the most shocking numbers. At the end of the half the Sixers had 16 rebounds and Reggie Evans for the Nets had 17. It's hard to even wrap your mind around the fact that one man can out rebound a team in 24 minutes of basketball. If you know Reggie Evans than you know he can do one thing... Rebound! It's not easy keeping Reggie Evans off the glass, but this was painful to watch.

There weren't many bright spots in the game tonight for the Sixers. Nick Young had a team high with 18 points followed by Jrue Holiday with 15. Evan Turner shot poorly but led the team with 5 assist. There wasn't a big effort on the boards tonight from any of the big men. Lavoy Allen and Spencer Hawes led the team with 6 rebounds each. The team had 34 rebounds total. Reggie Evans and Brook Lopez combined for 35... Let that sink in for a second.

No one really filled up the stat sheet and the result was a 21 point loss. This team clearly feeds off of Jrue and if he isn't scoring or creating for the team then we'll more than likely end up with results like tonight. Since the all-star break teams have focused on stopping Jrue and it's worked. The team is 9-17 since the all-star break. As the team limps to the finish line, it would be nice to see some players besides Jrue and Thaddeus give the fans something to look forward to going into next season.

Sixers Bounce Back Against Hawks, Holiday's Struggles Continue

After a disappointing loss to the Charlotte Bobcats, the Sixers came back with a solid performance against the Atlanta Hawks to defeat them 101-90. The lead was in double digits for majority of the game so the Hawks were never really a threat to win this game. Evan Turner had a game high of 24 points followed by Spencer Hawes with 19 and Damien Wilkins with 16. It was an all around good performance for the team after blowing a big lead and losing to the worst team in the league the previous game.

Well everyone played well except for the only all star on the team, Jrue Holiday. If you expected a bounce back performance after the 2-24 outing against the Bobcats, you had a bad time. I thought President Obama's 2-22 performance earlier in the week was bad, Jrue beat that by 2 shots. Against the Hawks he struggled to find the basket again with a 3-14 performance. Even though the numbers weren't there, Jrue was getting to the basket and getting his teammates involved instead of forcing difficult shots.

Jrue's 5-38 shooting over his last two games isn't really much to worry about. Even though the Sixers are not mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, their chances of getting in are very slim. With 7 games to go, expect Jrue to get out of this shooting slump and put together a couple good performances.

Sixers Officially Sign Justin Holiday

(via Getty Images)

Over the weekend the Philadelphia 76ers called Justin Holiday, brother of Jrue. The team announced this morning that Justin has officially been signed. Jeremy Pargo has been waived and Justin Holiday will wear #14.

Justin is 6'6 guard from the Idaho Stampede in the NBA D-League. He averaged 17.3 points, 2.5 assists and 5.3 rebounds in 47 games with the Stampede. The move could help the Sixers when it comes to the three ball as Justin is shooting 41.2% from long range.

Sixers visit the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night at 7:oopm.