30 in 30? Your Philadelphia 76ers

The Sixers intrigue me. Sure Elton Brand was a man who had controversy as he rolled up on the city where it's always Sunny. But look at the facts.

1. Andre Miller is as awesome as what he was when he was a Cavalier.
2. Willie Green has developed into a pretty steady two guard who will take the big shot if the big names won't.
3. Andre Igoudala is a man who now can just be the open court elevator man if he doesn't want to.
4. Elton Brand. Twenty and Ten.
5. Samuel Dalembert. With Brand? He may get 13 or more boards per game.
6. Louis Williams is double figure scoring off the bench.
7. Royal Ivey is a steady back-up who doesn't turn the ball over.
8. Thaddeus Young's upside is tremendous.
9. Reggie Evans is gritty and gutty.
10. And Marreese Speights? He's a rookie with upside.

There's hope in Philly. They can get deep in the playoffs this season. And in fact? If you're rooting for new hotness over old and busted? Go Sixers.

Way back in 1995...

Your humble host was a 9th grader. And in my 9th Grade Civics class, your humble host had a humble substitute teacher who loved hoop. Point of fact, we actually filled out an NCAA Bracket because I said Syracuse was making the final four. Not to say my bracket skills were heroic, but as context goes it's as good as any.

Because see? That year the Bucks had the #1 spot. And he wanted the Bucks to select Marcus Camby. And I felt that he was too undersized for the pros. And let's be honest, perhaps if he got bigger and stronger, he wouldn't have had that streak of getting taunted as a Mr. Glass.

But you know what? Marcus Camby is what he is. And what he is is quite good. He'll miss some time with an injury, but if it's 5 games instead of 30, that won't be a problem. Because when he sees the floor? His defense is spectacular. He will grab a lot of rebounds and block a lot of shots. And at the 4? He likely won't have to bang nearly as much as he would when he spends his time on the pivot.

And you know what? The Clippers stole the Cambyman. For a #2 pick in 2010, they get defensive sexy at the 4/5. It's not Elton Brand, but this means that the Clip Joint is not dead.

They've got themselves the dorky but cute girl equivalent of the 80's teen movie.

So the Clippers were willing to roll up to 81 million for Brand?

Elton Brand has been a man of hard work and all out effort. He is of average personal character and a certain noblity in his warriordom for the Clip Joint. That being said? If Dunalevy said that they were willing to go up to Philadelphia money, then David Falk is a duplicitious asshole.

Did I just stumble onto something obvious?

Let's be honest. The only reason this isn't Carlos Boozer II is because Donald Sterling is a man that George Shinn and Robert Sarver look down at with relief. For they are not the worst owners in the sport. An asshole screwed an asshole, and now the Sixers have a potential nucleus.

Ah well.

THE SPURS SIGNED ROGER MASON JR.!!! WHOO!!!

Leave it to the Clippers to do something incompetent...

You have a player of star-level caliber. He's coming off an injured ankle, but he noticed that his team's rolled up and got themselves a superstar. And his beard? Dreamy.



So, you're intrigued. But people are tempting young Elton Brand. Golden State is offering life-changing money. Philadelphia is offering 80 million dollars to join the Samuel Dalembert and Andre Iguodala. All you've got? A chance to capture the hipster's hearts and Baron Davis... well you know.

Donald Sterling's people should have known. The heart wants what the heart wants. And if the rumors are true? The heart was still leaning toward Los Angeles. But apparently for five million dollars, the kingdom was lost.

What had come to hurt the Clippers’ chances of retaining Brand has been the organization’s refusal to offer anything but a "take-it-or-leave-it" deal since Golden State made its $90-plus million offer. People close to Brand say that "it pissed him off," and made him question his original desire to stay a Clipper.

So where does the Clip Joint go from here? Easy. They lost Corey Maggette. They lost Elton Brand. There's one option left.


And a little birdie told me he could play the point too.

That's a callback people!

Andrew!

And suddenly? The LA Clippers are contenders.

Really. There are the usual caveats of health and well-being. I mean, I can figure that the Baron is going on the injured list. But now the Western Conference has a new combatant for the Western Conference title.

And it's the L.A. Clippers of basketball. Yeah. They do exist.

But Baron Davis took 5 years and 65 million dollars to join a re-upping for less money Elton Brand. And now the Clippers have 40% of a fantastical basketball line-up. Add to that Chris Kaman and the small forwardological magic that is Al Thornton? They have 80% of goodness.

Now Cuttino Mobley and Eric Gordon are kind of the same archetype. But if Gordon shows that his Mushmouthery can avoid the rookie wall, the undersized super-scorer 2 that has no defense won't be of any real concern. And if they can find a way to get Quinton Ross back? They're in great shape rotationally.

But they're the L.A. Clippers if basketball. They'll mess it up.