When former Sacramento Kings and Washington Wizards mentor Eddie Jordan was introduced as head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers during a press conference last summer, there was excitement in the air for long suffering Sixer fans. As soon as he took over the helm in the “City of Brother Love”, Jordan or “Fast Eddie” as he had been popularly known during his NBA playing days, proudly announced that he is implementing “The Princeton Offense” on the Sixers. Jordan thought that the offense was supposed to be a perfect fit for this team. Or so we were told.
Fast forward to the present and nothing has change in the fortunes of the 76ers. Philadelphia currently totes a 22-37 win-loss card or fifteen games below the .500 mark.
The regular season is just a month and a half away from completion and that hasn't exactly worked out for Philadelphia. A 12-game losing streak and the return of Allen Iverson put the Princeton on hold, much like Tiger's golf game. With Iverson now more becoming a history and the team is sinking itself ever closer to a lottery pick, Jordan is still hoping his club to master the offense.
The Princeton offense, when run efficiently and with the right group of players, calls for players to read and react. Once the reaction is made, there should be many options as to what comes next. Jordan and his past and current players have all said it takes a long time to learn.
"There are times when we're in specific routes and there are times when we're playing out of principle," Jordan said. "And eventually, that's where I'd like to get to - playing out of principle and not necessarily in specific routes."
But still, the players on the team are trying their best to pick-up the system.
"I think we're still sticking to some of the same principles on offense," said 76ers guard Willie Green. "Maybe we're running a little bit more wrinkles. It just takes the team continuing to work on it. Everything coach can't call from the sideline, a lot of it is reads. If a guy is denying us, go back door. If he's playing below me, you can make certain cuts. So, it's just about us making better reads, and continue to get better and just work on the offense."
For sure, Jordan will have a lot of explaining to do if the Sixers continue to falter at the end of the regular season.
"Sometimes it just makes it easy if a team is able to be consistent at getting better at one particular thing," Green said. "But sometimes you're dealt a different hand and you just have to try to play the hand that you have the best way you can. I think that's what we've been doing thus far."
That said it all.
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San Antonio Spurs head coach Greg Popovich clarified that the team had no plans of letting Michael Finley go. "I was very surprised," Popovich said. "We didn't let him go. He requested a buyout so he could leave and we granted that."
With his release from the Spurs, Finley is now eligible for any other team's playoff roster.
Finley saw action for only 25 games this season for the Spurs while averaging career lows of 3.7 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.8 apg and 15.8 mpg.
Could Boston be the next destination for the veteran forward? The Buzz is getting louder in Beantown.
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