Sixers vs Knicks Post-Game ...

When looking at the game beforehand, the biggest potential mismatch in the Sixers favor was Danilo Gallinari on Andre Iguodala. Unfortunately, Iguodala rarely saw this matchup, as Wilson Chandler spent the majority of the time defending Iguodala, and as a result I thought Iguodala played an extremely passive offensive game, settling for three point attempts 6 of his 9 field goal attempts. He still made his contributions felt throughout the game, dishing out 8 assists to 0 turnovers, but with the Knicks going to a zone in the second half and really befuddling the 76ers, more contributions from Iguodala (and Williams) would have been key.

That being said, after a bucket by Speights with 26 seconds left, the Sixers were in position to win the game. All they needed to clinch the win was one defensive stop, and who does Eddie Jordan put on the court after New York calls for a time out?

A lineup that includes Allen Iverson and Marreese Speights.

Under no circumstances should this have ever happened. The Sixers had timeouts left, in fact they called one after David Lee made his layup. A stop and a rebound and the Knicks are fouling and in desperation mode. The Knicks gave you the opportunity to make a lineup change by calling the timeout, and Eddie Jordan trotted out the same lineup that played the previous 5 minutes, completely disregarding time and situation.

Did Eddie Jordan believe this was the best defensive lineup he could put out there? Does he not believe in defensive substitutions? Was he just not quick enough on his feet to think about a defensive sub? Is he afraid of hurting Iverson and Speights feelings? Does he just not care about defense to the point where he thinks it makes a difference to make a substitution?

Is there anyone in their right mind who doesn't think Jrue's a better defender than Iverson, and that Brand's a better defender than Speights? Either he doesn't recognize that, or he doesn't care. I'm not sure which frightens me more.

Honestly, it was one of the most perplexing decisions I've ever witnessed. Even if we throw out Eddie Jordan's schemes, or the starting lineup decisions he makes based solely on offense. Even if we throw out his track record of (not) developing young players. Even throwing all of those concerns to the wind, I can't have faith in a coach going forward who makes blunders like that. Decisions such as those can be the difference between a bad team and an average team, or the difference between an average team and a good team. When you have a coach who makes those decisions on a regular basis, you get an underachieving team.

You wonder why this team can't hold a lead?

On the flip side, I'm at the point where wins and losses are of little concern to me. What is of concern is Jrue Holiday's development, and after closing out two fourth quarters, seeing him come into the game with over 7 minutes left in the third made me happy. I'm at the point in the season where the little things matter to me, and even though Holiday sat for the final 10 minutes of game time, he got plenty of meaningful minutes. If that's a constant going forward, that's a minor win in my book.

• Curious rotations strike again. The starting unit plays the entire first quarter, and Speights didn't see the court until the 4th quarter, where his 10 points and 6 rebounds in just over 8 minutes sparked the Sixers and helped keep them in the game while the offensive had been struggling breaking the Knicks zone.
  
• Iverson carried the Sixers to start the game, scoring 10 points in the first quarter, then subsequently scored only 6 points the rest of the way. Still, his shot selection was solid, he took care of the ball, and his midrange game has been virtually automatic since joining the Sixers. He's currently shooting 54% on shots between 17 feet and the 3 point line.
  
• Dalembert's a man possessed. I don't really have much else to say about it at this point. Right now the only thing limiting Sammy are his fouls. he's averaging 12.8 points, 14.8 rebounds and 2.8 blocks in his last 5 games.
  
• After not seeing them play together in over 3 weeks, we finally saw Speights and Dalembert on the court at the same time. Even with that lineup giving up the game winning shot (even though that lineup should have never been on the floor), I'd like to see that pairing play a little more often together.
  
• Was surprised to see Young switched over to guard Lee. I understand Lee's primarily a face-up PF, and the desire to keep Dalembert in the lane. Still, that's a huge size advantage in Lee's favor, and I actually thought Young did a decent job when Lee tried to post-up. By the same token, I'm surprised at the end Jordan had Speights guarding Jeffries and and Dalembert guarding Lee down the stretch. I would have reversed that.
  
• Zone defense, Bring in Kapono? Maybe?
  
• As for the final shot, I'm actually not too upset with that play. I'm much more upset about the play before that (the defensive play to give up the lead). I would have preferred for the Sixers to take the shot with more time left on the clock, and I think had Speights not been doubled they probably would have, but in the end they got a wide open look to win the game from a player who had been making his spot-up shots.
  

Player of the Game: Samuel Dalembert
Boxscore (and rotational data)
Next Up: Sacramento (Friday, Jan 15th).