Five Questions the Sixers Need Answered This Offseason

Tony DiLeo has decided to return to the front office after doing a decent job taking over for Maurice Cheeks (who should not have been fired!). Now the Sixers are going to be taking applications to see who wants to take over a team that has been playing .500 ball the last two seasons.

The Sixers are a team that has been to the playoffs the last two years and had decent chances both years to upset higher seeded teams (Detroit and Orlando).

The Sixers have a nice core of young talent with players like Thaddeus Young, Andre Igoudala and Lou Williams and they have what they hope will be a consistent post threat in Elton Brand.

There is some uncertainty about the future of Andre Miller who has been great since coming over from Denver in the Iverson trade.

Whomever the Sixers choose to hire, they must come in with a clear vision of what type of team they want to be. Obviously the way the roster is currently structured, the Sixers are built to be an up-tempo team.

When Brand is back, they'll have to find a way to incorporate him into that style of play while also respecting his abilities to post up.

Eddie Jordan has interviewed for the the head coaching position. Jordan has
been a pretty good coach in the NBA, mostly with the Wizards where they were in the postseason four out of the five season he was there. He's not a bad option, but is he really that much better than Mo Cheeks?

Another possibility is Paul Westphal. Most people will remember him as the energetic coach of the Phoenix Suns during the mid to late '90s when they were lead by Barkley and Kevin Johnson.

He hasn't coached in eight years so if the Sixers are considering him, they will have to decide whether he's been away from the game too long.

Lastly, let's talk about Avery Johnson (who would be the perfect fit). Johnson has a 194-70 as a head coach and took the Mavs to the finals in 2006. Yes, we're all aware that they choked in Game Three and eventually lost in six games.

Yes, they were upset by Golden State in the first round of the playoffs two years ago, but he's a good young coach. He will bring toughness, energy and a defensive mindset that the Sixers need.

He could be exactly what the Sixers need to transform them from being a team just good enough to scare teams to a team that can advance in the playoffs.
Let the search begin...

The Sixers currently hold the 17th pick in the upcoming NBA draft. Assuming they stay put in that spot, let' see who may be available that would fit the Sixers needs.

One possibility has the Sixers drafting Wake Forest point guard Jeff Teague. Teague is an explosive scorer with decent court vision that will only get better with time.

He would be a perfect fit for the Sixers uptempo style of play. A determining factor on whether the Sixers would draft him would be whether or not the team decides to re-sign Andre Miller.

Gerald Henderson would be an intriguing pick. He's athletic, a good defender and a scorer. He would improve the Sixers perimeter defense and be able to guard some of the more athletic and bigger guards.

The Sixers do, however, have two established players manning the SG and SF positions along with Willie Green coming off the bench. Playing time could be an issue here.

Eric Maynor is another possibility. He's a scoring point guard like Jeff Teague is, but he's a more consistent shooter. He's a decent defender and can distribute the ball. He would also fit in nicely with the run and gun style that the Sixers use.

Other than possibly needing point guard help, the Sixers could be in a position to draft the best player available at that spot. The Sixers need shooters, but unless they draft Wayne Ellington (who's projected to be a late first round pick) there are not any that jump out at you in this draft especially in the first round.

The way that the Sixers decide to go in the draft will not be determined until they hire a new coach and figure out if they're going to keep Andre Miller in the team's plans.

Last offseason surprised a lot of people around the NBA and Sixer fans alike. The Sixers were able to lure an established, big time free agent away from a team that could have given him more money than any other team.

Elton Brand signed a five year $80 million deal to come to Philly. Most experts thought that with the addition of Brand, the Sixers could become a more viable threat in the eastern conference.

Just a notch below the Cavs and Celtics.

So much for that. Prior to separating his shoulder, Brand and the team were struggling to connect with each other on the court. The Sixers were so used to not having a post threat on the floor that they didn't know when and where to feed Brand the ball.

Nobody doubts Brand's talent. He's a career 20 and 10 guy. The question is can he stay healthy. In the brief time that he played this past season, he showed no ill affects of the ruptured Achilles' tendon injury that he suffered early in the 2007-08 season. He did end up severely separating his right shoulder and missed most of the season.

For Sixer fans, they just don't want this to be another Chris Webber situation. Now Brand is younger than Webber was when he came to Philly and Brand is not coming off of microfracture surgery.

However, they just don't want this to become another "big time " player that was brought in to help move the franchise forward and was not worth it.

If Brand stays healthy, he will continue to be the same 20 and 10 guy that he's been his whole career.

The result of that would be a regular season where the Sixers don't hover around .500 and could lock down home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. If he's not 100 percent, the team and organization will continue to wallow in mediocrity.

Since the Sixers dealt Korver away back in December of 2007, they have not had a reliable shooter. The have tried to fill the three point shooting void left by Korver by signing guys like Kareem Rush and Donyell Marshall.

Rush must've left his shooting stroke back with the Lakers because that's the last time I can recall him hitting a three! Marshall came in and rescued the Sixers out of a few games, but he is on the down side of his career.

Although he can still shoot, one can assume that he's not the long term solution for a team that is young. Not to mention he cannot play any defense!
The Sixers lack of three point shooting over the last two years has been put on display in their last two playoff appearances.

The Sixers are a running team, but you still need someone out there who can stretch the floor when Igoudala, Miller and Lou Williams penetrate. You also need perimeter shooting when Brand is on the floor so the defenses cannot collapse on him with no fear of being burned from the outside.

So where is this shooter going to come from? I don't think the Sixers are going to find a good shooter in the draft. Currently they hold the 17th overall pick in the draft and I don't think there is anyone there (shooter wise) worth spending that pick on.

On the free-agent market the top available shooters are Ben Gordon, Anthony Parker, and Micheal Finley. After the postseason Gordon just had, he might be too pricey for the Sixers. In addition to that, he would command the ball a lot which would take away touches from Igoudala and Young.

Anthony Parker would be a nice fit. He would give the Sixers a legit threat from the outside and he brings some much needed size to the backcourt (6'6"). The Sixers would not have to spend a ton of money on him either.

Finley at 36 would be the most economical option, but he's up there in age and is a defensive liability. Stay tuned..

Andre Miller who has averaged 15 points and 7 assists per game since joining the Sixers in December of 2006 is now a free agent. Miller has enjoyed a decent amount of personal success during his tenure in Philly. His 17 ppg last season was a career high and he shot close to 50 percent from the floor.

Easily the most underrated point guard in the league, he has also continued to be a very durable player. His streak of 501 consecutive games played is the longest active streak in the league.

The Sixers are in an interesting situation. Here you have a 33-year-old point guard who is showing no signs of slowing down. Do you resign him for two or three more years or do you part ways with him and let a young point guard grow with the team whether it's Lou Williams or someone they get in the draft?

The question that needs to be asked here is how much better are the Sixers going to be two or three years from now when Miller is 35 or 36? More than likely the Sixers will still be a middle of the road team.

Miller's skills will have diminished by then and the team will be starting from scratch at the most important position on the floor when players like Igoudala and Thaddeus Young will be in their primes.

Miller has been more than solid for the Sixers. His steady play and court vision has made the team better. He would be an excellent addition to a title contending team. The Sixers are far from that and will not be any closer to that if Miller is resigned.

If you're the Sixers and you want a young PG to take over the team, the time is now. Yes the Sixers will not be a better team initially without Miller, but in the long run it will benefit the team.