Has Elton Brand Finally Returned To All-Star Form?

Well, it took more than 90 games, but it looks like the Philadelphia 76ers might actually end up with the 20/10 post player they thought they signed a year ago.

Before the 2008-09 season, the Sixers inked former No. 1 overall pick Elton Brand to a five-year, $79.795 million deal, dreaming of a dominant interior presence to team up with their smaller shooters like shooting guard Andre Iguodala and small forward Thaddeus Young.

The Sixers had reason to be optimistic: from his rookie season in 1999-00 to the 2006-07 season, Brand averaged 20.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.0 steals, and 2.1 blocks per game, shooting an average of 50.5 percent from the field.  

Brand led the league in offensive rebounding twice—in 1999-00 and 2001-02—and remained in the top 10 of the league in offensive rebounding every year through 2007.

He finished top 10 in rebounds four times from 1999 through 2006, top 10 in blocks five times from 2001 through 2007, and stayed in the top 10 of blocks per game for five straight seasons, starting in the 2002-03 season. Sounds like a great investment for the Sixers, right?

Here's where the story derails: Brand ruptured his left Achilles tendon eight games into the 2007-08 season in his last year with the Clippers and missed the rest of the season. 

The Sixers knew about the injury going into the signing (and ignored restricted free agent Josh Smith of Atlanta... look how that decision appears to be turning out), but signed Brand anyway, leaving themselves with a post presence recovering from an injury that often takes a year to fully heal.

Brand's first year as a Sixer didn't exactly go as the team planned when they set out to sign a 20 point/10 rebound per game big man. Instead, Brand set career-low averages of 13.8 points, 1.3 assists, and 1.6 blocks per game, also with lows of 44.7 percent shooting and 67.6 percent from the free-throw line.

To make matters worse, Brand dislocated his shoulder in December during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks , causing him to miss 16 games. He returned for six games at less than full strength, before deciding to shut it down for the season on Feb. 5 and get surgery to repair the shoulder. Brand played 29 games in his first year, a year in which he earned $13,757,844.

And Sixers fans thought the bad contracts were done once Billy King would cease being general manger. Hah!

Through the first 10 games this year, Brand hadn't done much better; in fact, he'd done even worse statistically. Brand seemed to want to set even further career lows, with an average of 9.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game, on 44.0 percent shooting.  

Meanwhile, second-year forward Marreese Speights of Florida was continuing to come into his own after putting forth a sensational rookie season. While he didn't generate the hype of a Brook Lopez, O.J. Mayo, or Michael Beasley, Speights actually led all rookies in PER, a statistical measurement by ESPN's John Hollinger that determines a player's effectiveness on the court.

Brand began the season as the starting power forward, but he witnessed his minutes quickly drop with the emergence of Speights, as he averaged barely more than 27 minutes/game in the first 10 games. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer even speculated that coach Eddie Jordan would be making a change to the lineup last week, moving Brand into the second unit.

But oh, how the tables have turned. Now, the Sixers find themselves without Speights for the next six to eight weeks as he recovers from a partially torn MCL, leaving a wealth of open minutes for a big man. 

The question was... could Elton seize the opportunity and become even a shade of his former self?

In the past week, Brand answered doubters with an emphatic "Yes, I can regain my All-Star form... now shut up the hell up and stop whining about my $80 million contract" on the court. 

In three games against Charlotte, Memphis, and Cleveland this past week, Brand posted averages that much more closely resemble his career stat line: 19.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 2.7 steals, and 3.6 blocks per game, on 52.3 percent shooting. 

With Speights leaving a vacancy in the post (and the Sixers' Princeton offense demanding a dominant post player to succeed), Brand has stepped into the role admirably, jumping to an average of just over 38 minutes per game last week.

And here's a sign the Sixers have to love: after only grabbing 17 offensive rebounds in the first 10 games of the season (remember, this guy lead the league in offensive rebounding twice in the past 10 years), Brand has managed to pull down 15 offensive boards in the past three games, including seven against Cleveland.

Going up against the undersized likes of Gerald Wallace on Charlotte and grabbing seven offensive rebounds? Okay. Going into Cleveland and doing it against 7-foot Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao? Now we're talking.

Brand's seen a huge increase in minutes, and in turn, his production skyrocketed. He blocked six shots against Charlotte on Monday; he had blocked six shots total in the first 10 games.

So... can he keep it up? Has Elton Brand really returned to All-Star form? Or was his performance last week a one-week illusion?

Truth is, it may be too early to tell, as the sample size may simply be too small to draw from which to draw any conclusive evidence. 

And while Brand has stepped up in Speights' absence and become a leader on the court, he and the Sixers still have room for improvement.

The Sixers must be lamenting some of his shot choices, as he averages 3.6 shots/game from 16-23 feet (the lowest percentage shot in the NBA) and only knocks down one third of them. That's gotta go. Brand must use his muscle to pound the ball inside and get close to the basket, where he naturally shoots at a much more efficient rate (59 percent average on the year).

One thing's for certain, though. If Brand maintains the All-Star pace he re-established for himself last week, the Sixers could provide hellish matchup problems for teams when Speights returns from his injury. 

Brand and Speights could easily rotate between the 4 and the 5, and with Lou Williams, Andre Iguodala, and Thaddeus Young all able to switch positions and knock down an outside shot, the Sixers could be a nightmare to guard defensively.

If Brand and Speights can learn to harness their considerable talents and co-exist as the Sixers' frontcourt (leaving Samuel Dalembert's dead weight on the bench, where it belongs), the Sixers may already have their frontcourt of the future after all. 

The question remains... can Brand keep this pace up? Is he back to being a 20/10 guy for good?