P H I L A D E L P H I A   7 6 E R S
Go-To Guy | Weakest Link | Burning Question | Outlook

76ers at a Glance Coach: Larry Brown Last Year: 43-39 (Stats) Key Additions: F Greg Buckner, C Todd MacCulloch, C Efthimios Rentzias, G John Salmons, F Brian Skinner, F Keith Van Horn, F Monty Williams Key Losses: F Raja Bell, C Corie Blount, G Speedy Claxton, G Vonteego Cummings, F Matt Harpring, F Derrick McKey, C Dikembe Mutombo Projected Starters PG Eric Snow SG Allen Iverson SF Keith Van Horn PF Derrick Coleman C Todd MacCulloch Key Subs SG Aaron McKie SF Greg Buckner PF Monty Williams C Efthimios Rentzias

By John Hollinger, CNNSI.com

The Sixers were more like the Six Players last season. With only six guys who could play, the team labored through a 43-39 campaign, grinding to a halt any time injuries took more than one of them out of the lineup. Relying on injury-prone vets like Aaron McKie and Derrick Coleman, this happened all too frequently.

The Philadelphia brass responded intelligently, nuking last year's bench and trading Dikembe Mutombo for good measure. The club signed Greg Buckner, Monty Williams and Greek big man Efthimios Rentzias in the offseason, which means the bench won't be such a liability this season.

But in Philly, it all gets back to The Answer. After a tumultuous offseason, the doubts still ring about whether Allen Iverson and Larry Brown can get through another season without disemboweling each other. If they can coexist, there's enough talent to do a lot of damage.

Allen Iverson, G -- Iverson is the glue to the Philadelphia offense, and no player creates shots as easily, which is what what makes him such a scoring juggernaut. His 31.4 points per game were four more than any other player in the league last year. His accuracy could use some improvement -- he hit just 39.8 percent -- but that was in part because he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn early in the year when he came back from elbow surgery. There's nobody more dangerous late in the shot clock, and his outstanding quickness makes him a nightmare matchup for opposing off guards.

Iverson also brings the goods on defense, where he led the league in steals. He passed better, too -- his 5.5 assists per game were his highest total in four years. With better scoring threats around him this year in Keith Van Horn and Todd MacCulloch, plus a less pathetic group of reserves, he should be able to build on that total while taking higher-percentage shots.

Outside shooting -- The 76ers have a big-time scorer in Iverson, but last year they were an easy team to defend because nobody could make a shot from farther than 10 feet out. Every guard on the roster had the same weakness -- inability to hit the jumper -- and the one who shot best, Aaron McKie, was hurt for much of the year. Eric Snow, Speedy Claxton, Vonteego Cummings and Iverson didn't challenge teams from the perimeter, so their opponents continually played packed-in zones.

The hope is that they will stretch defenses more this year. The addition of Van Horn gives the team a 3-point threat it lacked a year ago, as well as a second scoring threat to give Iverson some help. McKie should be healthier this year, providing another perimeter threat, and Rentzias is a good shooter as well.

However, the backcourt still is relying on the same shaky shooters, and while Van Horn qualifies as a deadeye on this team, he's not exactly Reggie Miller. Teams playing the 76ers still will lay off and dare Philadelphia to beat them from the perimeter.

Is Larry Brown still committed?

Larry Brown has been an itinerant coach throughout his career, joining a team for a few years, improving it, and then jumping ship. He has been in Philadelphia for five years, the longest stint of his entire Hall of Fame career. One has to wonder how much longer he plans on staying.

Lending credence to the notion that he has one foot out the door is his rocky relationship with Iverson. The two have reluctantly put up with each other for half a decade, but Iverson's rambling, incoherent news conference at the end of last season hinted that the relationship may be fraying beyond repair.

This summer's shuffling of the deck is probably enough to keep Brown interested a little longer ... probably. Given his track record, however, Sixers fans will wonder all year whether Brown is busy lining up his next gig.

A contender again

Fast Facts • Allen Iverson missed 22 games with injuries, but when he played, his 43.7 minutes per game were the most in the league. • The 76ers were last in 3-pointers (214) and 3-point percentage (29.9 percent) last season.

The 76ers' major weaknesses last season were the lack of outside shooting and an unproductive bench. They have taken major steps to address both issues. Van Horn may not completely answer the need for a perimeter threat, but he sure beats what they had a year ago. Meanwhile, the additions of Greg Buckner, Monty Williams and Efthimios Rentzias mean the 76er bench won't be such a joke this year.

The defense should be solid, even without Mutombo, and the offense figures to be much better. With the Eastern Conference as wide open as ever, if Iverson and Brown can stay on speaking terms, this team has as a good a chance as anyone to end up in the NBA Finals.