Lamar Odom

It just so happens that my middle name is Lamar. I happen to like that name. So, I’ll probably use the first name more than his last name. Lamar started his career with the Clippers being alongside an interesting young core of Elton Brand, Andre Miller, and Michael Olowokandi (remember him!?). As we know with Clippers history, all things don’t work out. Lamar ended up in Miami alongside a rookie Dwyane Wade in 03-04 but was traded to the Lakers as part of the Shaq deal to bring him to Miami. Lamar stayed with the Lakers for 7 years as a key Sixth-Man and got himself a couple of rings. Then, he joined up with the reigning champs the Dallas Mavericks but didn’t really have a strong impact there. In fact, it was one of the worst years of his career. Now, he’s going back home to the yet another rising Clippers squad as a veteran, and most likely Sixth-Man player.

Kirk Hinrich

Apr 13, 2010; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich (12) during the second half of a game against the Boston Celtics at the United Center. The Bulls defeated the Celtics 101-93. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-US PRESSWIRE

Kirk’s story is similar to Lamar’s in that he was part of a young core for a team. Hinrich started off with the Bulls and by the time he was traded, he was among the leaders in team history in a few categories. He was traded to make room for Derrick Rose’s rise to power at the PG spot. Hinrich was traded to the Wizards and really was put in the same spot with a rookie sensation John Wall starting in front of him. During that same 2010-11 season, he was traded to the Hawks. After a couple of playoff runs with the Hawks, he signed back with the Bulls. In an interesting twist, he was brought back to replace the very man who replaced him, Derrick Rose. Philly fans know all about what happened to Rose in the playoffs.

Kurt Thomas

While Hinrich and Odom are returning to their first teams, Thomas is returning to his 3rd team, the Knicks. While they aren’t his first team, his best years came on the Knicks. This guy’s been around for a long time but has been a serviceable big man that rebounds and has a nice shot. There’s no mistake as to why he’s lasted this long. Never really had serious injury concerns. After being part on the Blazers team that had an odd recent history of injured big men, he was traded back to the Knicks along with another player…

Raymond Relton

Feb 04, 2011; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Knicks guard Raymond Felton (2) during the third quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. The 76ers defeated the Knicks 100-98. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE

Okay so Felton isn’t the same as the other players. He did play for the Knicks before but for only half a season. He was part of the Carmelo Anthony trade so he ended up with the Nuggets. He started his career wit the Bobcats. People thought that perhaps Felton and Emeka Okafor could be the young core the Bobcats would build off of. Yeah, so much for that. Felton has been the butt of a few fat jokes (I’ve never joked but I’ve seem em). Felton will probably be Jason Kidd’s back-up for the upcoming season. Maybe he’ll pick up a few things (besides pounds. Oh look, my first fat joke).

Marcus Camby

Again with the Knicks. But yes, Camby spent a few years with the Knicks. He started out with the Raptors, then came to the Knicks, then spent what I would say the prime of his career with the Nuggets before being traded to the Clippers. Then, he ended up with the injured big man club Blazers. He was traded to the Rockets last season and then was traded to the Knicks in an unrelated deal from Felton and Thomas. Camby is best known for his blocking, defending, and rebounding. Wouldn’t mind having him on the Sixers…

Royal Ivey

Oct 30, 2009; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Eddie Jordan talks with guard Royal Ivey (12) during the first quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wachovia Center. The 76ers defeated the Bucks 99-86. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE

Ah Ivey. Remember him? He survived the 2009-10 season with us so you know he’s a tough guy. Sure he was traded, but, he was around and that’s enough for me. Always known as a solid defender and solid 3 point shooter, Ivey never really was known to be a starter. More of a back-up PG, even 3rd string. Sixers brought him in apparently to be Jrue’s back-up PG. There will probably be times where Evan Turner would play PG. Even Iguodala could play that part. So it remains to see how much time Ivey will see on the court. Still, it’s good to have the Ivey league back…or something like that…

And so that’s it for the players. But, there is one more person.

Jason Quint

Jason doesn’t know I’m doing this. You can call him Jay. It’s a reunion, is it not? Anyway, Jay spent time here in 2010 as a staff writer. One of the things I did when I became editor was to reconnect with former writers of the site. I had to look at the old posts, do some soul Twitter searches and poof! I was able to grab a few former writers. If you’re on Twitter, follow the site @SixerSense and you’ll actually see that the account has an “All-time Writers” list. Guys like Sean O’Connor (oh c’mon you remember him!) and Jay are on there as well as our current staff. Just my way of saying thanks to the work that these writers have done for the site. They helped make this site possible through the years. It’s not me; I just inherited this wonderful piece of art. Anyway, after connecting with Jay, it ended up working out that he was interested in re-joining the site. Jay is known for his knowledge of the NBA draft prospects and the NBA draft in general. He runs this site here. We’ve already said this but welcome back Jason!

And that’s it. When I stumble upon more players, I’ll either update this post or make a new one. Give me players I missed because my four eyes (I wear glasses; typical nerd) can miss things. Thanks for reading!

Credit: Rob Grabowski-US PRESSWIRE

There’s little news coming today out of the Sixers’ camp, other than follow-up news on Andre Iguodala‘s noticeable limp during the third quarter of game 2. After coming down from the rim from one of his three thunderous dunks, Iguodala aggravated what is currently being called Achilles tendinitis. From CSNPhilly.com’s John Finger:

Iguodala first spoke about his Achilles issue after the Sixers’ 109-92 victory over the Bulls at the United Center after Game 2 on Tuesday night. With his feet plunged in a bucket of ice, Iguodala said he didn’t think the tendonitis would be an issue come game time on Friday and he stuck with that theory after practice on Thursday.

“It’s a combination of everything,” Iguodala said of his sore Achilles. “Normal wear and tear.”

Iguodala scored 11 points on 5-for-12 shooting, but made just one shot that wasn’t a dunk. Following a dunk in the third quarter, Iguodala was limping noticeably and he ended up spending the majority of the fourth quarter on the bench after playing 32 minutes.

But no matter how much he’s limited physically, Iguodala says it shouldn’t affect his game come Friday night.

“I feel like I can think the game so I’ll still be able to be effective out there,” Iguodala said.

Iguodala has played through injuries in the waning moments of the past two seasons. Right knee problems limited him to 67 games (of of 82) in 2010-11 and forced him to miss a couple of games this season as well. I’m no doctor, so I’m not sure how related these injuries are to each other. I can’t imagine trying to keep pressure off of one leg will help the other, however. He will play tomorrow, and it seemed as if he could perform okay when he remained on the court, but that he’s had trouble with both legs this year is a bit disconcerting.

What might be most relevant in all of this is the Olympics this summer. Iguodala is one of the finalists for the Olympic team, though not a favorite to actually make the team. His defensive prowess earned him a spot on the qualifying team, where he started and shut down practically every opponent he was tasked to defend. The international pool doesn’t have quite the athletes the U.S. can throw out there, so while shutting down guys like Linas Kleiza completely is a good thing, on the Olympic team it’s just a luxury. I think he could make the team as the 11th or 12th guy, but the odds aren’t entirely in his favor.

What I’m wondering, though, is whether it would be worth it for him to play. He looked excellent to start the season, like most other Sixers, and getting some rest certainly helped him. Obviously, the lure of a gold medal is intriguing, but if the odds of him making the team are slim, is it worth it for him to try out?

The reason I ask is this: the U.S. named a preliminary roster last summer. Iguodala and 19 others made the team. However, due to injuries both mental and physical, the number of candidates has decreased. Others on the team are free agents (namely Deron Williams and Eric Gordon) this summer whose wealth could be risked while playing for free. Iguodala is among 15 that are currently still under consideration (16 if you count Lamar Odom, but I’m not counting him after this year). Because they lacked bigs, the U.S. team was expected to add another 2 to the team. Except they added only one big among the two additional selections: über-prospect Anthony Davis. The other player added was James Harden.

Harden and Iguodala produce a lot but do so differently. Harden’s an offensive wizard, Iguodala a defensive one. But they play on the perimeter at the 2/3 positions, which means he’s another competitor that was somewhat unexpected. If the odds were iffy, they are even iffier now.