Of the other three guys, I can only hope that one, maybe two of them see significant time in significant games. That would be Tony Battie, the closest thing we have to a guy who could defend a dominant center, like Dwight Howard, without completely failing. The other would be Andres Nocioni in very limited situations. I’m not sure why Darius Songaila exists (on this team, that is).

The main point of this article would be to look at each player, and show what they bring to the team and why what they bring can be valuable. (more…)

Elton Brand, schooling some nameless Net. Credit: NY Post

Elton Brand’s turnaround from last year to this year has been remarkable given his age and the way he played last year. In Eddie Jordan’s doghouse from the beginning, Brand wasn’t used effectively. Much of that was of his own doing, because as Doug Collins said, on a losing team players look out for themselves and their numbers. Brand’s steadfast refusal to pass when double-teamed or pressured cost the Sixers games last year. He didn’t play on offense and didn’t try hard all that much on defense. He looked done, his contract seemed to be an albatross, and the future did not look good with him on the squad.

Then this year happened. Brand has looked almost as good as he was with the Clippers. He looks energized and rarely has taken a play off. He sometimes takes off on defense, which can be necessary due to his minutes and age. He’s our leading scorer, our best interior defender, and arguably our most valuable player this year.

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