Sixers Round Table: Most Disappointing Aspect of the Season
By John Adair
With the NBA Playoffs under way and the Sixers nowhere to be seen, it is that time of year to take a look back and reminisce on what was the 2012-2013 season.
Oct 15, 2012; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Andrew Bynum (33) watches from the end of the bench wearing street clothes during the second quarter against the Boston Celtics at the Wachovia Center. The Sixers defeated the Celtics 107-75. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
In all honesty, this season was an epic disaster for the Liberty Ballers. Thanks to some help from the fans, staff, and some of the best basketball writers in the country, here’s a look at what each had to say about this year’s Sixers.
Each person listed below allowed me to ask them a series of questions, this being the first.
Question #1: What was the most disappointing aspect of this season?
"“The Sixers not getting a single game out of Andrew Bynum after giving up so much for him. It was still a smart move to make—the roster as previously constructed, wasn’t going anywhere, and it was the right call to swing for the fences on a talent like Bynum. It didn’t work out. That happens.”– USA TODAY Sports NBA Writer Sean Highkin“Andrew Bynum not being able to play was the most disappointing part of the season. The Sixers built their team with the idea that he would be able to play and we never got to see that happen. ” – Chuck Bausman, Philly Daily News Sports Editor“Obviously, the absence of Andrew Bynum put a damper on the season. This team probably wouldn’t have been good enough to compete against the Miami Heat even at 100 percent, but we’ll never know how this unit would have looked with Bynum in the middle. ”– Roy Burton, Bleacher Report NBA & SB Nation “I don’t think it’s any question that Andrew Bynum’s absence is themost disappointing thing that happened with the Sixers this season. This is a guy who, when healthy, has the skills to be first team All-NBA. He’s also the player that Philadelphia traded away Andre Iguodala to acquire, so it was an enormous investment on the Sixers’ part. To get nothing in return from that investment, especially from a player of Bynum’s caliber, is really disheartening if you’re a Sixers fan.” – Cody Williams, Rant Sports “Andrew Bynum has been the biggest disappointment this season, by far. Brought into Philadelphia as the centerpiece of a rejuvenated and young team, his absence all season put too much of a strain on the players brought in to be his supporting cast. Add in the constant soap opera centered around his rehabilitation efforts and setbacks, and you have an absolute disaster.”– Matt Buesing, Fire and Ice RadioMost disappointing aspect of the season? The Andrew Bynum melodrama and how it sufficated the entire organization, from the front office all the way down to the players. The team had such momentum and fanfare heading into the season, only to see that momentum gradually disappear as each month of the season passed. Fans grew restless and angry with management, while the team simultaneously hit their insurmountable midseason wall. Bynum was nowhere to be seen. Watching the team stumble out of Playoff contention after the All Star break made for a very long second half of the season, especially as reports of Bynum’s status grew grim.– Greg Duca, Fire and Ice Radio “I think the biggest disappointment was never seeing the team’s potential realized. By Bynum not playing at all, the entire complexion of the Sixers was altered. This team was constructed with the idea that Bynum would be a dominant centerpiece that the rest of the offense and defense would revolve around. Without him, the Sixers lacked that central player and never stood a chance to truly compete for a playoff spot. ”– Robby Kalland, Hawks Writer for SB Nation“Easily the Andrew Bynum injury.”– Jeff McMenamin, Sixers Columnist of Philadunkia “It has to be the lack of leadership. This team faced a great deal of unexpected adversity primarily sparked by the absence of Bynum. Whether you’re a basketball team, family, company whatever. You need to be able to roll with the punches, and no one on the Sixers squad stood up and took charge. Doug Collins clearly lost the team. It looks like this is because he “works them too hard” and they think they’re a bunch of all stars. I’m not in the locker room but it’s hard to imagine (based on the outcome on the court) that anyone stood up and led the team during these big, tough practices. Even when Collins blew up at the team, which I feel was pretty weak, everyone acted like it was nothing. Hawes said it was just “Doug being Doug”. Evan Turner acted like he hadn’t even seen it. This team needed someone who would stand up and get the message into his team’s head when Collin’s couldn’t break through. They were starving for this all season and they still don’t have it.”"
– Average Bro, Sports Pro and the Average Bro
"“Everything. I’m especially upset about the use of the man, whom I believe to be our best all-around rebounder, Arnett Moultrie. The 6’10” 22 year old showed a lot in terms of his ability/tenacity to get to the boards, mainly on offense, having more offense rebounds than defense rebounds per game. Moultrie averaged about 3 boards, while shooting almost 59%, on just 11 minutes a game. That’s about one board every three and a half minutes all while playing very sparingly. Once he’s able to start, and get in the flow of the game, I’m sure he’ll be even better, I just hope they give him more of a chance next year.”"
– Sports Pro, Sports Pro and the Average Bro
"“The fact that Bynum never stepped foot onto the court this year for the Sixers. The Sixers fell shy to a late seed when they could’ve somehow worked out something better with a player of his talent."
– Danny Solis, The Sixer Sense
"“Talking about the Andrew Bynum situation is too easy. No, it’s the lack of Evan Turner’s development. I was hoping and expecting him to take the next step towards becoming a star. Early on, it looked like that would happen. But, outside of his improved 3 point shooting, he hasn’t improved. Really, he went backwards. I’ve been a supporter all his career but I don’t know anymore.”"
– Dante Nelson, The Sixer Sense
"“The most disappointing aspect of this year, is by and far, Andrew Bynum failing to suit up for a single game. After the blockbuster trade that saw the Sixers lose rookie-of-the-year candidate Nik Vucevic, star-player Andre Iguodala, and their first round pick of the draft, Mo Harkless, several analysts were predicting the Sixers to finish as high as the 2-seed in the Eastern Conference. However, that blockbuster trade resulted in absolutely nothing for the Sixers except a $16 million headache, a slew of interesting hairdos, and a whole lot of ambiguous updates from Andrew himself throughout the season. I can’t recall another NBA blockbuster deal of that magnitude that left one involved team so empty-handed. That being said, I respect the front office for taking the gamble, and agree with the assertion that last year’s team performed to their utmost ability. A change was needed to advance from a team capable of a deep playoff run to the actual ability to contend for a title against that squad in South Beach featuring the greatest player in today’s NBA. It’s hard to not wonder, especially with Jrue’s all-star year, what could have been if that 7 foot tall guy with the weird hairdos was playing basketball for all or most of the season.”"
– EJ Aguado, The Sixer Sense
"“This is a no brainer, it was the Andrew Bynum debacle. They put all their eggs in one basket and that egg had a huge crack in it. They traded away two young guys and their best defensive player to get a hobbled superstar and an aged veteran in Jason Richardson. This move may set the franchise back 3 years.”"
– Scott Boutcher, The Sixer Sense
"“The most disappointing aspect of this past year was how the season turned out after having such high expectations. After falling one game short of the Eastern Conference Finals, my hopes grew even more following the Bynum trade. Unfortunately with Bynum missing the full 82 game season, the Sixers will miss the 2013 NBA playoffs.”"
-Steven Garlatti, The Sixer Sense
"“The expectations. There was so much hype leading up to this season and it was basically all downhill from there. I am not upset about the Bynum situation. No matter what anyone says, it was the right move. Iguodala wasn’t going to stay, and we moved two young prospects. For what we thought we got, you take that trade every day.”"
– Spencer Layman, The Sixer Sense
"“Bynum’s knees and not playing.”"
– Bill Moonan, Sixers Fan
That is just a small glimpse of what most are saying about the Sixers’ disappointing season. As you can see, the Andrew Bynum saga is the hottest topic discussion.
For the next nine days, one question will be posted per day, each with answers from the following people. Stay tuned to hear what else they have to say!