Apparently NBA style basketball is like riding a bicycle. At least if you are Philadelphia 76ers veteran power forward Elton Brand, that is.
It was a pair of games the Sixers needed to win. They became their 11th and 12th losses in the current losing streak. But there was a silver lining in the aftermath, as power forward Elton Brand proved to the NBA that his signing was more than just a whisperer into the ears of the young rookies on the roster. He actually knows how to play. And well he should, as the 36 year old veteran has enjoyed a lengthy and noteworthy career in the NBA so far. He’s scored 16,765 points in just the regular season in NBA games, and has enjoyed a lengthy NBA career that has spanned 17 years, from his rookie season with the Chicago Bulls in 1999, through today.
He’s even tasted semi-retirement, at least until the Philadelphia 76ers talked him out of watching from the stands and onto an NBA bench. So far, his NBA duties has been in a role off senior statesman, working among and with the leagues youngest team players – particularly with 20 year old and former fellow Duke University Blue Devil rookie center Jahlil Okafor. But due to injuries to both Okafor and center/forward Nerlens Noel, the team was forced to ask Elton Brand to play some game minutes. And play he did. He gave the team 19 minutes in the past two games, including a 13 minute performance in the Friday March 4 contest against the Miami heat. But he was ready, in fact, it seems he always has been ready. He stayed fit, stayed mentally prepared, and answered the bell.
Elton Brand coming out of the game. He had 6 points on 2-4 shooting and 3 rebounds in a 7 minute run, his first of the season.
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) March 5, 2016
And so, like many skills you can train your body to do, the NBA appears to be a skill that Elton Brand can boast well into the future. And it’s more than just shooting or rebounding. The man is an elite player, one who had trained each year to do anything and everything to a precision few others in the league could ever realize. His is the type of career most NBA players can only dream about. And what a career. He scored 1,627 points in his rookie season for the Chicago Bulls. To place this into perspective, the Sixers rookie scoring machine, Jahlil Okafor, has scored 928 points with 19 games remaining. If he holds to his average and plays each game, he will end up at 1,260 points by seasons end. That is how good Elton Brand is.
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Not only did he have excellent seasons, but longevity. His career has lasted for 17 years. When you are a bright shining star in the NBA, you get a majority of game minutes and you are asked to play each opportunity. Games always seem to have a special importance, both to get the team into the playoffs and then the actual playoffs. Seventeen NBA seasons, each with an average playing time per game of 33.3 minutes per game, and in those seasons, he has averaged 51 starts per season. That includes this season with the Phildelphia 76ers where he has not started a single game. That’s longevity. And that longevity has given a wiley veteran a few tricks that he now had the stage to demonstrate to his much younger teammates.
Elton Brand has set three of the best picks I've seen all season from the Sixers.
— Bob Cooney (@BobCooney76) March 5, 2016
No, in two games that would have meant a great deal to the Philadelphia 76ers to win, they lost. But undermanned and loaded with rookies against an opponent with true NBA playoffs in their sights is a tall order, particularly with the current level of play from these Sixers. They are limping to the finish line of the 2015-2016 season.
The #Sixers starting lineup includes two second-round picks and three undrafted players.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) March 4, 2016
But limping or not, Elton Brand has them holding their heads up high. Despite being outgunned, outmanned, and playing for pride against a Miami Heat team playing for post season opportunity, the Philadelphia 76ers led late in the second game.
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Preparation appears to be something the veteran power forwards Brand, and fellow teammate Carl Landry, have been demonstrating to their teammates. It’s that readiness at a moments notice which will eventually pay dividends to this team. Their play-off day will come, perhaps sooner than expected. With Elton Brand’s influence, they will most certainly be ready when it arrives.