Celtics Title Town

The 76ers sure gave the Boston Celtics a scare in the second round last year. They forced the Celtics to  seven games. If it wasn't for the heroics of Rondo after Pierce fouled out. The Celtics could have lost game seven in the garden. So, will the 76ers jump into contender status in the East? Don't think so. They beat a Bulls team without their fearless leader. Without Rose, and Noah. The Bulls just had no chance. No disrespect to the 76ers. They won the series, and they  did what they should have. Going into this season. How do the 76ers compare to last seasons team? They let Elton Brand go, and that seems like a good thing right now. He did impact the team a bit last season. But Brand's time in Philly was disappointing at best.  That era is over, and now the young 76ers will move on.

Andre Iguodala will be entering his 8th season. All 8 years have been with the 76ers. Iguodala has been their franchise player for sometime now. I think  it's fair to say that he's no superstar. He's a great second or third man. But he can't carry a team to a title. Andre averages 15.1 a game for his career. A good average for a second or third guy on a good team. He only averaged 12  a game last season, and that's a far cry from his career average. Andre is 28, and  he's entering the middle of his prime. I think the 76ers need to decide to add another all-star type player next to Iguodala, or they should deal him. Can Evan Turner became that star player?

Evan in only 23 years old, but he's been very disappointing in his first two seasons. He only averaged 9.4 a game last season, and the 76ers expected so much more from the 2nd pick in the 2010 draft. I think he's on the verge of bust, or just solid NBA player.  The 76ers consist of a bunch of young guys who can run, and gun. The issue could be lack of point guard play. Is Jrue Holiday good enough to run a team? Not for a contending team. It's hard to say if the 76ers have taken a step back or a step ahead. I think they have improved just marginally. With the Celtics getting younger. I think the 76ers are no threat to Celtics in the Atlantic. Although, who could forget the amazing start last season by the 76ers? Maybe they could hold onto that record this time.

Philadelphia 76ers 2011-12 

Overall: 35-31

vs Atlantic: 7-6

Team leaders: 

PPG: Williams 14.9

RPG: Hawes 7.3

APG: Iguodala 5.5

Ranked 22nd in scoring 93.6 per game Ranked 3rd in points allowed 89.4