This preview is provided by Brian Ward of Depressed Fan. I’ll leave it to that get on to the Philadelphia Sixers previews.

Previous season record: 35–47
Picks held by the team: #12, #21, #30, #38
Position needs: Center or Power Forward, Small Forward or Shooting Guard

The ‘06-’07 season started out great for the Sixers. They jumped out to a 3-0 start, winning games over Atlanta, Orlando and Miami. From there, things went straight downhill. On December 18, the Sixers shipped Allen Iverson to Denver for Andre Miller, Joe Smith and what would become the #’s 21 and 30 picks in the upcoming draft. A few weeks later Chris Webber was cut loose, mercifully for any Sixers fan who’d been forced to watch him dog it in Philly the entire season.

Once Iverson and Webber were out of town, and Miller and Smith settled in, the Sixers gelled as a team. After starting the season 5–19, the Sixers finished 30–28. With Miller running the show and Andre Iguodala asserting himself as the team’s leader and go-to-guy, the Sixers eschewed a tank job for a chance at Greg Oden in favor of developing their young roster and creating a winning atmosphere around their budding superstar.

The Sixers, as constructed, are a playoff team in ‘07-’08. Miller is a prototypical pass-first point guard. He gets everyone involved in the offense, and gets them the ball exactly where they need it, at the right time to convert. Iguodala can do it all. He’s a great distributor, on-the-ball defender, rebounder and this year he proved that he can shoulder the scoring load as well. Those two positions are set going forward, at least for this year.

Samuel Dalembert is a quality piece of the puzzle. He’s a shot-blocking, long, athletic big who can get you a double-double on any given night, and erase mistakes made by perimeter players. You don’t want to run your offense through him, but he has a nice touch on his mid-range jumper, and runs the floor like a deer. Willie Green and Stephen Hunter, the other two starters, need to be upgraded. Both could find a spot at the end of the rotation, but neither deserves the extended minutes he got this year.

Off the bench, the Sixers have Kyle Korver, an assassin from downtown, and a key part of the rotation. Lou Williams, a small, quick, combo guard who showed the ability to back up Miller down the stretch last year, and provide a change-of-pace and open floor presence for the second team. Joe Smith may or may not be back. If he is, he gives the Sixers a tough presence in the front court, and a nice option on the pick and pop for Miller or Iguodala. It remains to be seen where last year’s first-rounder (acquired via trade) Rodney Carney fits in, long-term.

The Sixers need to upgrade the PF/C position (either one, if a viable center is added, Dalembert moves to the 4) and the SG/SF position (same thing, if a starter-caliber 3 is added, Iguodala moves to the 2 and doesn’t skip a beat.) They really don’t have room to add 4 players to the roster, so either multiple picks are going to have to be packaged to move up, or they’re going to look for a project (or two) to stash in the NBADL, or a foreign player who will be left overseas for a year or two.

The Iverson trade set the Sixers up with two extra picks, and they also picked up an early second-round pick from Utah (originally the Knicks pick.) All of these picks in Billy King’s hands means a draft-day trade is a virtual certainty. He’s going to move one way or the other. All signs seem to point toward moving up to get Jeff Green, if he stays in the draft.

Ideally, the Sixers would use their first pick to get a big body. Unfortunately, only Greg Oden and Al Horford fit this bill at the top of the draft (I hope the Sixers don’t value Noah highly, I certainly don’t. Brandan Wright is under-sized to be a true 4 in the NBA, in my opinion). Oden is out of the question, Horford would probably have to fall to the 6–8 range before the Sixers would think about moving up to get him. This leaves Green as the best option. He can play the 3 or the 4, he’s an excellent defender with a decent mid-range game, and the ball handling skills to be a point-forward.

Other names floating around at #12 include Al Thornton, Julian Wright, Nick Young and possibly Jason Smith.

The remainder of the Sixers’ picks are highly dependent on who they get early in the draft. At #21, I’d like to see them take a shot on one of the European shooting guards, Rudy Fernandez or Marco Belinelli. Either could step right into the starting lineup and immediately stretch the defense, creating room for Iguodala to work around the rim. If they go small with their first pick, then you might see someone like Josh McRoberts taken here.

At pick #30, Glen “Big Baby” Davis is a name I keep hearing. It might just be worth taking a shot at the wide body at that point of the first round. It’s unlikely that this player will make the roster, but if they take someone with a big upside, he may just force his way onto the team with a strong showing in camp. If Davis is gone, troubled Boston College PF, Sean Williams (suspended from the team for breaking an unspecified rule) would be worth the gamble. He averaged 5 blocks per game this year, he’s big and athletic.

At #38, I like Marc Gasol, brother of Pau. The 7’1” Spaniard is probably at least a year away from the NBA, exactly the type of player, with a nice upside, the Sixers could stash away until he’s ready.

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