Let someone else get up before dawn and stand in line for those so-called “blockbuster’’ holiday sales. Your favorite Philadelphia Sports Examiner had something else in mind this Black Friday.
Namely spending the day in South Philadelphia at the Wachovia Center, taking in a unique day-night double header. Hockey by day, with the Flyers taking on the Buffalo Sabres. Hoops at night, as the injury riddled Sixers met the Atlanta Hawks.
And people say I have no life.
The juxtaposition between the two local franchises is fascinating. The Flyers have always had a cult following. Day after day, month-after-month, year after year, it seemed there fan base has given them unwavering support, even though it’s been 34 years since they last drank from Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Obviously, the names and faces have pouring through first the Spectrum, and for the past decade this place, have changed. But the mood inside the arena isn’t much different from when Bobby Clarke and Bernie Parent were doing their thing on the ice for Fred Shero’s infamous Broad St. Bullies.
Maybe it was those fresh faced Canadian kids, who first took this town by storm way back then. But the women have always gone gaga over this team. The guys, on the other hand, have dug the action, much of which isn’t related to who’s putting the puck in the net or stopping it from going into his own cage, as all the extra-curricular activity around them.
The Philadelphia hockey fan has always been knowledgeable about the game’s subtleties, which is why they’re not too tolerant when one of their own screws up. But the bottom line is they still love their team, which on this day coughed up a couple of bad goals and didn’t sustain much of an attack in a 4-2 loss .
The game, which started shortly after 1:00 was over at 3:43 P.M meaning there was a bit less than four hours before the Sixers and Hawks would tip if off. But a strange phenomenon occurred in the next hour. Not many people wanted to leave.
Apparently, it’s not uncommon for Flyers fans to linger in the lobby near the bar for hours afterwards., where the guards often have to chase them out so they can close the place.
That’s a stark difference from the team that shares the building with them, where the hot argument on the talk shows these days is whether or not the Sixers should bring back Allen Iverson in order to at least generate some interest in what has otherwise been a moribund franchise.
From Day One this season there’s been little life in these Sixers and even less interest. That’s why the joke running through the press room before tonight’s game was that they wouldn’t simply announce the attendance. They would introduce them individually.
While the Flyers are filling the Center to 99.2% capacity, their NBA counterparts are drawing at only a 58% clip, worst in the League. And that’s with energetic point guard Lou Williams—out for two months with a broken jaw—along with disappointing Elton Brand, who’ll miss his second straight game with a hamstring injury.
The point guard reins are now being handed to 19-year-old rookie Jrue Holiday, the youngest player in the League. Sixers coach Eddie Jordan says it’s simply a rite of passage every player must eventually go through.
For Holiday it’s come sooner rather than later. ``Everything is new for him. Everything,’’ explained Jordan. ``Every night is a new night and nothing’s familiar.
``But you can’t get down on yourself.’’
Unfortunately, unlike Flyers fans Sixers fans aren’t taking that attitude. They see little reason to pay serious attention to a team that doesn’t have an Iverson-like marquee player and who seems overmatched talent-wise almost across the board.
Facing a team on the rise like the Hawks, who were still smarting from a second-half collapse Thanksgiving Night against the Magic in which they were outscored 54-25 to lose 93-76, the Sixers played what for them has been a typical game.
Despite the clear talent disparity the Sixers managed to hang with the Hawks most of the night. Holiday’s rite of passage did not go well, as veteran counterpart Mike Bibby torched him for 21 points, while holding the rook to a measly two.
That, coupled with 12-4 Atlanta’s 42-32 rebounding superiority was enough to tip the balance of power in their direction, as the Hawks nursed a slim lead throughout the second half, before pulling away at the end, 100-86.
The announced crowd, 12.984, looked like a legitimate figure, which isn’t always the case. But that may have been inflated this being a holiday weekend, where kids home from school and others who’ve come home for a few days decided to take in some hoops.
How many saw enough to justify a return is the big question. Unlike Flyers fans, Sixers fans have always predicated their interest on two things: winning and being entertained—not necessarily in that order. Clearly, this team is not winning—and doesn’t figure to be anytime soon, with a brutal four-game trip coming up to San Antonio, Dallas, improved Oklahoma City and Charlotte that may stretch their record to 5-15.
As for entertainment, there hasn’t been much of that either, as the Sixers continue to struggle learning Jordan’s Princeton Offense and also don’t do a very good job defending either the paint or the perimeter, either. Other than watching some of the NBA’s stars coming to town—with LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal on tap for December 16—that doesn’t figure to change anytime soon.
Which is why Ed Stefanski and the rest of the Sixers braintrust are reported to seriously be considering bringing back Iverson. If the team’s gonna lose anyway, they figure, why not give them a reason to come out?
And what better showstopper than a sequel to ``The Answer?’’
The question is why would you want to stunt whatever growth your team might make to bring in a player who never learned the basic rule of sports: There’s no ‘I’ in team.
By the end of a loooong day into night, on the trip home you couldn’t help but think these are two franchises sharing the same building but heading in different directions. The Flyers, despite yesterday’s loss, are a team on the rise, perhaps even a legit Cup contender. No matter what, though, they know their fans always will be in their corner.
The Sixers, on the other hand, are nearing a crossroads. Beset with bad contracts—Samuel Dalembert, Andre Iguodala and Brand being the worst—there seems little about them to inspire confidence. And a quick fix like Iverson would only seem to delay the inevitable.
Factoring in their respective plights with the fate of the injury-plagued, roller-coaster Eagles, you’re left with one inescapable conclusion on the ride home:
Spring training and the Phillies can’t get here soon enough.
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