76ers Presser
Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2016 10:43 am
The podium is empty and the table is set. The table has the 76ers first championship trophy on it from 2006. There's an empty place set for the trophy won this year. This franchise had seen little to no playoff success before the 2004 championship created a fan base with fair loyalty. Even the 2004 championship was more of a Survivor Series. This one made the fans feel more validated. More part of the elite franchises in the PBSL, but many still questioned the 76ers. GM Balls O'Hard has worked tirelessly to change that notion but the resolve of the Philly fanbase is strong. The lights are on, the stage is set and the reporters are waiting. On to the scene walks GM, Balls O'Hard with the 2010 Championship trophy. He looks at it with a smile, kisses it and sets it down.
Balls O'Hard:
Winning these things never get old. They always feel more special than the last. What a season.. A season where we weren't the clear favorites as teams like the Magic threw together superstars to try and buy championships and teams like the Hawks had the experience; but we pushed through the adversity and locked down the #1 seed. Then in the playoffs we made life hard on ourselves losing home court advantage in every series except the finals, but we pushed through. Then came the conference finals where we lost one of our most important players D Wade in game 3, but the team believed in one another and pushed through. Then came the finals, where in game 5, we lost our defensive lead, Titan Chandler, and were facing the unstoppable Kevin Durant; but we pushed through.
Balls O'Hard:
I'm so incredibly proud of this team for fighting to a game 7 and so incredibly proud of Amare Stoudemire with his 46 point effort in game 7 to lead us to my 4th championship and this franchise's 2nd. Amare has been wrongfully maligned his whole career. He was square pegged round holed in TC in the years before coming to Philly which gave him a bad reputation. But ever since coming here, he's been a consummate leader and professional with our organization.
Balls O'Hard:
On to this season, we had to make a decision on Ramon Sessions during RFA. Ramon is a young guy who's raw. Ramon during the finals in game 7 scored 20 for us when it mattered the most. Having Wade at the 2 spot really relives a lot of need at the 1 position. What we needed was a threat to score within our offense, an adequate passer and a good defender. Sessions was a check mark in all of those categories. So, we rewarded him with a 4 year deal worth 7 a year based off of what we saw last year. Both Sessions and the team are happy with the deal.
Balls O'Hard: For UFA we pretty much had the team in tact, but we wanted to try and bring in a little more firepower off the bench. We retained Rudy Fernandez who played a huge role in our playoff run. He had 11 double digit point games during our playoff run. We also brought in Kobe Bryant, Will Bynum, Boris Diaw, and Mo Williams. We gave Allen Iverson a test run, but ultimately we informed him this morning he will be cut.
Balls O'Hard:
Season expectations will be the same as last year. During the season, we'll try and lock in the #1 seed without wearing our guys down. Look for us to ratchet down the minutes a bit to let the bench help out more. We may lose awards, but since I got in Philly, I've stressed to the players coming here and ones signed here, "The Individual is nothing without the Whole". The team has bought in and that's why we've improved and won another championship.
Balls O'Hard:
We're looking for really big improvements from Sessions ,Carrol, Gibson, and Luc Richard. We see there's a lot more competition in the East than there was last season. The Celtics have awaken from their coma. The Magic still have a lot of talent and a lot left in the tank. The Heat have incredible talent and if they get it together they can be scary. The Hawks are perennial favorites to win the Central. The Raptors with McGrady and Derozen on the wings will be incredibly hard to stop. The Cavs have an incredibly strong big 3 to worry about. I know I'm missing a few teams, but we think the league talent level is just great and we are excited about the challenge. Now i'll open the floor to questions.
Balls O'Hard:
Winning these things never get old. They always feel more special than the last. What a season.. A season where we weren't the clear favorites as teams like the Magic threw together superstars to try and buy championships and teams like the Hawks had the experience; but we pushed through the adversity and locked down the #1 seed. Then in the playoffs we made life hard on ourselves losing home court advantage in every series except the finals, but we pushed through. Then came the conference finals where we lost one of our most important players D Wade in game 3, but the team believed in one another and pushed through. Then came the finals, where in game 5, we lost our defensive lead, Titan Chandler, and were facing the unstoppable Kevin Durant; but we pushed through.
Balls O'Hard:
I'm so incredibly proud of this team for fighting to a game 7 and so incredibly proud of Amare Stoudemire with his 46 point effort in game 7 to lead us to my 4th championship and this franchise's 2nd. Amare has been wrongfully maligned his whole career. He was square pegged round holed in TC in the years before coming to Philly which gave him a bad reputation. But ever since coming here, he's been a consummate leader and professional with our organization.
Balls O'Hard:
On to this season, we had to make a decision on Ramon Sessions during RFA. Ramon is a young guy who's raw. Ramon during the finals in game 7 scored 20 for us when it mattered the most. Having Wade at the 2 spot really relives a lot of need at the 1 position. What we needed was a threat to score within our offense, an adequate passer and a good defender. Sessions was a check mark in all of those categories. So, we rewarded him with a 4 year deal worth 7 a year based off of what we saw last year. Both Sessions and the team are happy with the deal.
Balls O'Hard: For UFA we pretty much had the team in tact, but we wanted to try and bring in a little more firepower off the bench. We retained Rudy Fernandez who played a huge role in our playoff run. He had 11 double digit point games during our playoff run. We also brought in Kobe Bryant, Will Bynum, Boris Diaw, and Mo Williams. We gave Allen Iverson a test run, but ultimately we informed him this morning he will be cut.
Balls O'Hard:
Season expectations will be the same as last year. During the season, we'll try and lock in the #1 seed without wearing our guys down. Look for us to ratchet down the minutes a bit to let the bench help out more. We may lose awards, but since I got in Philly, I've stressed to the players coming here and ones signed here, "The Individual is nothing without the Whole". The team has bought in and that's why we've improved and won another championship.
Balls O'Hard:
We're looking for really big improvements from Sessions ,Carrol, Gibson, and Luc Richard. We see there's a lot more competition in the East than there was last season. The Celtics have awaken from their coma. The Magic still have a lot of talent and a lot left in the tank. The Heat have incredible talent and if they get it together they can be scary. The Hawks are perennial favorites to win the Central. The Raptors with McGrady and Derozen on the wings will be incredibly hard to stop. The Cavs have an incredibly strong big 3 to worry about. I know I'm missing a few teams, but we think the league talent level is just great and we are excited about the challenge. Now i'll open the floor to questions.
