Shaq is Shot

One thought was in my head after the Sixers' 96-85 defeat of the hapless Miami Heat: where is the real Shaquille O'Neal? That couldn't have possibly been him out there tonight. Isn't this the guy who destroyed Dikembe Mutombo and the Sixers in the paint just six years ago in the Finals? He just doesn't have it anymore. Five and ten? He's just a shell of what he once was. Now I know first-hand why the Heat is 8-21. Their HOF center is cooked. Maybe he'll wake up as the season goes on, but I doubt it.

On the plus side, the Sixers figured out how to win a close game. Andre Iguodala led the charge, scoring 28 and doing his job in the late minutes to hold of a late Miami run. I liked the bench production, especially from little-seen Calvin Booth, who provided great defensive presence off the bench with five blocks. Kyle Korver and Louis Williams each scored 13, and how about Lou's move on Dwayne Wade in the 4th quarter? That's our future starting point guard - pretty exciting. Jason Smith - seven rebounds in 17 minutes. I like him. He gets down the floor, gets physical inside, and doesn't make many mistakes. He's pretty much the opposite of the guy taken ahead of him, Thaddeus Young. The Billy King legacy lives on.

So the Sixers move to 12-16. They're a half game out of that last playoff spot in the East. What a sad conference. It's Boston, Detroit and a bunch of teams with absolutely no shot at doing anything this year. The Sixers still have something to play for though, which makes me think they're going to hold off on any potential Andre Miller trade until later (his value keeps going up thanks to games like last night, 12 and 12). Miller's sudden spike in production means he's looking to get out of Philly, but Ed Stefanski will take his time if there's any deal to be done. Let's see first if the Sixers are a playoff-caliber team. By the All-Star break we should know.

The Sixers head west now for a six-game road trip, starting with Sacramento. Mikki Moore destroyed Philly back on December 14th, but if the Sixers get the same production from Booth on the defensive end as they did last night, things could be a lot different this time around.

-ajd