Associated Press

Monday, Tony DiLeo talked about his new job. Tuesday, he’ll wake up and look to make a hire.

There’s no telling when DiLeo will make an addition to the 76ers’ front office, but the newly appointed general manager is looking to do so in the near future. And it’ll be in the analytics category.

Before you ask, here’s DiLeo’s description of what that means:

“I think it’s been out there about the analytics part of it. I’m a big believer in that. We’re going to bring someone in who’s an expert in statistics and analytics just to give us a competitive edge over these other organizations that don’t do it or aren’t on that level.”

Still not following along? Basically, the Sixers are looking to do for the NBA what Moneyball has done for baseball. DiLeo wants a guy who can help the team rank draft picks’ worth, put a dollar amount to a player’s contract and break down which players are most productive in the right situations. DiLeo said he’s developed a unique formula of his own to rank players.

“I think this all started a couple years ago with the Moneyball phenomenon,” DiLeo said. “In baseball they use it a lot, which is because you have 1-on-1 different statistics. Basketball’s a little more complicated because you have 5-on-5 on the court trying to break that down.

“If we can gain an advantage in that area where these players are the best combination out there, or this player is worth this much money, what’s the value of the contracts, or if we make a trade how will it affect our team statistically – because we’re losing this Player A and bringing in this Player B and how it affects our team. In the draft (it could be used) to analyze the characteristics of what made different draft picks successful in the NBA, and what were the key statistics.

“So there are a lot of areas we can build upon and gain different information.”

So there’s that.

If there’s anything else to take from DiLeo’s debut presser as Sixers GM, here are those tidbits:

• Andrew Bynum is OK … but his contract isn’t extended. DiLeo said Bynum went to Germany last week and underwent a non-invasive procedure on his knee and won’t miss the opening of camp. However, the bad news was that the Sixers don’t have any news on Bynum’s contract, which expires at the end of this season.
• Sounds like veteran Josh Howard, a small forward, is in for a two-day tryout. The Sixers are looking to bring at least one guy, maybe two, in for camp at that position. Howard might be one of them.
• DiLeo said he interviewed in Portland then, after meeting with owner Josh Harris, said he wouldn’t interview elsewhere … even though more than two teams called for permission to do so. DiLeo said he was reassured by Harris that he’d be given serious consideration for the post.

#       #       #

On an editorial note:

This is the second of what will be many posts throughout the Sixers' season -- and beyond. So make sure to bookmark the blog and check back regularly for observations, musings, news and notes. Thanks for stopping by.