(AP)

Believe it or not, the 76ers are 3-0.

They used a Spencer Hawes bucket with 5.9 seconds to go (off of a ridiculous behind-the-back pass from Michael Carter-Williams, which can be seen here) to complete the rally and beat the Chicago Bulls, 107-104, Saturday night.

Here are some quotes and notes from the game:

• The Sixers once trailed by as many as 20 points.
• The Sixers won for the third time in three games, despite entering the fourth quarter without a lead in each of those games. They were 4-47 in those situations last season.
• Carter-Williams has equaled five players in NBA history, dating to 1985-86, with 27 assists or more in their first three games (Damien Lillard, John Wall, Jamaal Tinsley, Mike Bibby, Damon Stoudamire).
• Brett Brown has three wins to begin his coaching career.
• The Sixers didn’t have a three-game winning streak all of last season, and they already do this season.

So basically…the Sixers’ start is absurd.

“This is a very unexpected start,” Brown conceded.

Furthermore, the Sixers won both games of a back-to-back – something that eluded them a year ago.

“It shows your mental toughness, playing back to back,” said Evan Turner. “… It was good to stay in it when we were down 20.”

The Sixers have the day off Sunday before hosting Golden State Monday night.

(AP)

WASHINGTON – Throughout preseason, Brett Brown and Sam Hinkie and the rest of the 76ers’ brass had impressed upon fans, radio-show hosts, reporters and just about anyone who was willing to listen that their team would be dictated by what “the veterans” did.

The trio of 25-year-olds, the Sixers’ equivalent of oldheads, would have to be leaned upon if the team was to accomplish anything in what was expected to be a bumpy, 82-game ride.

Two games (and two wins in) … uhh, not so bumpy. So what gives? Well, the Sixers have gotten superb efforts from Spencer Hawes, Evan Turner and Thaddeus Young. Wednesday night was no different, as all three scored in double figures, with Hawes and Young turning in double-doubles in a come-from-behind win over the Wizards.

Here’s the statistical breakdown of the Sixers’ three veterans through two games:

Spencer Hawes: 16-for-26 overall (61.5 percent), 4-for-8 3FG (50.0 percent), 4-for-6 FT (66.6 percent), 20.0 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 3.5 apg

Evan Turner: 20-for-37 overall (54.1 percent), 0-for-6 3FG (0.0 percent), 9-for-10 FT (90.0 percent), 24.5 ppg, 5 rpg, 4.5 apg

Thaddeus Young: 19-for-35 overall (54.3 percent), 0-for-1 3FG (0.0 percent), 1-for-2 FT (50.0 percent), 19.5 ppg, 7 rpg, 2 apg

In totaling up these numbers, which are ridiculous averages that would establish personal single-season records for all three, should they maintain them, I came across one disconcerting stat that you can’t ignore:

Hawes, Turner and Young have played a combined for 200 minutes of a possible 288 minutes played through two games. That’s a lot of wear and tear on the three guys the Sixers need to perform nightly. It’ll be interesting to see how Brown uses his rotation Saturday night in the first back-to-back of the season, with Chicago in town. 

(Associated Press)

The 76ers lost Tuesday to Brooklyn. They were outscored at the foul line by 13 points. You could argue that the free-throw discrepancy led to the Sixers' 20-point loss. And some in the organization took that route. Others didn't.

“I've never seen anything like it. I just haven't,” said Sixers coach Doug Collins, whose team went 6-for-10 at the line, compared to Brooklyn's 19-for-22 effort.

When prodded about whether it's just out of character for his guys to drive the lane...

“Guys, you're getting me in territory,” Collins said. “I don't want to talk about this because I'm going to get fined. You're taking me to a territory that, all of the sudden, the league is going to look at me and – I'm sorry, I can't. I hope you understand that. I'm not trying to dance or anything like that. The more questions you ask, the deeper the water gets.”

The Sixers' Evan Turner wasn't as diplomatic.

“We go to paint. There's no reason to keep talking about it. We go to paint,” Turner said. “There's no point in talking about it. When you go down and there's one foul and another foul that's not called. We go into the paint just as much as other teams. It's not new. For the past three years, we haven't really gotten calls. That's not on us anymore.

“We can talk about it. We get into the paint. We get hit, we get slapped. I know a bunch of people got scratches and bruises all on their body. It's not from angel kisses. You can't worry about what you can't control.”

The Sixers (15-21) rank 28th in the NBA in free-throws made and free-throws attempted. So don't just take the Sixers at their word. Judge for yourselves.

(Associated Press)

OKLAHOMA CITY – In one facial expression, Evan Turner summed up the 76ers' night. He raced up-court to play defense, clutching the wrist on his right hand with the thumb and index finger of his left, signaling to an official that he expected a call that he didn't get.

These days, the Sixers aren't getting too many calls. And coach Doug Collins doesn't blame the officials for that.

In a 109-85 thumping handed out by Oklahoma City, the Sixers attempted eight free throws Friday. All eight were taken by Nick Young. No one else. Collins was asked afterward if he informed his team of the foul shot disparity.

“What am I going to say? I've been saying it for three years,” Collins said. “We've got to be stronger, take that ball to the basket and make them foul us. For one guy to shoot a free throw tonight, and I'm not saying that has anything to do with the whistle, so I don't want that to be miscalculated at all.”

The Sixers are not a physically tough team. They're a team that's content to rely on jumpshots. That's partly opinion, partly rooted in fact. Consider these numbers: The Sixers rank 28th in free-throw attempts (600) and 28th in free-throw makes (436). And because they rank 26th in free-throw percentage (.726), they're not even making the shots they're earning.

“In certain situations, we rely on pull-ups and getting cleaner shots,” Turner said. “That's not the first day where people are like, 'We don't get foul calls.' That's what happens. I'm not about to waste my time relying on someone else giving me a call.

“Sometimes you go to the rack, get drilled and it's a no-call and it messes up the transition (game) the other way and it adds to the frustration. Certain people on our team would much-rather rely on their jumpshot than going to the rack to get the call.”

One could argue that Jrue Holiday, the Sixers' primary ballhandler, could jump-start the foul-shooting spree by driving. After all, Holiday ranks 63rd in the league in attempts from the line. But because Holiday is at his best driving and kicking for a team loaded with 3-point threats, the task of drawing contact and, subsequently, fouls has to fall on someone else. Maybe that someone else is Spencer Hawes, a big with only 62 free-throw attempts. Maybe that someone else is Lavoy Allen, another big who is severely underperforming when it comes to drawing fouls (34 FTA).

“Sometimes we're getting fouled and sometimes you settle for jumpshots,” Young said. “Just one of those games. We've got some very talented offensive players here and any given night, it could be an attack night or it could be a night where they could feel good going up with their jumpshots.”

There have been plenty of those nights for the Sixers. For their sake, and for the sake of finishing an eight-game roadtrip with a win Saturday at San Antonio, maybe they should drive the lane instead of shooting jumpers.

(Associated Press)

NEW YORK – The calls aren't coming. The whistles have been in one team's favor, and that team hasn't been the 76ers.

They understand what's going on – sort of. They have a roster of bigs who prefer mid-range jumpers and guards who like testing themselves from the 3-point line. They get that. What they're struggling to comprehend is the difference between creating contact and initiating contact, which could what's separating them from getting to the line.

“As a referee,” Jrue Holiday said, “when you look at that – or even a regular person when you look at that – every time we play a game, is it that we just don't initiate contact? Or is it that it's not a foul? Why is it different? Why is that margin so bad? I can't really say anything. The only thing I can do is go out there and play.”

In losing, 95-92, to Brooklyn, the Sixers went 8-for-10 at the foul line, compared to 21-for-30 by the Nets. The Sixers have been outscored by 110 points at the free-throw line this season, more than any other team in the NBA.

The Sixers, who continue their roadtrip Wednesday in Memphis, are at a crossroads. They rank 29th in the NBA in free throw attempts, leading only Orlando in opportunities from the line. Without Andrew Bynum, a post player who has a propensity for drawing fouls, or a slashing shooting guard (Jason Richardson, at this stage of his career, just doesn't fit that bill), the Sixers are kind of out of options.

So what are they to do – have Evan Turner sacrifice his burgeoning mid-range game to drive and draw contact? Have Holiday drop the selfless act by passing less and shooting more? Have Dorell Wright take on some of that responsibility?

“You've got to do what you've got to do,” Wright said. “There are a lot of games that we play that are close games. If we lose by six or seven and the other team is beating us at the free-throw line. If fewer of those shots are in the paint, or we're getting to the free-throw line, we can take some games and beat some teams.”

Doing what the Sixers have to do does not involve technical fouls or fines from the league office, though.

“I have to be real careful because I don't want to give away my holiday money,” Sixers coach Doug Collins said. “I have to be real careful. We have to continue to get in there and find a way.”

Added Wright: “I only think I have three techs in my career, and the reason why is I know they're not going to change the call. The only thing you can do is go up to them nicely and say, 'Hey, you missed that,' or 'Hey, what was that?' You've just got to deal with it and do what you can to sell that you got fouled without flopping so you don't get fined – because I'm not trying to get fined.”

*      *      *      *      *      *      *

EDITORIAL NOTE: Gang, I took some time off -- in conjunction with the holidays and the Sixers' West Coast roadtrip. I'll next be blogging (barring breaking news) from Oklahoma City for the tail-end of the eight-game stay away from Philly. So enjoy the holidays, be safe and check back with the blog in the near future. Cheers!

(Associated Press)

HOUSTON – Before Tuesday's game, the first of the Sixers' Texas two-step, Kwame Brown detailed what's been nagging him.

First on that list is playing time. After that, it all kind of blends together: a bum shoulder, a once-torn pec muscle, a strained calf, and a recently tweaked knee.

Brown, who's rode the bench for more minutes than he's played this month, earned his third straight start in Tuesday's loss at Dallas. Wednesday here in Houston, Brown figures to start again. He said he's earned. His numbers indicate he hasn't.

“It's tough to sit 12 games and then come out and start. Nothing prepares you for the game like the game,” Brown said the other day. “I've done the treadmill, weight-lifting and running. I'm getting there. The more game experience I get will be better for me and for the team down the road.”

The Sixers are in a rut. They've lost four in a row for the first time this season, and it's because they've been unable to score the way coach Doug Collins would like.

Because they don't have Andrew Bynum, they can't play out of the half-court because it doesn't free up nearly enough 3-point opportunities. They also can't play out of the post, either, with Brown and Lavoy Allen teaming to post offensively anemic numbers out of the center spot. The Sixers were outscored in the paint, 16-2, in the first quarter at Dallas and never recovered from it.

Here's what the Sixers are getting out of their starting centers: An average of 21.7 minutes, 5.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and less than a steal, a block and an assist per game.

That's not good, by the way.

By comparison, Bynum averaged 35.2 minutes, 18.7 points and 11.8 rebounds per game last season, when he was healthy. This season, some of the league's most-dominant centers are posting similar numbers. The Lakers' Dwight Howard is averaging 36.7/18.1/12.2; the Cavaliers' Anderson Varejao is averaging 36.0/14.1/14.4; and the Grizzlies' Zach Randolph is averaging 36.2/17.2/12.7.

The production – if you want to call it that – the Sixers are getting from their centers is not even in the same realm.

Allen's been a shadow of the guy who turned heads as a rookie in the postseason a year ago, upstaging Boston's Kevin Garnett at times. Allen got five minutes in end-of-the-quarter scenarios against the Mavericks. And in Brown, the Sixers weren't counting on much from the 12-year veteran. They expected him to play solid defense and rebound. And, for the most part, he's done that. Brown had seven boards against the Mavs, and seems to take pride in his defending.

“I can do whatever they need me to do. I'll figure it out,” Brown said. “I've played long enough. I'm not going to let a guy beat me. If you take it personally, you'll figure something out.”

The Sixers have to figure out what they can do to generate offense in the paint until Bynum returns, because Brown and Allen simply aren't cutting it.

(Associated Press)

Sunday night, the Sixers blamed their 111-98 loss to the Lakers on 3-point shooting and their inability to defend the line. Nick Young said the Lakers made “unbelievable shots.” Evan Turner said they “hit crazy shots.”

No matter the adjective, the Lakers hit shots – 14 of them from 3-point range. That was far too many, and Doug Collins knew it.

“They spread you, they shoot the 3s. That's what (Lakers coach) Mike D'Antoni has always done,” the Sixers coach said Sunday. “Unfortunately, right now, we are struggling mightily to defend the 3.”

However, it wasn't the Lakers' on-the-mark shooting from beyond the arc that single-handedly sank the Sixers. Despite hitting 10 3-pointers against Los Angeles, the Sixers haven't been the most-adroit team in that category of late.

Consider this: The Sixers, in eight games this month, are shooting 27 percent (33-for-122) from 3-point range. Not coincidentally, the Sixers have a 2-6 record in December. They're also a 7-3 ballclub when they shoot 40 percent or better from 3-point distance.

It's not like one guy's production has tailed off, either. Like an epidemic, the Sixers collectively have been unable to dial in from long distance. Jason Richardson, the team leader in 3-pointers is shooting 26 percent (10-for-38) this month. Dorell Wright, a one-time season leader in 3-pointers made, is shooting 18.7 percent (3-for-16) in December. Turner, an on-the-rise perimeter shooter who's already made more 3-pointers this season than all of last, has only eight makes this month. And Jrue Holiday, who has missed the last two games, is hitting 16.7 percent (3-for-18) of his looks from 3-point range.

The Sixers (12-12), who begin a two-game Texas roadtrip Tuesday in Dallas, were supposed to be a 3-point-shooting team, especially in transition. At least that's how Collins envisioned them in the preseasons. Since then, they've had to rely on a shaky half-court offense that has left their 3-point shooters at a loss. The Sixers are in the middle or toward the back of the NBA stat pack when it comes to 3-pointers: 14th in percentage, 19th in makes, 22nd in attempts. The Mavericks, by the way, rank ninth in the NBA in defending the 3.

Following the loss to the Lakers, plenty of focus by the Sixers – and rightfully so – was placed on their need to defend the 3-point line. Perhaps just as much attention should be placed on scoring from there.

(Associated Press)

At one point in the second quarter, when Kobe Bryant dribbled right past one defender, dribbled left past another and found Chris Duhon in the corner for an open 3-pointer, Doug Collins lost it.

The 76ers' coach had seen enough. Collins jumped from his seat on the bench Sunday and began shouting ... just in time for the Sixers to take a double-digit deficit into the locker rooms at halftime. Two quarters later, the Sixers had lost to the Los Angeles Lakers, 111-98.

Collins thinks poor communication -- on offense and defense -- is the reason for the Sixers' three-game losing streak.

“Talking. Guys not talking," Collins said. "I talked to them this morning at shootaround. Until we want to embrace that and talk, we're going to be on roller skates. Whether it be speed, whether it be (getting to) the right spot, whether it be getting back, whatever. Until we start communicating on the floor together – we've got seven new guys. We've got to start to get to know one another. It's interesting – the Lakers were doing to us on the 3-point line what we had planned on doing, the running and jumping that we had worked on. But you've got to trust one another."

The Lakers (11-14) dominated the game at the 3-point line, where they knocked down 14 shots. In short, the Sixers (12-12) made the Lakers look like the Lakers, the team everybody had expected to outrun everybody else to an NBA title.

Evan Turner offered this as a solution to the Sixers' inability to speak to one another.

“We've got to get better at it – maybe communicating louder," Turner said.

In case you think the Sixers have been inept of late offensively from the 3-point line, they've been even worse defending from there. They've shot 33-for-122 (.270) from beyond the arc this month. Defensively, they've allowed teams to shoot 31-for-86 (.360) from there. (More on that Monday.)

So maybe communicating isn't the only issue with the Sixers.

(Associated Press)

The Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant needs 13 points Wednesday night to become the fifth player in NBA history to eclipse the 30,000-point mark.

Sixers coach Doug Collins, who has coached one of those five, knows it takes a special talent to reach that milestone. Collins picked up a unique perspective on that mark when he coached Michael Jordan, both in Chicago and Washington.

“You have to have incredible talent and you have to have – this is what I always talk about (with) greatness: greatness answers the bell every night. I saw it with Michael Jordan," Collins said following the Sixers' practice at PCOM. "Michael Jordan was not allowed to come and have a so-so game. He not only had to throw up a huge game, but he had to do something spectacular that people were talking about going home. There’s a mindset you have. Kobe wants to play all 82 games, he never wants to miss. That’s a badge of courage for him. It was always for Michael. I think when Michael was 40, on my team, he was the only person that played all 82 games. That’s important to be there every night for your team."

Collins also spoke of the personal level on which he knows Bryant, who was born the same year as Collins' daughter Kelly. Collins was a teammate of Joe "Jellybean" Bryant, Kobe's father, at the time of their childrens' births, so "I've watched Kobe grow." 

Collins said there's something to be appreciated in the work ethic of players like Bryant and Jordan, especially in how Jordan scored his 30,000th point, how he elevated his play after ending an 866-game streak of scoring in double figures.

(Associated Press)

"He and Michael remind me so much of each other," Collins said. "...I had Michael with Washington (in 2001-02) and he came off that eight-point game in Indiana (actually a career-low six) that broke that long, long streak. He came back his next night and had 51 against Jersey, then I think he had 45 against Charlotte, and then we played Chicago and – double-check – but I think he got his 30,000th point, I think Ron Artest fouled him, and he hit two free throws to get his 30,000th point when I was coaching him. I remember Ron Artest standing in front of our bench and punching the scorething or whatever and saying he did not want Michael to get his 30,000th point against him or whatever."

(Associated Press)

(Associated Press)

At his locker, answering questions about his career-best performance, Jrue Holiday was clutching a DVD of footage from Sunday's win over Phoenix.

It happens all the time, that Holiday will watch game tape right after the game has concluded. And from this one, Sixers coach Doug Collins wanted him to see one particular play.

Collins said Holiday's penchant for shooting leaners, preferring to jump sideways instead of up and down (pictured here) prevents Holiday from drawing fouls and getting to the free throw line.

“One of the things I’m going to show Jrue on tape a little bit is he’s picking up his dribble one dribble too soon going to the basket, so what’s ended up happening is he’s not high-jumping," Collins said. "He’s jumping sideways. When he jumps sideways, he’s shooting the ball over his shoulder and referees are not going to give him that foul because he’s the one leaning in. So we have to work with him. Grant Hill did that in Detroit. You have to take one more dribble and make sure you get contact. Once Jrue does that – what did he have, eight free throws today? – he can be shooting eight, 10 free throws every game. We’ll show him tape on that."

And Holiday knows it, too. After his 33-point, 13-assist performance, he said his inability to draw fouls could be the thing that keeps him from taking his game to the next level.

“To get to the next level, I do need to get to the free throw line more. Taking that extra dribble, because I take off so far (away), it’ll give me a better chance of getting to that guy’s body. The ones tonight, where I made the initial contact, that’s not a foul. That’s because I took from so far (away). If I take that extra dribble, and go up straight trying to get that contact, that’s what he’s talking about. Yeah, Lou Williams. He’s always at the free throw line. Even though some of them didn’t look like fouls, didn’t look like contact, he’s always there."

(That being said, I took the liberty of looking into trips to the foul line taken by a handful of the league's finer point guards this season, and Holiday's on par with all of them. Holiday has attempted 52 FT. While Chris Paul (66) and Deron Williams (60) have launched more, Rajon Rondo (31) and Greivis Vasquez have taken fewer.)

(Associated Press)

The 76ers are too predictable.

It's not as though Sixers coach Doug Collins came out Friday and said as much. But he understands that, without Andrew Bynum, his team's offensive gameplan revolves around taking outside looks.

It doesn't have to be, however, Collins said.

Collins said it'll take a concerted effort on the parts of Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner, the Sixers' primary ballhandlers, to keep the bigs involved.

And that doesn't even necessarily involve scoring. Collins said he wants his post players to get touches. Lobbing the ball into the paint, to guys like Thad Young, Lavoy Allen, Kwame Brown and Spencer Hawes, gives the illusion that the inside-out game is still in play. It creates open looks on the perimeter and improves the Sixers' play in the post at the same time.

"Our big guys haven't been touching the ball," Collins said Friday, after practice at PCOM. "That doesn't mean necessarily touch to score, but they have to feel the ball to make a play -- either out of the post or we've got to start threatening, rather than just being a perimeter team that runs East to West and just makes long jumpshots all day. We talked about that. Let's have the big guys touch the ball some. That'll encourage them to do the grunt work we're asking them to do."

Even though Collins wasn't directly referring to touching the ball in order to produce offense, I took the liberty of looking up some of the offensive numbers for the Sixers' bigs. They're not good:

Brown is shooting 5-for-8 at the rim and 0-for-4 from 3-to-9 feet. Allen is 12-for-18 at the rim, 4-for-18 from 3-to-9 feet. Hawes is 16-for-26 at the rim, 2-for-12 from 3-to-9 feet. Young is 41-for-59 at the rim, 14-for-37 from 3-to-9 feet.

From those spots on the floor, post players should dominate. Instead the Sixers are foundering. Those four are shooting a collective 74-for-111 at the rim (.667 field-goal percentage), and an abysmal 20-for-71 from 3-to-9 feet (.282 percentage).

"Big guys get discouraged. It's human nature," Collins said. "We had a great practice today. Our bigs were active, the best they've been. I hope that carries over (to Saturday against visiting Oklahoma City). We've got to make a conscious effort that they've got to be a part of what we're doing."

(Associated Press)

In the first 47 minutes, the Sixers had two free-throw attempts Friday night. In the last 60 seconds, they chucked up eight freebies.

The Sixers' 99-93 win over Utah was won from the floor, not the foul line. It was the fourth time this season that one of their opponents had as many or more free throws made as the Sixers had attemped.

A sign that the refs had swallowed the whistles? Or that the Sixers aren't getting to the rim nearly enough?

“Man, we’re trying. We’re trying," Sixers point guard Jrue Holiday said Saturday, following a brief practice at PCOM. "We’re out there and I think we make contact. Last night, we did shoot the ball a lot more. We didn’t really take it into the paint as much as we usually do. I really do think we try to get in there and try to get some calls."

Here's one for the road: The Sixers rank 21st in free-throws made (130) and 23rd in free-throws attempted (168). Judge for yourselves, folks.