Philadelphia 76ers Blog – Page 38 – NBA Blog

Wizards keep struggling, fall to Sixers

Wizards keep struggling, fall to Sixers

Here’s the Washington Post reporting on the Wizards, who are dropping games left and right these days and are 33-26 for the season and losers of six games in a row:

No, the Washington Wizards had not reached their lowest possible point Wednesday, when they lost by 20 to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the worst team in the Western Conference.

On Friday night, the Wizards sank even more with an 89-81 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, a franchise constructed to lose to land the best draft pick possible.

The loss, the Wizards’ sixth straight, earned Washington its longest losing streak in more than two seasons and was a full face plant into misery, code red for a team that just a month ago harbored title aspirations.

The defeat came on the heels of a team dinner Thursday, when all 14 players dined together at a Brazilian steakhouse. It was captured in an Instagram post by Marcin Gortat with the caption “Team dinner….Staying together!”

A night later, they were dreadful in a loss to a team they dismantled by 35 points in their previous meeting. The loss was Wizards’ 11th in 13 games and 13th in 17.

Sixers add Thomas Robinson, release Tim Frazier

Sixers add Thomas Robinson, release Tim Frazier

The Brooklyn Nets had reportedly planned to sign forward Thomas Robinson once he cleared waivers. But the Philadelphia 76ers decided not to let that happen.

The Sixers announced today the team has claimed forward Thomas Robinson off of waivers.

Robinson has appeared in 172 career games in three NBA seasons and has posted averages of five points and four rebounds in 14 minutes per game. He was selected fifth overall in the 2012 NBA Draft after a junior season in which he was named Big 12 Player of the Year and a consensus First Team All-American.

In a related move, the team has released Tim Frazier from his second 10-day contract.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, “the Sixers picked Robinson up as a way to get an up-close look at him to see if he fits in their long-term plans The 6-foot-9, 240-pounder out of Kansas was the fifth overall pick by the Sacramento Kings in the 2012 NBA draft. Robinson was traded to the Houston Rockets on Feb. 20, 2013 and then to the Blazers on July 10, 2013. He averaged 4.6 points and 4.4 rebounds in 172 games played.”

JaVale McGee hopes to stay with Sixers

JaVale McGee hopes to stay with Sixers

New Philadelphia 76ers center JaVale McGee has averaged 8.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game over his NBA career, though he’s received little playing time this season and hasn’t contributed much. But that was on the Denver Nuggets. There’s room for him to step up at least a little on the very-rebuilding Sixers, if given a shot. Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting:

Center JaVale McGee wants to remain with the 76ers for the rest of the season and beyond.

The Sixers, at least for the time being, are committed to giving him every opportunity to do just that.

“We are coming into this whole thing with an open mind,” coach Brett Brown said Sunday after the team’s morning shootaround at the Amway Center. “He is around a bunch of genuine people, coaches that care. That will give him every chance to keep moving and to be as good as he can be.

“And if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. But it’s not going to be on us.”

Sixers sign Ish Smith, waive Malcolm Thomas

Sixers sign Ish Smith, waive Malcolm Thomas

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that the team has signed guard Ishmael “Ish” Smith.

Smith has appeared in 221 career NBA games and owns career averages of three points, two assists and over one rebound per game. He was selected by the Delaware 87ers during the team’s expansion draft in August, 2013.

Smith finished at Wake Forest as the first player in school history to record 1,000 points, 500 assists and 400 rebounds in a career.

In a related move, the Sixers have waived forward Malcolm Thomas.

Sixers continue to focus on future, not present

Sixers continue to focus on future, not present

Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting on the 76ers, who in their quest to build for the future have now tossed point guard Michael Carter-Williams away:

The Sixers made three trades, the first of which was easy enough to understand. They basically paid the Denver Nuggets $16 million for center JaVale McGee and a first-round draft pick. It was exactly the kind of trade everyone would expect the Sixers to make Thursday. They needed to get above the salary floor anyway, and McGee’s $11.25 million salary this season will help them do that.

Now, the Carter-Williams deal. For last season’s rookie of the year, Hinkie acquired the Los Angeles Lakers’ 2015 first-round pick – a valuable pick that’s protected if the Lakers land in one of the top five spots in this year’s draft and one of the top three spots in the 2016 draft. It’s likely that the Lakers will retain the pick this year, but think about 2016: The Lakers will probably improve, but are they going to improve so much, by 30 victories or more, that they catapult themselves out of the lottery and into the playoffs? Unlikely in the grueling Western Conference.

Next year, then, the odds are excellent that the Sixers will have a pick between No. 4 and No. 14 – in addition to their own first-round pick. Carter-Williams is 24, was the 11th-overall pick, and already had seen his value drop from last season, based on his poor shooting, his turnover-prone play, and the questions (dating to last season) of whether he was tough enough to be an exceptional NBA point guard.

Three-team trade sends Brandon Knight to Suns, Michael Carter-Williams to Bucks

The Phoenix Suns today completed a deal to acquire guard Brandon Knight from the Milwaukee Bucks in a three-team trade also involving the Philadelphia 76ers. The Suns also acquired guard Kendall Marshall, who will be waived. As part of the deal, the Suns send guard Tyler Ennis and center Miles Plumlee to the Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers’ protected 2015 first-round pick to the 76ers; the Bucks also receive guard Michael Carter-Williams from Philadelphia.

The 23-year-old Knight is a fourth-year pro who joins the Suns in the midst of a career year, averaging 17.8 points, a career-high 5.4 assists, career-high 4.3 rebounds and career-high 1.6 steals, while shooting career-highs of 43.5 percent from the field and 40.9 percent from three-point range as he has started all 52 games with the Bucks in 2014-15. Knight departs Milwaukee as the leader in scoring and assists for a team that entered the All-Star break seven games over .500 and with 30 first-half victories after winning 15 total games in 2013-14.

Originally the eighth overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft by Detroit, Knight played the first two seasons of his career with the Pistons before being acquired by the Bucks along with Khris Middleton and Slava Kravtsov in exchange for Brandon Jennings on July 31, 2013. An All-Rookie First-Team selection in 2011-12, Knight holds career averages of 15.3 points, 4.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.00 steals in 265 games (256 starts) with the Bucks and Pistons.

An athletic 6-3 guard who boasts a nearly 6-7 wingspan, Knight was a collegiate standout in one season at the University of Kentucky in 2010-11. Knight earned All-SEC Second-Team honors after setting Kentucky freshman records in scoring and three-point field goals made. Knight was named the NCAA East Region Most Outstanding Player after helping the Wildcats reach the Final Four for the first time since 1998, ending the longest Final Four drought in the prestigious program’s history.

Philadelphia receives the Lakers’ protected 2015 first-round pick from the Suns in the deal. Phoenix initially acquired the draft pick from the Lakers as part of the sign-and-trade that sent Steve Nash to Los Angeles on July 11, 2012.

Meet Franklin, the new Philadelphia 76ers mascot

Meet Franklin, the new Philadelphia 76ers mascot

The Philadelphia 76ers today introduced their new team mascot, Franklin, at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, where more than 300 area children welcomed “Sixers fan’s best friend.” Franklin, a blue dog with perky ears and wagging tail, wears a Sixers uniform with his signature paw in place of a jersey number.

“Franklin’s debut has been long-awaited by Sixers fans, and we could not be more pleased with his reception from the children in attendance at today’s unveiling,” said Sixers Chief Marketing & Innovation Officer Tim McDermott. “Bringing to life our franchise’s new mascot has been a collaborative, kid-focused process from the start that involved more than 1,000 children, Sixers Season Ticket Members and 40-plus designs. We’re looking forward to showing him off to the city over the next 10 days as we lead up to his in-game debut on Friday, February 20.”

Franklin’s official backstory from the Sixers

When the Philadelphia 76ers decided they needed a new mascot, they knew it had to be ‘FOR KIDS, BY KIDS.’ And so they created a kids-only Chief Design Team to lead the way and find their new mascot.

The Chief Designers worked night and day to find a mascot that was Philadelphia through and through, who loved the game of basketball, and who could be their biggest friend and fan at every Sixers game.

As they dug through piles of books, watched movies and spoke with Philadelphians far and wide, along with more than 1,000 kids, they found a common thread…a special creature…whose ancestors had been a part of the city’s history from the start.

When George Washington crossed the Delaware, a blue tail was wagging in the boat.

When our nation’s forefathers signed the Declaration of Independence, a blue paw was found on the scroll.

A blue mouth dragged Ben Franklin to safety after he was struck by lightning and discovered electricity.

A furry blue flash ran alongside Rocky Balboa, and put two paws in the air when he reached the top of the Art Museum steps.

But what made this creature even more interesting to the Chief Designers was that his ancestors loved basketball just as much as the city.

There were tiny teeth marks in the paper Wilt Chamberlain held for the cameras after his historic 100-point game.

Blue paws were seen pacing behind the Sixers bench in the days of Dr. J.

Perky blue ears were in the stands when Allen Iverson made Sixers fans roar.

The designers were convinced that this creature, if they could find it today, might be the mascot they’d been looking for all this time.

They took a break from their research to play some basketball at the arena…and found tiny blue scratch marks on the court….then bits of blue fur…and then, peeking around the corner of the Sixers’ locker room, the Chief Designers saw eyes looking up at them from a blue furry creature.

They’d found it! The descendant of these great blue creatures had come to live at the Center!

The Chief Designers showed the creature to the team, and everyone loved it. The Sixers decided to adopt it as their new mascot, and gave it a special jersey to wear with its new name: FRANKLIN.

And today, it’s time to introduce all of you to your new Sixers mascot, whose family has been a part of Philadelphia and Sixers history for generations, who loves the game of basketball and is so excited to meet its new best friends, little Sixers fans!

Sixers sign Tim Frazier to 10-day contract

Sixers sign Tim Frazier to 10-day contract

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced they have signed guard Tim Frazier to a 10-day contract. Frazier is the 31st Call-Up of the 2014-15 NBA Development League season.

In 27 games with 26 starts for the Maine Red Claws of the D-League this season, Frazier averaged 16 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals. At the time of his call-up, Frazier ranked third in the D-League in assists and tied for fourth in steals. A two-time D-League Performer of the Week, Frazier was also selected to the D-League All-Star Game and earned 2015 NBA D-League Showcase Third Team honors.

Back in July, Frazier competed for the Sixers in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, appearing in five games with four starts. Frazier also saw action in four preseason games for Boston before signing with the Celtics D-League affiliate, Maine.

Frazier was eligible for the 2014 NBA Draft following a standout career at Penn State. He finished his career as the Lions all-time leader in assists and became the second player in conference history to record 1,000 points, 600 assists and 500 rebounds. Former Sixer Calvin Booth, who finished his career in 2008-09, was the last Penn State player in the NBA.

Sixers name Chad Biggs Senior VP of Corporate Development and Activation

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced that Chad Biggs has been named Senior Vice President of Corporate Development & Activation, effective immediately. In this role, Biggs will oversee all corporate partnership sales, retention and activation for the team’s burgeoning roster of partners, which includes Philadelphia 76ers Patriot Partners StubHub, partypoker, DraftKings and the Rothman Institute at Jefferson.

“Chad has been at the forefront of revolutionizing corporate partnerships in sports throughout his career, something we are entirely committed to doing here at the Sixers,” said Sixers Chief Revenue Officer Chris Heck. “With a broad base of experience spanning corporations, agencies and the NBA’s New York and China offices, we believe he will lead our outstanding team to even greater success as we create mutually-beneficial partnership solutions this season and beyond.”

Tony Wroten to see specialist

Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting on a key member of the Sixers’ backcourt:

76ers backup point guard Tony Wroten will fly to California Wednesday morning to see a specialist about his sprained right knee..

“We need more information to deliver something to the media and to Tony, you know, that he can follow through with.”

Wroten will miss his fifth-consecutive game when the Sixers (8-33) entertain the New York Knicks (6-36) Wednesday at Wells Fargo Center. This is the third time he’s been sidelined with the injury this season.