To be in the Philadelphia area and know the story and then to listen and read national opinions of this team's recent resurgence is somewhat head shaking. To the entire NBA public outside of Philadelphia, the 76ers trip back to the winning side of the tracks had everything to do with Elton Brand being hurt and out of the lineup which in turn allowed the Sixers to develop chemistry without having to worry about giving the high paid free agent a dominant amount of touches on the offensive end. This opinion is False with a capital F but because Philly is winning, people who have this opinion actually believe they discovered the reason for the 76ers poor early season play. 

The theory also says that keeping Brand happy offensively swayed Philadelphia from their more aptly suited up-tempo style to a methodical half court team. Again, great theory which can certainly be fitted right into this situation, but it is not the real truth behind the 76ers miserable start and subsequent resurgence. Tony DiLeo the 76ers new head coach is being applauded for developing what ex-HC Maurice Cheeks couldn't but that's incorrect as well because Philly insiders to a man knew since the day he was fired that Cheeks was probably on the verge of getting the Sixers to play this very same way. The real deal is fairly simplistic and Cheeks just wasn't allowed the time to see through what he started right before being canned. We as handicappers all know that on the court chemistry is crucial to NBA success and when you bring someone new into your lineup (Brand) it sometimes takes a little tinkering to get things right.

In the case of the 76ers early season woes, Maurice Cheeks' decision to start his best five players was the problem. What it did was it placed both Andres (Miller and Iguodala) as the starting backcourt and that became a recipe for disaster. Opponents figured out that neither one of the guards could shoot the ball with any consistency whatsoever and they simple sagged on Brand and allowed the pair of crooked marksmen to shoot all they wanted. Neither one made anybody pay for this and Philly's point production steadily decreased to where it became embarrassing. The team still had the same make-up as last season's playoff team because the second unit was the one responsible for the bulk of the energy and fast pace exhibited in their playoff run and these guys were still forcing tempo. Cheeks recognized the problem and two or three games before he got fired, he inserted a pure shooter (Willie Green) into the starting lineup. The move wasn't made because Green is an NBA caliber starting two-guard, but because Green's ability from the perimeter would force opponents to honor his shooting and stop sagging on Brand.

Before Cheeks could benefit from the rewards of this move, he was fired. Tony DiLeo stepped into this situation set up by Cheeks which after early season evaluation was the correct strategic move and has since made him look good. Elton Brand's injury coincides with the linup move and makes it look as if he was the problem. We must also note that all of this happened right as the Sixers entered a soft spot in their schedule. Chances are very good that if Mo Cheeks had been left as head coach, Philadelphia would be playing this well right now, and chances are that if Elton Brand had never been hurt, Philadelphia would've been playing this well right now.

Since day one, Brand has never demanded to be the focal point of the offense and last night he returned to the floor. The problem all along for this team was the off-guard positon and not Elton Brand or Mo Cheeks. If Iguodala or Miller could shoot at all, neither would've ever been questioned. I got to see this team first hand Monday afternoon against Dallas and with a live view, these things are apparent. So start, the Mavericks had zero respect for Andre Miller's perimeter game and they left him wide open to shoot. While Miller is still great at running a team, Philly is much more dynamic when Lou Williams is at the point guard spot. He's not the assist guy Miller is, but he's an offensive force from anywhere on the floor. It's tough to play them together because the Sixers become very small. Trading Miller for a legit two-guard should be at the top of Philadelphia's to do list. Also, Mavs owner Mark Cuban is like a fan at a little league baseball game. You know, the kind that screams "swing batter, batter, batter" as the pitcher releases the ball. I saw Cuban standing up from his seat behind the Dallas bench and screaming "shoot it, shoot it" at 76ers center Samuel Dalembert whenever he touched the ball. Lastly, Philly is in the offensive groove that Mo Cheeks laid the groundwork for and I feel that Elton brand will only enhance that. Give DiLeo credit for taking the ball and running with it, and now with Brand back, he should now be able to guide Philly into the playoffs.

For more NBA betting analysis by Rob Veno, go to www.sportsmemo.com.