You hear about how unselfish the 76ers are playing with broken ankles, fingers, etc. But you have to wonder if Philadelphia’s unselfishness is true unselfishness or simply a love of the spot-light. The love of the game compels you to try to do the impossible for your team. Look at Troy Aikman in football. He just does not want to face reality and admit that he is hurting the team. I was impressed by Mat Geiger in game one, shooting 5 of 7 and keeping Philadelphia in the game, which they finally won. His buckets were solid, his shooting was amazing. This guy was in control of his emotions, poised, and doing a great job.

In game two, which they lost, if you were to pick the point when the 76ers’ fortunes went south, pick the moment in which Brown re-inserted Mutumbo into the game and took out Todd MacCulloch and Matt Geiger, towards the end of the second half. For whatever reason, the combination of those players (not sure if AI was in) was doing a great job, Geiger in particular. They were playing so well that I could not understand the rationale for making the change. Other than perhaps, Mutumbo was the starter and they had to get him back in. That hurt the 76ers more than anything else.

I do not have anything against Mutumbo. I love the guy and the way he is trying. But if Mutumbo was an unselfish player at that point, he should have said to Brown: Coach they are playing well, let's leave them a bit longer and see how things go. Geiger must be demoralized, thinking what do I have to do to get some respect around here.

In game three, Geiger went two-for-two. Why do they not have more plays for this guy? If Philadelphia hopes to win at all, they need to do a better job of recognizing their strengths and using them, otherwise it’s over. Heart, something a lot of players in Philadelphia have, does not put the ball in the basket. Geiger does.
 

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