76ers Struggling to Defend Title

The Philadelphia 76ers already had 42 victories last season when they lost their 16th game at the end of February. They lost No. 16 on Christmas Day this year.

With five games remaining in a seven-game trip out West, the defending Eastern Conference champions were just 12-16 heading into the weekend. It could get even uglier by the time they return home to play on Jan. 7.

Allen Iverson, the NBA MVP last season, isn’t playing close to his level of last season. Dikembe Mutombo’s offensive deficiencies have been a liability. Matt Harpring hasn’t fit into the offense. Derrick Coleman still isn’t in shape, and Matt Geiger’s retirement last month left a void on the bench.

Most disturbing for the Sixers is that they’ve been outhustled in some games. This clearly isn’t the same team that captivated fans last season with its grit, determination and pint-sized leader, Iverson.

“The lack of effort has been a shock to me,” coach Larry Brown said.

Philadelphia’s troubles began when Iverson and Aaron McKie, the league’s Sixth Man of the Year, waited until a week before training camp to have surgery.

Iverson didn’t return until the sixth game of the season after an operation on his right elbow. McKie, who had shoulder surgery, missed the first four games. At the same time, point guard Eric Snow was out with a broken thumb.

The injuries, and offseason trades that sent Tyrone Hill to Cleveland and George Lynch to Charlotte, left Brown with just one player--Mutombo--who started in the NBA Finals. With all the new players and injuries, it has been difficult to build chemistry.

“There’s no communication out there,” McKie said earlier this month. “We’re not relying on each other. Everybody’s just trying to do their own thing. That’s why we keep losing.”

A strong defense was a key to Philadelphia’s success last year. Now the team has trouble in defensive transition, gambles too much, and doesn’t get crucial stops.

“Their defense is not as talented,” Milwaukee Bucks coach George Karl said. “Tyrone Hill and George Lynch were really tough defenders and hustlers and really made us work. Last year, they had a way of beating us with their defense.”

The Sixers, who won a franchise-best 10 straight games to start last season, opened 0-5 before winning seven in a row. But a seven-game losing streak soon followed, capped by a 16-point loss to the Bucks at home on Dec. 14.

Brown held a breakfast meeting the next morning in Cleveland to redefine roles and build confidence. It spurred victories over the Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics, but then came a disturbing 94-85 loss to Charlotte.

“We have to come to grips with deciding how important it is to defend,” Brown said before earning his 800th victory as an NBA coach against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday. “We’ve talked about transition baskets, not turning it over, getting to the free throw line, taking high-percentage shots, but we’re not doing it on a consistent basis.

“I don’t know if we’re just not a good defensive team, or if we just don’t approach it with the same kind of intensity that we need to. You don’t have very good defense if you take bad shots or turn the ball over. No matter how good you are defensively, it’s not going to be enough. So we’ll just have to see. I think everybody is aware of what we need to do. We just have to go out and do it.”

Iverson leads the league in scoring at 28.4 points a game, but he was shooting a career-low 38.8 percent through 28 games. In many games, Iverson has reverted to his old self, taking too many shots early in the shot clock, failing to pass the ball and involve his teammates.

“Guys are not attacking, not taking the ball to the basket,” Iverson said following the loss in Charlotte.

After resolving their differences last year, Iverson and Brown haven’t always been in agreement this season.

Brown wasn’t thrilled that Iverson didn’t practice --his elbow limits his availability --a day after the loss to Charlotte on Dec. 19. Iverson then didn’t show up for practice on Sunday, but Brown later said there was confusion about the start time.

The Sixers got a break when they started this road trip against the Los Angeles Lakers, who were missing an injured Shaquille O’Neal. But Philadelphia wasted a 13-point fourth quarter lead, and lost 88-82 in a rematch of last year’s finals.

“Those were the kinds of games we won last year,” Iverson said.