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![Linsanely Overhyped? If you haven’t heard the story involving New York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin, you’re one of the few. In short, he’s the biggest story in the National Basketball Assocation right now, and probably in a long while. The 2010 Harvard graduate who went undrafted and who has been waived by the Warriors and Rockets in his short NBA career, has taken the Big Apple by storm. Since scoring 25 points February 5 against New Jersey, it’s been a 16-day media storm and Lin has continued to impress, contributing 28 points and 14 assists Sunday against the defending champion Dallas Mavericks. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only four players since the NBA-ABA merger — Bernard King, Shaquille O’Neal, Brandon Jennings and Michael Jordan — have scored more points in their first eight career starts than Lin’s 200.
But it’s more than basketball. As one of the few Asian-Americans in NBA history, his story has become a global sensation. He’s already been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, Time Magazine (international edition) and more publications, featured on every major news outlet and even parodied on this week’s Saturday Night Live. Oh, and there’s that rumor that Kim Kardashian wants to date him (a rumor that Lin denies, but which Bodog has put 5/1 odds on before the end of the NBA finals, via The20’s @dhm).
As SI’s Pablo Torre put it in last week’s cover story,
“Nothing, anywhere, has ever resembled the ascendance of Jeremy Shu-How Lin, a legend seemingly pulled from the imagination of a goosefleshed David Stern, if not Disney’s most hyperbolic global marketing exec.”
But is Lin being overhyped? Philly sports analyst Garry “G” Cobb weighed in on his blog Friday, essentially saying that because Lin plays in New York City and ESPN wants to hype him up, he’s getting too much attention.
“I am telling you Lin is going to have his own update on the bottom line by next week on ESPN,’ Cobb writes. ‘Lin has just woke up from his nap and peed for 10 seconds. Then he had some Alphabets cereal right after.”
And Cobb is far from the only pundit in this conversation. Lin has played big minutes in only nine games to this point, and while his numbers don’t lie, is that too small of a sample size for all of this attention? Or is it deserved?
Weigh in below in the comments.
-LD
[ESPN, Saturday Night Live, @dhm, Sports Illustrated, GCobb.com]
Photo: Getty Images](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzpsfbVKLY1qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
Linsanely Overhyped? If you haven’t heard the story involving New York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin, you’re one of the few. In short, he’s the biggest story in the National Basketball Assocation right now, and probably in a long while. The 2010 Harvard graduate who went undrafted and who has been waived by the Warriors and Rockets in his short NBA career, has taken the Big Apple by storm. Since scoring 25 points February 5 against New Jersey, it’s been a 16-day media storm and Lin has continued to impress, contributing 28 points and 14 assists Sunday against the defending champion Dallas Mavericks. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only four players since the NBA-ABA merger — Bernard King, Shaquille O’Neal, Brandon Jennings and Michael Jordan — have scored more points in their first eight career starts than Lin’s 200.
But it’s more than basketball. As one of the few Asian-Americans in NBA history, his story has become a global sensation. He’s already been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, Time Magazine (international edition) and more publications, featured on every major news outlet and even parodied on this week’s Saturday Night Live. Oh, and there’s that rumor that Kim Kardashian wants to date him (a rumor that Lin denies, but which Bodog has put 5/1 odds on before the end of the NBA finals, via The20’s @dhm).
As SI’s Pablo Torre put it in last week’s cover story,
“Nothing, anywhere, has ever resembled the ascendance of Jeremy Shu-How Lin, a legend seemingly pulled from the imagination of a goosefleshed David Stern, if not Disney’s most hyperbolic global marketing exec.”
But is Lin being overhyped? Philly sports analyst Garry “G” Cobb weighed in on his blog Friday, essentially saying that because Lin plays in New York City and ESPN wants to hype him up, he’s getting too much attention.
“I am telling you Lin is going to have his own update on the bottom line by next week on ESPN,’ Cobb writes. ‘Lin has just woke up from his nap and peed for 10 seconds. Then he had some Alphabets cereal right after.”
And Cobb is far from the only pundit in this conversation. Lin has played big minutes in only nine games to this point, and while his numbers don’t lie, is that too small of a sample size for all of this attention? Or is it deserved?
Weigh in below in the comments.
-LD
[ESPN, Saturday Night Live, @dhm, Sports Illustrated, GCobb.com]
Photo: Getty Images
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![Are the Sixers Legit Contenders? “Clap your hands, everybody. For Philadelphia. Seventy-Sixers. Stomp your feet, everybody. For Philadelphia. Seventy-Sixers. Here they come, Philadelphia. On the run, stand up and cheer. Number one, Philadelphia. Here they come, team of the year.” Those opening lyrics to the Sixers old, but again new, theme song, “10, 9, 8 76ers,” seem to have folks interested again. Following another big win Wednesday night over first-place Chicago, the Internet is buzzing over just how good the 2011-12 76ers are playing. The win moves the Sixers to 16-6, second place in the Eastern Conference. A small sampling of some of the comments:
ProBasketballTalk.com’s Kevin Helin: “The 76ers are legit. That fast start wasn’t the soft schedule, they are a quality squad.”
The20’s @marclamonthill: “So NOW can y’all admit the Sixers are a quality team? We have the 2nd best record in the East & we just beat the team with the best record.”
From CSNPhilly.com’s John Finger: “If there ever was a victory that should make the NBA powerbrokers turn their heads and take notice of those Philadelphia 76ers, it most definitely was the 98-82 drubbing of the Bulls, Wednesday night.”
The20’s @meechone was short and sweet on Twitter: #DougCollins4CoachoftheYear”
We want to hear from you: Are the Sixers legit contenders?
-LD
[ProBasketballTalk, @marclamonthill, CSNPhilly, @meechone]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lyrw2rLebe1qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
Are the Sixers Legit Contenders? “Clap your hands, everybody. For Philadelphia. Seventy-Sixers. Stomp your feet, everybody. For Philadelphia. Seventy-Sixers. Here they come, Philadelphia. On the run, stand up and cheer. Number one, Philadelphia. Here they come, team of the year.” Those opening lyrics to the Sixers old, but again new, theme song, “10, 9, 8 76ers,” seem to have folks interested again. Following another big win Wednesday night over first-place Chicago, the Internet is buzzing over just how good the 2011-12 76ers are playing. The win moves the Sixers to 16-6, second place in the Eastern Conference. A small sampling of some of the comments:
ProBasketballTalk.com’s Kevin Helin: “The 76ers are legit. That fast start wasn’t the soft schedule, they are a quality squad.”
The20’s @marclamonthill: “So NOW can y’all admit the Sixers are a quality team? We have the 2nd best record in the East & we just beat the team with the best record.”
From CSNPhilly.com’s John Finger: “If there ever was a victory that should make the NBA powerbrokers turn their heads and take notice of those Philadelphia 76ers, it most definitely was the 98-82 drubbing of the Bulls, Wednesday night.”
The20’s @meechone was short and sweet on Twitter: #DougCollins4CoachoftheYear”
We want to hear from you: Are the Sixers legit contenders?
-LD
[ProBasketballTalk, @marclamonthill, CSNPhilly, @meechone]
Photo: Getty Images
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![Can Philly Embrace This Sixers Team? 15 days into a shortened NBA season, the Philadelphia 76ers are 5-2 (their best start since the 2000-2001 season), in first place and looking for a fifth straight win when they host Indiana in South Philadelphia Monday. How good have the 76ers been?
They lead the league in both offensive and defensive efficiency
They jumped from No. 15 to No. 7 in this week’s NBA.com Power Rankings
During their four-game winning streak, they’ve won by an average of 23.5 points per game
All of that being said, their only wins are against teams with losing records (with losses to Portland and Utah). As good as the Sixers have been, a hint of skepticism seems to overshadow the franchise (who share a division with the Knicks and Celtics, and a conference with Miami and Chicago). Moreover, it remains a struggle for the team to attract attention locally. From a Friday New York Times story titled “The Sixers Are Lovelorn in Philadelphia”:
“The Sixers, a middling team with no discernible on-court leader and few fans, made the playoffs last season, but they are overshadowed in this city by a love for the Eagles and the Flyers that seems to know no bounds, the depth of Big Five college basketball and the recent success of the Phillies, who have sold out 220 straight games.”
The Sixers face a good test tonight in the 6-2 Indiana Pacers in the first of a back-to-back-to-back stretch that also includes the Kings and a trip to Madison Square Garden. If they win the next three, the buzz may really pick up, but can the city full embrace the team without a certifiable star? Even Doug Collins admits that after 10 years of marketing Allen Iverson, it’s now a team game in Philly.
So weigh in: can Philly embrace the 2011-12 Sixers?
-LD
[NBA.com, NYTimes]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxjoq1bvu71qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
Can Philly Embrace This Sixers Team? 15 days into a shortened NBA season, the Philadelphia 76ers are 5-2 (their best start since the 2000-2001 season), in first place and looking for a fifth straight win when they host Indiana in South Philadelphia Monday. How good have the 76ers been?
- They lead the league in both offensive and defensive efficiency
- They jumped from No. 15 to No. 7 in this week’s NBA.com Power Rankings
- During their four-game winning streak, they’ve won by an average of 23.5 points per game
All of that being said, their only wins are against teams with losing records (with losses to Portland and Utah). As good as the Sixers have been, a hint of skepticism seems to overshadow the franchise (who share a division with the Knicks and Celtics, and a conference with Miami and Chicago). Moreover, it remains a struggle for the team to attract attention locally. From a Friday New York Times story titled “The Sixers Are Lovelorn in Philadelphia”:
“The Sixers, a middling team with no discernible on-court leader and few fans, made the playoffs last season, but they are overshadowed in this city by a love for the Eagles and the Flyers that seems to know no bounds, the depth of Big Five college basketball and the recent success of the Phillies, who have sold out 220 straight games.”
The Sixers face a good test tonight in the 6-2 Indiana Pacers in the first of a back-to-back-to-back stretch that also includes the Kings and a trip to Madison Square Garden. If they win the next three, the buzz may really pick up, but can the city full embrace the team without a certifiable star? Even Doug Collins admits that after 10 years of marketing Allen Iverson, it’s now a team game in Philly.
So weigh in: can Philly embrace the 2011-12 Sixers?
-LD
Photo: Getty Images
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![Hip-Hop is Dead in Philly. After receiving hundreds of notes and emails from fans asking for the ouster of the long-tenured mascot, Philly.com is reporting that the 76ers have listened to their fans and ended the Hip-Hop era. The Sixers PR team wouldn’t confirm or deny the news, but did say “keep your eyes and ears open.”
(10:45 official statement from Sixers PR): “The Philadelphia 76ers new Chief Executive Officer and co-Owner Adam Aron announced today that its rabbit mascot, Hip-Hop, informed the team’s new ownership group that he has fallen in love, married and will relocate to a rural part of Pennsylvania to start a family. He will therefore be unable to serve as the 76ers team mascot going forward, and will not again appear at a Sixers game.”
From Philly.com’s Rich Hoffman:
“A decade ago, with Allen Iverson as the face of the franchise and Pat Croce rappelling the Walt Whitman Bridge as the out-there owner, Hip Hop arrived as a replacement for another mascot, Big Shot (whose demise wasn’t exactly mourned, either, if memory serves). Big Shot was lumbering and dopey. Hip Hop was acrobatic and edgy. Then, it was the image they sought. But all of these years later, after all of the coaches and all of the losses, fans were nearly unanimous in the missives they sent to newsixersowner.com. Before the forum was closed, more than 6,500 comments were received on every conceivable Sixers topic, but hundreds focused specifically on the bunny.”
As @GonzoCSN explained in late October, calling for the rabbit’s ouster:
“Even in the late ‘90s, when baggy jeans and over-sized jerseys and the like were the standard youth uniform, Hip-Hop was a gross, embarrassing, obvious attempt to appeal to 20-somethings…Back when it was created – and for, oh, the first decade or so thereafter – Hip-Hop was a transparent and lame marketing ploy. Now it’s lame and stale, like the mascot version of planking.”
Where will the new mascot come from? Hoffman reports that “The task of coming up with a replacement for Hip Hop will fall to two firms specializing in the business. One is Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, which began as the workshop of the late creator of the Muppets. The other is Raymond Entertainment Group, whose founder is Dave Raymond, the original Phillie Phanatic.”
The20’s @dhm has his own suggestion:
“There is no other option: Pat Croce in a pirate costume must be the Sixers’ new mascot.”
We still long for the days of Big Shot (I mean, look at this Michael Jackson impersonation). Thoughts? Suggestions?
-LD
[Philly.com, @GonzoCSN, CSNPhilly, Youtube, @dhm]
Photo: Getty Images](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lv2g0jbcWT1qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
Hip-Hop is Dead in Philly. After receiving hundreds of notes and emails from fans asking for the ouster of the long-tenured mascot, Philly.com is reporting that the 76ers have listened to their fans and ended the Hip-Hop era. The Sixers PR team wouldn’t confirm or deny the news, but did say “keep your eyes and ears open.”
(10:45 official statement from Sixers PR): “The Philadelphia 76ers new Chief Executive Officer and co-Owner Adam Aron announced today that its rabbit mascot, Hip-Hop, informed the team’s new ownership group that he has fallen in love, married and will relocate to a rural part of Pennsylvania to start a family. He will therefore be unable to serve as the 76ers team mascot going forward, and will not again appear at a Sixers game.”
From Philly.com’s Rich Hoffman:
“A decade ago, with Allen Iverson as the face of the franchise and Pat Croce rappelling the Walt Whitman Bridge as the out-there owner, Hip Hop arrived as a replacement for another mascot, Big Shot (whose demise wasn’t exactly mourned, either, if memory serves). Big Shot was lumbering and dopey. Hip Hop was acrobatic and edgy. Then, it was the image they sought. But all of these years later, after all of the coaches and all of the losses, fans were nearly unanimous in the missives they sent to newsixersowner.com. Before the forum was closed, more than 6,500 comments were received on every conceivable Sixers topic, but hundreds focused specifically on the bunny.”
As @GonzoCSN explained in late October, calling for the rabbit’s ouster:
“Even in the late ‘90s, when baggy jeans and over-sized jerseys and the like were the standard youth uniform, Hip-Hop was a gross, embarrassing, obvious attempt to appeal to 20-somethings…Back when it was created – and for, oh, the first decade or so thereafter – Hip-Hop was a transparent and lame marketing ploy. Now it’s lame and stale, like the mascot version of planking.”
Where will the new mascot come from? Hoffman reports that “The task of coming up with a replacement for Hip Hop will fall to two firms specializing in the business. One is Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, which began as the workshop of the late creator of the Muppets. The other is Raymond Entertainment Group, whose founder is Dave Raymond, the original Phillie Phanatic.”
The20’s @dhm has his own suggestion:
“There is no other option: Pat Croce in a pirate costume must be the Sixers’ new mascot.”
We still long for the days of Big Shot (I mean, look at this Michael Jackson impersonation). Thoughts? Suggestions?
-LD
[Philly.com, @GonzoCSN, CSNPhilly, Youtube, @dhm]
Photo: Getty Images
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![Goodbye, NBA! See You Soon? That message above is what The20’s @dhm posted this afternoon on Twitter, in response to the the NBA lockout that will take effect at midnight and likely last a while. Big shocker.
“I’ve been anticipating this lockout for the last two or three years, and now it’s here,” union director Billy Hunter says in the story.
The longer the league holds out, the less likely an Allen Iverson comeback becomes. And as we all know, you can’t play until you practice.
-LD
[@dhm, NBC Sports Pro Basketball Talk, USA Today, Youtube]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lnmfyoTHv21qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
Goodbye, NBA! See You Soon? That message above is what The20’s @dhm posted this afternoon on Twitter, in response to the the NBA lockout that will take effect at midnight and likely last a while. Big shocker.
“I’ve been anticipating this lockout for the last two or three years, and now it’s here,” union director Billy Hunter says in the story.
The longer the league holds out, the less likely an Allen Iverson comeback becomes. And as we all know, you can’t play until you practice.
-LD
-
Like any 7-footer loosed by the NBA, Eaton’s sports afterlife has been by no means premised upon permission. Any sort of enclosed space—the Whole Foods near his home in Park City, the ski lodge at Deer Valley, the Italian restaurant he co-owns in Salt Lake City—is stage enough for a spectacle that must, like the towering 54-year-old himself, be seen to be fully believed. Even with the planet’s biggest celebrities (your Oprahs and Biebers) word of their presence must spread before madness ensues. But for men of Eaton’s height, famous or not, there is no hiding. Instead, every entrance is followed by a sudden hush and accompanied by a Truman Show—like sensation that everyone is staring at you, discussing you and executing covert schemes to chronicle you without your knowledge. As Eaton, who these days works as a full-time motivational speaker, sums it up, ‘For us, there is no fading into the mist.’
7-Footers Find it Hard to Fade. In a great story from SI’s @PabloTorre, it’s good to see former Sixers center Shawn Bradley and other former NBA big men doing well in their life after basketball. Stories like this also make us miss the late Manute Bol. From The20 New York:
Pablo Torre writes about the tallest people he could find, those who played in the NBA and those who resisted. When you’re 7’4”, the scouts come and find you (when you can dunk a basket with your heels on the court, it’s sort of a given.) Even for those who claimed to hate the game—and the expectation that they automatically play it just because of their height—many found structure and a purpose playing in college and professionally. It also provided them with a network of tall-clothing manufacturers, since Macy*s doesn’t generally stock size 20 shoes.
-KH
[SI, @SIPabloTorre, the20newyork, the20s)
-LD
(Source: nbcnewyork, via the20s)
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![“Fast Eddie’s” Top 10 NBA Players. Our favorite former governor is back at it in his Daily News column today, listing his Top 10 NBA players of all time.
“I really believe my analysis is correct (shockingly, I rarely disagree with myself) but I would be very interested in hearing from you if you feel my top 10 leaves out a worthy player or more than one,” says Rendell.
The20’s @meechone clearly can’t hide his mix of excitement and displeasure with the story on Twitter.
Want to weigh in? As always, Rendell is soliciting feedback at asktheguy@phillynews.com
-LD
[Philadelphia Daily News, @meechone]
Photo: Getty Images](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ln7hzdCwKg1qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
“Fast Eddie’s” Top 10 NBA Players. Our favorite former governor is back at it in his Daily News column today, listing his Top 10 NBA players of all time.
“I really believe my analysis is correct (shockingly, I rarely disagree with myself) but I would be very interested in hearing from you if you feel my top 10 leaves out a worthy player or more than one,” says Rendell.
The20’s @meechone clearly can’t hide his mix of excitement and displeasure with the story on Twitter.
Want to weigh in? As always, Rendell is soliciting feedback at asktheguy@phillynews.com
-LD
[Philadelphia Daily News, @meechone]
Photo: Getty Images
![Linsanely Overhyped? If you haven’t heard the story involving New York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin, you’re one of the few. In short, he’s the biggest story in the National Basketball Assocation right now, and probably in a long while. The 2010 Harvard graduate who went undrafted and who has been waived by the Warriors and Rockets in his short NBA career, has taken the Big Apple by storm. Since scoring 25 points February 5 against New Jersey, it’s been a 16-day media storm and Lin has continued to impress, contributing 28 points and 14 assists Sunday against the defending champion Dallas Mavericks. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only four players since the NBA-ABA merger — Bernard King, Shaquille O’Neal, Brandon Jennings and Michael Jordan — have scored more points in their first eight career starts than Lin’s 200.
But it’s more than basketball. As one of the few Asian-Americans in NBA history, his story has become a global sensation. He’s already been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, Time Magazine (international edition) and more publications, featured on every major news outlet and even parodied on this week’s Saturday Night Live. Oh, and there’s that rumor that Kim Kardashian wants to date him (a rumor that Lin denies, but which Bodog has put 5/1 odds on before the end of the NBA finals, via The20’s @dhm).
As SI’s Pablo Torre put it in last week’s cover story,
“Nothing, anywhere, has ever resembled the ascendance of Jeremy Shu-How Lin, a legend seemingly pulled from the imagination of a goosefleshed David Stern, if not Disney’s most hyperbolic global marketing exec.”
But is Lin being overhyped? Philly sports analyst Garry “G” Cobb weighed in on his blog Friday, essentially saying that because Lin plays in New York City and ESPN wants to hype him up, he’s getting too much attention.
“I am telling you Lin is going to have his own update on the bottom line by next week on ESPN,’ Cobb writes. ‘Lin has just woke up from his nap and peed for 10 seconds. Then he had some Alphabets cereal right after.”
And Cobb is far from the only pundit in this conversation. Lin has played big minutes in only nine games to this point, and while his numbers don’t lie, is that too small of a sample size for all of this attention? Or is it deserved?
Weigh in below in the comments.
-LD
[ESPN, Saturday Night Live, @dhm, Sports Illustrated, GCobb.com]
Photo: Getty Images](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzpsfbVKLY1qfnxkko1_1280.jpg)
![Are the Sixers Legit Contenders? “Clap your hands, everybody. For Philadelphia. Seventy-Sixers. Stomp your feet, everybody. For Philadelphia. Seventy-Sixers. Here they come, Philadelphia. On the run, stand up and cheer. Number one, Philadelphia. Here they come, team of the year.” Those opening lyrics to the Sixers old, but again new, theme song, “10, 9, 8 76ers,” seem to have folks interested again. Following another big win Wednesday night over first-place Chicago, the Internet is buzzing over just how good the 2011-12 76ers are playing. The win moves the Sixers to 16-6, second place in the Eastern Conference. A small sampling of some of the comments:
ProBasketballTalk.com’s Kevin Helin: “The 76ers are legit. That fast start wasn’t the soft schedule, they are a quality squad.”
The20’s @marclamonthill: “So NOW can y’all admit the Sixers are a quality team? We have the 2nd best record in the East & we just beat the team with the best record.”
From CSNPhilly.com’s John Finger: “If there ever was a victory that should make the NBA powerbrokers turn their heads and take notice of those Philadelphia 76ers, it most definitely was the 98-82 drubbing of the Bulls, Wednesday night.”
The20’s @meechone was short and sweet on Twitter: #DougCollins4CoachoftheYear”
We want to hear from you: Are the Sixers legit contenders?
-LD
[ProBasketballTalk, @marclamonthill, CSNPhilly, @meechone]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lyrw2rLebe1qfnxkko1_1280.jpg)
![Can Philly Embrace This Sixers Team? 15 days into a shortened NBA season, the Philadelphia 76ers are 5-2 (their best start since the 2000-2001 season), in first place and looking for a fifth straight win when they host Indiana in South Philadelphia Monday. How good have the 76ers been?
They lead the league in both offensive and defensive efficiency
They jumped from No. 15 to No. 7 in this week’s NBA.com Power Rankings
During their four-game winning streak, they’ve won by an average of 23.5 points per game
All of that being said, their only wins are against teams with losing records (with losses to Portland and Utah). As good as the Sixers have been, a hint of skepticism seems to overshadow the franchise (who share a division with the Knicks and Celtics, and a conference with Miami and Chicago). Moreover, it remains a struggle for the team to attract attention locally. From a Friday New York Times story titled “The Sixers Are Lovelorn in Philadelphia”:
“The Sixers, a middling team with no discernible on-court leader and few fans, made the playoffs last season, but they are overshadowed in this city by a love for the Eagles and the Flyers that seems to know no bounds, the depth of Big Five college basketball and the recent success of the Phillies, who have sold out 220 straight games.”
The Sixers face a good test tonight in the 6-2 Indiana Pacers in the first of a back-to-back-to-back stretch that also includes the Kings and a trip to Madison Square Garden. If they win the next three, the buzz may really pick up, but can the city full embrace the team without a certifiable star? Even Doug Collins admits that after 10 years of marketing Allen Iverson, it’s now a team game in Philly.
So weigh in: can Philly embrace the 2011-12 Sixers?
-LD
[NBA.com, NYTimes]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxjoq1bvu71qfnxkko1_1280.jpg)
![Hip-Hop is Dead in Philly. After receiving hundreds of notes and emails from fans asking for the ouster of the long-tenured mascot, Philly.com is reporting that the 76ers have listened to their fans and ended the Hip-Hop era. The Sixers PR team wouldn’t confirm or deny the news, but did say “keep your eyes and ears open.”
(10:45 official statement from Sixers PR): “The Philadelphia 76ers new Chief Executive Officer and co-Owner Adam Aron announced today that its rabbit mascot, Hip-Hop, informed the team’s new ownership group that he has fallen in love, married and will relocate to a rural part of Pennsylvania to start a family. He will therefore be unable to serve as the 76ers team mascot going forward, and will not again appear at a Sixers game.”
From Philly.com’s Rich Hoffman:
“A decade ago, with Allen Iverson as the face of the franchise and Pat Croce rappelling the Walt Whitman Bridge as the out-there owner, Hip Hop arrived as a replacement for another mascot, Big Shot (whose demise wasn’t exactly mourned, either, if memory serves). Big Shot was lumbering and dopey. Hip Hop was acrobatic and edgy. Then, it was the image they sought. But all of these years later, after all of the coaches and all of the losses, fans were nearly unanimous in the missives they sent to newsixersowner.com. Before the forum was closed, more than 6,500 comments were received on every conceivable Sixers topic, but hundreds focused specifically on the bunny.”
As @GonzoCSN explained in late October, calling for the rabbit’s ouster:
“Even in the late ‘90s, when baggy jeans and over-sized jerseys and the like were the standard youth uniform, Hip-Hop was a gross, embarrassing, obvious attempt to appeal to 20-somethings…Back when it was created – and for, oh, the first decade or so thereafter – Hip-Hop was a transparent and lame marketing ploy. Now it’s lame and stale, like the mascot version of planking.”
Where will the new mascot come from? Hoffman reports that “The task of coming up with a replacement for Hip Hop will fall to two firms specializing in the business. One is Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, which began as the workshop of the late creator of the Muppets. The other is Raymond Entertainment Group, whose founder is Dave Raymond, the original Phillie Phanatic.”
The20’s @dhm has his own suggestion:
“There is no other option: Pat Croce in a pirate costume must be the Sixers’ new mascot.”
We still long for the days of Big Shot (I mean, look at this Michael Jackson impersonation). Thoughts? Suggestions?
-LD
[Philly.com, @GonzoCSN, CSNPhilly, Youtube, @dhm]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lv2g0jbcWT1qfnxkko1_1280.jpg)
![Goodbye, NBA! See You Soon? That message above is what The20’s @dhm posted this afternoon on Twitter, in response to the the NBA lockout that will take effect at midnight and likely last a while. Big shocker.
“I’ve been anticipating this lockout for the last two or three years, and now it’s here,” union director Billy Hunter says in the story.
The longer the league holds out, the less likely an Allen Iverson comeback becomes. And as we all know, you can’t play until you practice.
-LD
[@dhm, NBC Sports Pro Basketball Talk, USA Today, Youtube]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lnmfyoTHv21qfnxkko1_1280.jpg)
![“Fast Eddie’s” Top 10 NBA Players. Our favorite former governor is back at it in his Daily News column today, listing his Top 10 NBA players of all time.
“I really believe my analysis is correct (shockingly, I rarely disagree with myself) but I would be very interested in hearing from you if you feel my top 10 leaves out a worthy player or more than one,” says Rendell.
The20’s @meechone clearly can’t hide his mix of excitement and displeasure with the story on Twitter.
Want to weigh in? As always, Rendell is soliciting feedback at asktheguy@phillynews.com
-LD
[Philadelphia Daily News, @meechone]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ln7hzdCwKg1qfnxkko1_1280.jpg)
