76ers Automatically Eastern Conference Contenders

The Philadelphia 76ers have not been a contender for the Eastern Conference Title throughout the whole season, but all that changed with a couple of trades in the eve of the trade deadline on Wednesday February 23^rd.

Allen Iverson, the leader of the Sixers for a little more than half a decade, has had arguably, the best season of his life. Not because of his scoring (although he leads the league in scoring with 29.7 ppg), but because of the increase in his assists per game (7.8 apg, 5th in the league), something that was not so common for the 76ers point guard in previous years. Although Iverson has been playing well, his supporting cast has not been a lot of help so far. They are currently competing for a playoff seed (26-29) and they are in second place in the Atlantic Conference, the weakest conference in the land.

Because of Iverson’s great year, the 76ers Operations Manager decided to trade some players in order to become more competitive, at least for a couple of years to come. This hunger for a NBA Championship, which has eluded the 76ers since 1983, landed Chris Webber in the roster. Webber is a 5 time All-Star forward and the leader in points and rebounds of his former team, the Sacramento Kings. Not feeling satisfied with the recent acquisition, the Philadelphia 76ers decided to acquire Jamal Mashburn and Rodney Rogers from the New Orleans Hornets. This trade is more of a long term investment since Mashburn has been on the injury list for most of the season. The Sixers expect Mashburn to join the team next season.

The last time the 76ers were in the NBA Finals was in 2001, and they haven’t really been close since. These great acquisitions make their chances of making the playoffs and the NBA Finals greater, plus it will make them a more exciting team, not just a one-man show.