December 01, 2015
In my writing, I often make references to movies that aren’t exactly Academy Award nominees. Of this Rotten Tomatoes list titled “25 Movies So Bad They're Unmissable,” I have viewed two of them a combined 50 times (Road House and Shark Attack 3: Megalodon) and regret absolutely nothing.
My point is, sometimes bad is good. Or, at least, sometimes something really bad still manages to completely hold your attention. This partially explains why the Sixers were flooded with an unusually high number of media requests for the winless home squad’s tilt against the 2-14 Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.
Think about it: There are three legitimate, major storylines headed into tonight’s game.
Since he last left town, we have learned quite a bit more about the Sixers rookie’s lifestyle. Luckily for him (and maybe this wasn’t a coincidence), the information was released when the team was on the road for a grand total of 11 days. Back in Philly for the first time, I imagine he will have a few questions to answer.
Perhaps the more intriguing question is whether Sam Hinkie or Josh Harris talks. Neither of those gentlemen enjoy speaking on the record, but if there were ever a time for them to make an exception, this would probably be it.
Did Lower Merion’s Kobe Bryant announce his retirement on Sunday because he wanted to inform his hometown that tonight would be the final time he will come through as a professional basketball player? Maybe, maybe not. It’s not as if the Philly crowd treated him very well back in 2002 when he was MVP of the All-Star Game:
Then again, they were still mad about the previous year’s finals. Kobe didn’t mince words on Sunday night when asked about Philly. “So many, so many great memories there, and it’s going to be a very special moment,” he said.
Considering the type of ovation that LeBron James received a few weeks ago just for scoring his 25,000th point, it’s probably safe to assume Bryant is going to receive an overwhelmingly positive reaction from the fans.
How will he play? Kobe’s shooting numbers are historically bad so far this season. Which leads us to our third storyline…
The Sixers lost their last five games in agonizing fashion, but the players and coaches deserve credit for remaining competitive in all of them before literally forgetting how to play basketball at some point in the final five minutes of each game. It happens. At 0-18, the Sixers are now tied with the 2009-10 New Jersey Nets for the worst start in league history.
The Lakers are a different type of tire fire, but a tire fire nonetheless. This is a golden opportunity for the Sixers to get a win. If it doesn’t happen, they will set a record for futility. So either way, something of note is going down tonight.
Follow Rich on Twitter: @rich_hofmann
