<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Chris Webber has described his time playing for former 76ers coach Jim O'Brien as "Timeout times 50," a reference to the long-ago nightmare of having called a timeout his Michigan team didn't have. Given that, what sort of multiplication table might aptly describe this season? The Sixers are 4-5, with five losses in their last six games as they prepare for tomorrow night's meeting with the Detroit Pistons in the Wachovia Center. Webber sat out Saturday night's 103-97 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers with stiffness and soreness in his lower back. In the eight games he has played, he has not been used in the fourth quarter four times. In Friday night's loss in Phoenix, he wasn't used in the second or fourth quarters. In the midst of what ended as a 1-2 Western swing, he denied that he had asked to be traded but admitted he was frustrated and disappointed by a diminished role. Before leaving for Saturday night's charter flight back to Philadelphia, he said: "The season's still young. I've got to [stay the course]." Teammate Allen Iverson, serving as counsel for the defense, said: "He's our best post defender, simple as that. If Webb doesn't play, we're going to struggle." Coach Maurice Cheeks has made it clear that will use his personnel "as I see fit," and that his allegiance is to the team rather than any individual. When opponents go with small, quick lineups that include a single big man, Cheeks has primarily used Samuel Dalembert or Steven Hunter to match up. With Webber and Hunter (right knee sprain) unavailable against the Clippers, Cheeks used Dalembert, Shavlik Randolph and Alan Henderson. "We need [Webber] on the basketball court," Iverson said. "We need him to play. Not too much has changed from last year, from the same 20 [points] and 10 [rebounds] guy. He still has a lot in him. No disrespect to Maurice Cheeks, because I've got to go with everything that he does, but Chris definitely gives us a chance to win." Webber averaged 20.2 points and 9.9 rebounds in 75 games last season. He has not been nearly so effective this season, and has not been accepting of the situation. Iverson said Friday night in Phoenix, "Honestly, I really don't know what to say to him, and I don't want to say the wrong thing. "If I give him any type of advice, I would hope it's 110 percent good advice. The little bit that I have given him is, 'Just stay strong through the situation.' I just let him know he has to think about us in this situation, too, the guys that root for him, the guys he roots for. "I know it's frustrating for him. I've never been in a situation like that in my career, but I know if I was ever to go through it, it would be hard to deal with. I think the most important thing is just having a lot of positive people around you. The more negativity you have around you, the situation gets worse and worse with people saying things in your ear. "He doesn't care about [touches], he just wants to be on the floor. His whole thing is not that he needs the ball, or his shots. That's not what he's worried about. He wants to play. He wants to play in the beginning of the game, and then when things are tough at the end he wants to help, help us win games. You can't be mad at him for that. "He's been playing all his career a lot of minutes. For him to have his minutes cut and the type of player he is, the things he's accomplished, it's not going to sit well with him. He feels like he could be helping us if he were out there, and it's something that's out of his control, something he has to fight through, and I'll be there to support him and give him as much positive energy as I can." </div> Link
Although I agree with shortening Webber's role as well, I think Cheeks is taking it to far. And as you can see it is not like there is an improvement. Webber hardly plays, if he was so much of a liability on defense then how come the 76ers are still getting burned?
i think webber would have made the difference against the clippers the other night. i know he was injured or whatever, but they need him on the floor late in the game. he's still a pretty good playmaker, and he's definately smarter than dalembert or hunter.
