Princeton Offense

TWO YEARS AGO, the man who popularized it summed up the dilemma over breakfast at the Princeton Diner. "If you don't have real good players, the Princeton offense isn't going to help at all," Pete Carril said. So, do the Sixers have real good players? Well, they have some really good athletes. Are those athletes skilled enough to play the Princeton offense? And if they aren't, can their skills be improved enough to make it work? And, if they can't, can president/general manager Ed Stefanski get new coach Eddie Jordan the players to make it work?

Aside from his noticeable height, Primoz Brezec's on-court role for the 76ers has been incognito - a rebound here, a handoff there, a little jumper in between. The 7-foot-1 center from Slovenia, whom the Sixers signed in August, has been, according to head coach Eddie Jordan, "very veteran-like. " Jordan's Sixers opened the preseason last night in London, Ontario, with a 107-98 victory over the Toronto Raptors. Point guard Lou Williams led the way with 17 points. Swingman Andre Iguodala finished with 15 points and eight assists.

Eddie Jordan, the former 76ers coach, surfaced yesterday at the Charlotte Bobcats' training camp practice. This would appear to be his first public appearance since being fired by the Sixers at the end of last season, although he interviewed for the coaching job at Rutgers. The Sixers were 27-55 in Jordan's only season. He left with two remaining guaranteed seasons on his contract, thought to be worth a total of $6 million. His attempt to install the Princeton offense never worked.

PRINCETON, N.J. - Pete Carril, 76, was seated at a table in the Princeton Diner on Route 1 Tuesday morning when the "Princeton offense" came up. "I resent the use of the words 'Princeton offense,' " Carril, not coaching this year for the first time in more than a half-century, said. "At first, it was like a novelty, made you feel good. " Now? "I'd like to see them bury that name, the Princeton offense," Carril said. "I'm ready to get the shovel out, get the casket, let's get a skeleton in there and throw them in the ground.

When American meets Villanova tomorrow night in the first round of the NCAA East Regional at the Wachovia Center, it will not be the first time Eagles coach Jeff Jones has visited the sports complex in South Philadelphia. As a point guard with Virginia, Jones participated in the 1981 Final Four at the Spectrum. The Cavaliers lost in the semifinals to North Carolina and defeated Louisiana State in the tournament's final consolation game. "After we lost to North Carolina in the semis, then with President Reagan getting shot [two days later]

Channing Frye scored 17 points last night to lift the Phoenix Suns to a 115-113 exhibition victory over the 76ers in Phoenix. Amar'e Stoudemire, Jason Richardson and Leandro Barbosa scored 16 points apiece for the Suns (2-2). Marreese Speights collected 32 points and 12 rebounds for the Sixers, who suffered their first preseason loss after four wins. Lou Williams scored 27 points. The Sixers will take on the Suns again tomorrow, with the game being played in Monterrey, Mexico.

La Salle made a move toward adding a strong rebounder to its 2003 recruiting class when it received an oral commitment this week from Mike St. John, a 6-foot-8, 220-pound power forward from the Rivers School in Weston, Mass. St. John averaged 19.3 points and 16.0 rebounds last season for a team that finished 20-7. "He's a very physical player, one who loves to bang and dominate the boards," Rivers School coach Bruce Taylor said yesterday. "He's a coach's dream in that sense.

76ers coach Eddie Jordan has had his starting five in place since the first practice, the first day of training camp. Although these five have been entrusted with setting the pace at the start of each game, Jordan's offensive and defensive schemes - through the preseason - have shown he will use a rotation of 10 or 11 players. Within his Princeton offense, and at the defensive end of the floor, here's a quick-hit guide to each player's strengths and weaknesses. Lou Williams23 Guard Williams is one of the most effective transition guards in the NBA. He's faster and quicker than last year's starting point guard Andre Miller.

The 76ers' season has had more subplots than a reality show. There's the new head coach, Eddie Jordan, with his Princeton offense that was scrapped. Allen Iverson had a ballyhooed return only to leave again. And there's the all-too-familiar mounting losses. Despite all the distractions, the Sixers (22-39) say they remain motivated. "I don't think it's that hard to motivate," said forward Andre Iguodala, whose squad faces the Toronto Raptors at the Air Canada Centre today at noon.

Right now, more than any other option, second-year big man Marreese Speights is looking for his shot. Maybe it's because it's the best option for him in 76ers coach Eddie Jordan's new Princeton offense. It's better than running a dribble weave he's still unsure of, better than making a backdoor pass to a cutter who might not be open. But mostly it is because the 6-foot-10 Speights is exactly what he is: a scorer. In Friday night's 93-92 preseason win over the New Jersey Nets - the Sixers' third victory in as many games - Speights scored 16 points, including 10 in the second half.

CLEVELAND - When teams play against the 76ers, it seems borderline players become good, good players become unstoppable and opponents are able to quickly right wrongs. Heck, the Princeton offense (remember that) even looked good last night for the Cleveland Cavaliers as they dumped the Sixers, 101-93, at Quicken Loans Arena. Jamario Moon (who?) collected season highs in points (13) and rebounds (eight), while Daniel Gibson came off the bench to pour in 18 and deal eight assists to help the Cavs improve to 5-5. And what has been the biggest problem for Cleveland thus far this season, third-quarter scoring, also was rectified as the Cavs outscored the Sixers by 26-16 during that frame.

You can almost imagine the scene inside Doug Collins' head: a scrambled game of tic-tac-toe. X's and O's everywhere. His mind spinning with potential plays, keeping him awake at night deciding which guy goes where, who does best off of a double screen, who needs a pick-and-roll, or will that set really work? Last year, the Princeton offense was premade, and on this team it was about as flattering as a garbage bag. No matter how often adjusted, it was still just a one-size-fits-all that was baggy in all the wrong places.

Eddie Jordan, the former 76ers coach, surfaced yesterday at the Charlotte Bobcats' training camp practice. This would appear to be his first public appearance since being fired by the Sixers at the end of last season, although he interviewed for the coaching job at Rutgers. The Sixers were 27-55 in Jordan's only season. He left with two remaining guaranteed seasons on his contract, thought to be worth a total of $6 million. His attempt to install the Princeton offense never worked.

Jeff Bilinsky has been preparing most of his life for his first head coaching opportunity, and the 29-year-old recently was named the new boys' basketball coach at Riverside. He replaced veteran Paul Collins, who resigned after the season. A 1999 graduate of Camden Catholic, Bilinsky went on to play at Arcadia, where he graduated in 2003. After that, he returned to Camden Catholic as an assistant for six years under Jim Crawford, this season's Inqurier South Jersey coach of the year and one of the best coaches in South Jersey history.

The amazing thing about the 76ers these days is not that they are pathetic, embarrassing, and downright laughable. It's that as the losses mount, while faith in them plummets by the second, the players don't appear to have a problem with the situation at all. There's no other explanation for what transpired last night against the Charlotte Bobcats at the half-filled Wachovia Center, and against a coach, Larry Brown, who took this team to the...

The 76ers' season has had more subplots than a reality show. There's the new head coach, Eddie Jordan, with his Princeton offense that was scrapped. Allen Iverson had a ballyhooed return only to leave again. And there's the all-too-familiar mounting losses. Despite all the distractions, the Sixers (22-39) say they remain motivated. "I don't think it's that hard to motivate," said forward Andre Iguodala, whose squad faces the Toronto Raptors at the Air Canada Centre today at noon.

The 76ers aren't making the playoffs. Their playoff dream has a beating heart, mathematically speaking, but common sense screams otherwise. And anyone who's watched this team since its opening-game flop against the Orlando Magic on Oct. 28 understands that good play has been at a premium. A blistering finish - right now pegged around 19-5 - is about as realistic as the Phillies going unbeaten through their 162-game slate. For a time, the Sixers' "playoff pursuit" was a welcome, benign topic, like bringing up the weather to fill the awkward silence.

This evening in New Orleans, a town that is somewhat distracted at the moment and might not be paying close attention, the 76ers will attempt to win their third straight game. If you already knew the Sixers are playing tonight, you are a fan. If you knew the identity of their opponent and the location of the game, you are a big fan. If you knew they have won back-to-back games, you are an incredibly huge fan. And if you knew the Sixers had tried for a third straight win four previous times this season but failed each time, you are probably Ed Stefanski.

At the beginning of last season, the Haddon Township girls' basketball team was considered to be a year away from challenging for a sectional title. The Hawks had just one senior, but despite fielding such a young team, the timetable for progress was seriously speeded up. In addition to winning the Colonial Conference Patriot Division, the Hawks went 25-5 and captured the South Jersey Group 2 title. Now with a veteran team, the expectations have heightened. The Hawks are favored again in the Patriot, and also won't surrender their Group 2 title very easily.

You knew the buzz wouldn't last forever. It couldn't. But this seemed especially abrupt. On Wednesday night, for the game after Allen Iverson's emotional return, the energy at the Wachovia Center regressed to pre-Iverson levels. On Monday, a sold-out crowd of 20,664 packed the arena for Iverson's "debut. " Two nights later, 12,136 people watched the Detroit Pistons beat the Sixers, 90-86 - a difference of 8,528. Iverson's effectiveness dropped, too. He scored 11 points both nights, but on Wednesday, he had six turnovers and performed as he had warned, needing to knock the dust off. When the Sixers signed Iverson, their losing streak was at eight games.