Season Preview: Stefanski Gets His Man

Oct. 3, 2008 -- Ed Stefanski may have pulled off the move of the summer when he signed free agent Elton Brand, giving his Sixers exactly what they needed: a power forward who can rebound and score inside.

Stefanski took over as President and General Manager of the Sixers last December and quickly cleared some cap space by sending Kyle Korver to Utah later that month. That allowed the Sixers to become a major free agent buyer this summer. And with the team coming on strong as the 2007-08 season came to a close, they knew that a big acquisition could take them a long way.

How far? Time will tell. It may depend on Brand's health, of course. After having surgery last August to repair a torn left Achilles tendon, he came back to play the final eight games of the season for the Clippers, but it remains to be seen if the Sixers are getting Brand at his best.

Stefanski spoke with NBA.com a few days before training camp opened.

NBA.com: I assume that you're pretty anxious to get things started this season.
Ed Stefanski: Yeah, we want to see the changes and additions we made and if they work or not.

NBA.com: How closely did you watch the eight games that Elton Brand played at the end of last season for the Clippers?
Stefanski: We watched all eight games. That was definitely a positive factor when he decided he was going to opt out. We had interest.

We were surprised that Elton opted out. We didn't know until July 1st that that was going to happen. We knew he could do that and he was in our plans, but he was more on the back burner, because we didn't think he'd opt out.

But we did watch all eight games, and as I said, that he came back was a positive factor. He did look a little rusty, but he still was a factor in those games.

NBA.com: How much did his Achilles concern you?
Stefanski: You're always concerned. Our doctors looked at the MRI, saw that it had healed properly and that the operation was well done. With anything like this, there's no doubt you take some risk, but it's a risk-reward type of thing.

NBA.com: Assuming that he's healthy and looking at what your team was missing last year, is there a better fit for the Sixers than Brand?
Stefanski: No. We knew going into the offseason, from all of the exit meetings we had with the players, and what the coaches, management and fans felt, that we needed a low-post scorer. But those guys are not very easy to obtain. And we were going to go in various directions not knowing that Elton was going to opt out.

To us, he's the prototype power forward and we took advantage of the opportunity when he opted out.

NBA.com: Looking at your numbers last year, you were a solid rebounding team overall, but that was because you were No. 1 on the offensive boards.
Stefanski: Right, we were a bad defensive rebounding team.

NBA.com: So, obviously, Elton helps you there.
Stefanski: He helps us in so many different facets: rebounding the ball, low-post scoring, obviously. He's an excellent 16- to 17-foot shooter. He gives us so many intangibles off the court, taking a leadership role. He's an extremely hard worker every day in the gym. So, all those things are real positives, because when you look at our roster, we do have some veterans on the team, but we also have some young players. And these young guys are going to have to step up and get better for us to be the team that we want to be.

NBA.com: How do you rate Elton as a defender?
Stefanski: I think he's a fair-to-good defender. I think he'll benefit by having Samuel Dalembert with him. He can block a shot, too. That's another thing that he brings. His defense isn't an issue and like I said, with Sammy behind him, that makes him that much better.

He was very intrigued and interested in playing with Sam.

NBA.com: Of course, there are some people who say that he will slow down your running game, which was obviously a key to your late-season success last year.
Stefanski: We'll see what happens, but we're gonna try to balance running with getting into the half-court when we need to.

NBA.com: What or who would be an X-factor for your team this season?
Stefanski: We have some givens. Elton Brand is a high-level player. You know what Sammy gave us in the second half of the season; he was one of the top centers in the league the way he rebounded and blocked shots for us. Andre Miller had a big-time year; he's proven. And Andre Iguodala is only 24, but he's a very good basketball player.

Even though it's early in their careers and maybe not fair to put this on them, it's Louis Williams and Thaddeus Young to me. They're two young kids that have big upside. I'm not saying that they're going to reach that upside this year, but if they grow the way they've been growing, I think they'll make us a better basketball team.

NBA.com: What is that you'd like to see Williams do better?
Stefanski: The one thing that everyone talks about is what position he is, and I can't answer if he's a typical one or a true two. All I know is that he's an excellent basketball player. He just plays and gets things done. What Mo [Cheeks] asked of him last year was to do a better job on the defensive end. I think he has improved and has room to keep improving there. And then, when it's time to get other guys in the game, I think that's a growing experience that he keeps working on, and is getting better and better at it.

NBA.com: How much of an issue is perimeter shooting on this team? Can you stick with this roster and have the shooters that you need?
Stefanski: I guess we were last in three-point shooting last year. I think we'll improve internally with the guys that were here. And then we brought in Kareem Rush, who's a good three-point shooter. And we hope that Donyell Marshall helps us too. They were the pickups from the outside that we expect to help us in that area.

NBA.com: Do you expect Royal Ivey to play?
Stefanski: Yes. Ivey's a good basketball player. He's a tough kid, he defends you, and there's another guy whose shooting has gotten better since he's come into the league. He's not a pure three-point shooter, but his outside shot has improved. I see him coming in and giving us some minutes, because he's a good, hard-nosed defender.

When you play our style, you need pressure on the basketball, so I think Royal Ivey will get a shot.

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