Sixers Press Releases

Sixers Off Season Update 7/22/2009

PCOM-PETITION

The 76ers practice facility has been busy recently, with today a perfect example of players returning to Philadelphia to work on their game, get up extra shots and begin to pick up the nuances of new Head Coach Eddie Jordan’s offensive philosophy.

Sam Dalembert, Willie Green, Jason Smith and the 17th overall pick in the NBA Draft Jrue Holiday were all in the gym today and going through drills with Coach Jordan, all under the watchful eye of President and General Manager Ed Stefanski and Senior Vice President and Assistant General Manager Tony DiLeo.

On one end of the court, Green and Holiday worked on their outside games with Associate Head Coach Mike O’Koren and Assistant Coach Aaron McKie. On the other end, Coach Jordan worked with Dalembert and Smith, who worked on their post-up moves, played one-on-one and then jump shots from various locations on the court. Coach Jordan also did individual work with Holiday and Dalembert, the latter of which went through the offense with the coaching staff for an extended period of time at the end of the workout.

BASKETBALL WITHOUT BORDERS:

Green and Dalembert will be among the contingent heading to Mexico City, Mexico as part of the NBA’s Basketball without Borders program from August 6-9. Basketball without Borders (BWB) is FIBA’s and the NBA’s global basketball development program that uses the sport to create positive social change in the areas of education, health and wellness. The 2009 camps will be held in Beijing (China), Mexico City (Mexico) and Johannesburg (South Africa), training and mentoring over 150 top players.

The two will return to Mexico in October, when the Sixers take on the Phoenix Suns in Monterrey on October 18, 2009. This will mark the league’s first visit to Monterrey since 2006, when the Golden State Warriors topped the Denver Nuggets. The NBA’s first-ever regular season contest was held in Mexico City in 1997 between Houston and Dallas.

USA HOOPS:

Andre Iguodala and Thaddeus Young are in Las Vegas to participate in USA Basketball’s mini-camp from July 22-25. The USA Basketball Men’s National Team mini-camp will feature practice sessions on July 23 and July 24 at Valley High School, and the mini-camp will be capped by the USA Basketball Showcase, a Blue-White intra-squad game, on Saturday, July 25, 8 p.m. (PDT) at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of UNLV.

Iguodala was a member of the 2008 USA Basketball Select Team that trained with and scrimmaged against the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team in Las Vegas, while in 2007 he was a member of the 2007 USA Basketball Select Team that trained with and scrimmaged against the 2007 USA FIBA Americas Team in Las Vegas.

Additionally, Iguodala was a member of the 2002 USA Basketball U18 Championship team, while Young is a 2005 alum of the USA Basketball Youth Development Festival.

The Sixers are one of only four teams with multiple players participating in the camp.

You can follow both Iguodala (www.twitter.com/ai9) and Young (www.twitter.com/yungsmoove21) during their time in Vegas via their twitter pages.