Poor Richard's Scorecard

Monday Review: Villanova, Temple Get Marching Orders, Thankfully Allowing us To Forget About the Sixers and Flyers

THE FLYERS and 76ers were relegated to "in other news" status over the weekend, as the unveiling of the NCAA men's basketball tournament brackets--and, specifically, the respective seedings and opponents of Villanova and Temple--took center stage. Both hoops teams were surprised by their place in the bracket, though the news was far better for the former than the latter.

Comcast Should Know: When in Doubt, Bring in the Marketing Team to Clean Up the Mess

The company has denied it, but Comcast's rebranding of its cable television, Internet, and telephone services as "Xfinity" smacks of an effort to repaint a collapsing fence in hopes that people won't know it's in such sad shape. That is, with its customer-service rep in the toilet, Comcast may have concluded that it was easier or cheaper or both to change signage and stationery than to, y'know, fix the actual problem.

Which raises an interesting possibility for another of its failing brands:

In Which the Author (Sort of) Explains His Absence

The last time we spoke, Cliff Lee was the Phillies' best pitcher, the Eagles were trying to find themselves, and Allen Iverson and Peter Laviolette were new in town. Much has happened since then, and not simply on the sporting scene, which is why things have been sparse around here lately. Details on that soon; the good news is that the new year will bring a renewed commitment to the kind of trenchant Philadelphia commentary you have come to know and love. Until then, Happy New Year! | PRS

Bringing Back Iverson Gives the Sixers Much to Answer For

The exasperation I feel over the 76ers' decision to bring back Allen Iverson has nothing to do with his me-first, team-second attitude. He is who he is, and surely the Sixers' brass knows that they're getting. No, I'm upset because this is a franchise that must do everything it can to move forward, yet just took a longing, damaging look back.

If You Thought Iverson Didn't Want to Practice *Before* ...

How amusing/sad are the calls for the 76ers to bring Allen Iverson back for a season while the club figures out its backcourt situation? I seriously doubt it will happen, though wouldn't rule it out completely, for the simply reason that while it makes no sense from a basketball perspective, it would help the Sixers sell tickets. But, come on: Iverson in his prime would have been a disastrous choice for a young team trying to gel and a new coach trying to see who can play and who can't. But now that's he older and even more petulant than before? Wrong Answer. | PRS

The Sixers Project With a Project; for the Flyers, the Time Is Now

The 76ers and Flyers made very different statements over the last few days about their expectations. The Sixers picked a project in the NBA draft Thursday, telling their fans that they hope to strengthen themselves over time. The Flyers traded away youth and draft picks Friday to secure a premier player, indicating they are going to try to take their maturing nucleus to the next level this season and next. Each approach is correct for its respective team.

Phodder: It's Not Bats and Balls and Gloves That Are the Phillies' Biggest Worry; It's Their Heads, Man

Charlie Manuel's strength is supposed to be between his players' ears, right? So please explain to me how the Phillies are screwing up the mental portion of their game so badly. ... The Sixers' drafting of point-guard project Jrue Holiday surely ups Andre Miller's free-agent asking price. ... Is it dorky or cool to say I'm kind of happy about the release of Parker Lewis Can't Lose's first season on DVD? ... Anybody legitimately surprised that Lenny Dykstra is not the financial wizard some would had us believe, raise your hand. Good. Please don't pass on your stupid genes to a new generation. ... Kudos to Rowan University, which adds credibility to its claim of being an institution on the move by partnering with Cooper University Hospital in opening a medical school in Camden. ... Bob Ford can grump and grouch all he wants about gimmicks, but I think the NHL's Winter Classic is nifty, and I love that the Flyers will play the Bruins in Fenway Park next New Year's Day. | PRS

Phodder, a collection of brief thoughts regarding some of the week's happenings in and around Philadelphia, appears Saturdays in Poor Richard's Scorecard.

Sixers Land a Shooter, Flyers Lure a Saver

There's a lot to like in the Flyers' and Sixers' respective personnel moves of the last couple of days. Both teams tended to important needs, the 76ers through a trade and the Flyers through a free-agent signing. While the moves are not without risk, neither club is in a position to coast this off-season. First-round playoff knockouts will do that to a team.

Ed Stefanski, You Can Stand Right Behind That Eight-Ball There

So it's going to be Eddie Jordan.

Kurt Rambis, Dwayne Casey, Tom Thibodeau, Chris Ford, and Doug Collins can be forgiven for thinking they were mere props in Ed Stefanski's puppet show. The Sixers' GM seemed to be targeting Jordan for his team's head-coaching vacancy all along, and while he interviewed several different men, one has to wonder if the outcome of the search was ever in doubt. Jordan was the lead assistant in New Jersey for four seasons of Stefanski's tenure in the Nets' front office, after all. After inheriting Mo Cheeks and inserting Tony DiLeo as a stopgap, Stefanski has chosen to go with the devil he knows as he attempts to kick-start a franchise stalled in neutral since Larry Brown skipped town six years ago.

Tony DiLeo May Have Lost a Job, But He Gained a Whole Lot More

It was the embarrassing, season-ending loss to the Magic and the subsequent fragging by some of the 76ers' infantile veterans that did Tony DiLeo in, right? Maybe not. Maybe DiLeo, who did a decent job after Mo Cheeks was cashiered, just didn't have the fire to do something that he last did 20 years ago. Is there anything that you haven't done for two decades that you're eager to return to? For most of us, that list is awfully small, and surely doesn't include having your fate decided by a dozen surly multimillionaires who could not care less who was telling them when and where to set screens and--ha!--play defense.