PHILADELPHIA –They came to bury Andrew Bynum when the man who was supposed to be the 2013 Philadelphia 76ers’ savior—if only he could’ve played– came back to town last night.
He wasn’t impressed with the frosty reception.
“I thought it was a little weak, honestly,’’ Bynum said after a less-than-triumphant return to the city that once came out in droves to shower affection on him one sun-drenched August day in 2012. That now seems like light years ago.
“I thought it would be much worse—and it wasn’t,” he added. “I just went out and played. It was just another game to me. I wasn’t hyped by the crowd doing what they did. It was kind of funny. I was smiling the entire time.’’
Maybe not at the end. The Sixers pounded Bynum’s Cavaliers into submission, 94-79.
And if Bynum was smiling, he was about the only one wearing Cleveland maroon and white who was. After the Cavs raced to a 28-14 first period lead, they were outscored 63-33 over the next two periods, so annoying coach Mike Brown that he left his starters on the floor to the bitter end.
During the 17:46 Bynum was on the court, he scored four points, pulled down five rebounds and added an assist, steal, blocked shot and turnover. That was broken down into a late first quarter/second quarter stretch of 9:23, followed by a late third quarter/early fourth quarter 8:26 stint.
Coincidence or not, his entry into the game on both occasions ignited the hometown Sixers, who so far are not living up to their preseason expectations as a team that would tank the season. While No. 21 was roaming the paint, the 4-2 Sixers laid a 42-26 beatdown on the Cavs.
Put another way, when Bynum wasn’t playing, the Cavs held a 53-52 edge.
Not that it mattered that much to the 15,219 on hand, which included many given tickets by a local radio station for any piece of Bynum Sixers’ memorabilia. After beginning to clear their throats during warmups and pregame introductions, the moment they saw him rise off the bench and head towards the scorer’s table with 3:58 showing on the clock and the Cavs up, 20-12, boos began to fill the building.
Each time Boooooo-num touched the ball, Sixers fans showed their “love.” Each time the PA announcer uttered his name, the intensity grew. It was reminiscent of the way Jewish children respond to the name Haman, the man who persecuted the Jews in ancient Persia, before his treachery was revealed to the King. During the festival of Purim, each time Haman’s name is mentioned, the kids spin a noisemaker called a gragger, trying to drown it out.
To Philadelphia fans, who not that long ago believed he was the answer to their hoops prayers, Andrew Bynum deserved similar disrespect.
One teammate wondered why.
“The thing people need to understand is the kid’s been playing basketball all his life,’’ said Cavs guard Jarrett Jack, who felt Bynum handled the situation well, “Why wouldn’t he want to do something he loves and is successful at if there wasn’t a serious reason not to?
“I don’t understand why people have dislike for someone who’s dealing with an injury. If they had one in their job and people booed them in the workplace when they walked in, I’m sure they’d be upset and confused as to why.
“If I had a situation where I couldn’t perform my job, why would I just sit idly by and not want to be a part of it? People act as if he wanted to do it (be hurt) on purpose. Who wants to be hurt? Who wants to be on the sidelines? I wonder why people feel that way.’’
To understand that requires a brief Philadelphia sports history lesson.
In the fans’ minds, this wasn’t the first time a player has turned his back on them. It was one thing for Bynum not to play. It was another for him to seem aloof and disinterested about it, appearing to care more about bowling and his various hairstyles.
The final straw came once the Sixers chose not to pursue him in free agency and he was signed by the Cavs. Bynum showed no remorse to the team he never played for.
That’s what has given him entry into a Philadelphia Hall of Infamy previously reserved for J.D. Drew, Kobe Bryant and Eric Lindros. Each of them turned their back on the city in one way or another and was branded a traitor.
The circumstances varied. of course. Drew, the consensus top player in the 1997 baseball draft, warned teams through his nefarious agent, Scott Boras, not to draft him unless they were willing to meet his price. The Phillies, calling his bluff, picked him anyway at No. 2 and after a year of unsuccessful haggling, Drew went back into the 1998 draft, where the Cardinals grabbed him at No. 5 and met his demands.
A year later, when Drew made his first appearance in Philadelphia, he was not only showered with boos, but batteries—disenchanted fans hurling them from the Vet bleachers. Yet another black mark on the city.
Bryant, who grew up some 15 miles away in the suburb of Lower Merion, had the temerity to suggest during the 2001 NBA Finals he not only wanted his Lakers to beat the Sixers, but “cut their hearts out’’ in the process. From then on, he became the enemy, the low point coming during the 2002 All-Star Game here when he was booed virtually every time he touched the ball.
Not that it seemed to disturb him, since all he did was score 31 points and walk away with the MVP. Naturally, that announcement drew even louder jeers.
As for Lindros, he was billed the savior of the Flyers, who had to trade away a number of draft choices and players for his rights—among them a budding prospect named Peter Forsberg. For a while, Lindros seemed to have it going, guiding the Flyers to the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals as NHL MVP.
Then, a successions of injuries—particularly concussions–coupled with constant meddling from his parents began to sour the organization on its would-be franchise player. When the Lindros family questioned whether the team had Eric’s best interests at heart, continuing to play him before they believed he was healed, the rift became too deep to mend.
Ultimately, after suffering yet another concussion in Game 7 of the 2001 conference finals., the Flyers traded Lindros to the rival Rangers. When Eric returned for the first time the following season, he was roundly booed. Such treatment continued until the impact of all those concussions finally forced Lindros to retire at 34.
Fair or not, that’s the company Bynum now keeps.
“He was really good,’’ said Sixers coach Brett Brown when asked before the game how a healthy Bynum stacked up against his peers. “With him and Pau (Gasol) playing together (in Los Angeles) it required a different scheme defensively.
“You couldn’t let him do what he wants. In his healthy days he was legit.’’
Now, though, even Bynum admitted the other day he’s a mere shell of his former self. That’s what Philadelphia finally got to see last night, which did nothing to stem the fans’ venom.
Jon Marks has covered the Philadelphia 76ers from the days of Dr. J and his teammate, Joe Bryant (best known as Kobe’s dad). He has won awards from the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association and North Jersey Press Club. His other claim to fame is driving Rick Mahorn to a playoff game after missing the team bus. Follow him on Twitter.