Elton Brand has something to prove in 2009-10 after injuries limited him to just 29 games in his first season with the Sixers, who signed him to a five-year, $82 million free-agent contract on July 9, 2008.
Healthy and back at 100 percent after rehabilitating the torn right labrum that he suffered in a Dec. 17 game against the Bucks, Brand, who spent most of the summer in Los Angeles, is all but champing at the bit to get back to regular-season ball. "I'm excited to really show the fans that this is what (team president) Ed Stefanski brought me in here for," Brand said. "I'm revved up to show them what kind of player they got."
Brand, a 6-foot-8 power forward, averaged just 13.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and shot .447 from the floor. The scoring and field goal percentage were career-lows for a 10-year pro with career averages of 20 points, 10.1 rebounds and .503.
Brand, 30, believes that he's quicker and stronger than he was a year ago at this time. He also thinks Eddie Jordan's Princeton offense is well-suited for him and the Sixers, and that the addition of shooter Jason Kapono will help free up space for him to maneuver at the foul line.
"I'm a ballplayer, so wherever you put me I'll do the best I can to win a game and contribute," he said. "I will say this: a lot of people, not just coaches, say 'Hey, you should do this, You should do that.' I know what I can do on the court, I know how I can play and I'm just going to have to go out there and do it. That's the exciting part."
A byproduct of the time away is that it also allowed the ruptured Achilles tendon that kept him out of all but the final eight games of 2007-08 with the Clippers to get better, too.
"The shoulder gave my Achilles time to heal," Brand said. "My leg strength from my Achilles injury has improved and that was really important to have back. It's about quickness, speed and athleticism, so that's big."
