The Philadelphia 76ers have been the hottest team in the Eastern Conference, drawing comparisons to the Sixers team that went to the 2001 NBA Finals. So which team is better -- the 2000-01 Sixers or the 2002-03 Sixers?

Here are three reasons why this year's squad is better -- and three reasons they're not.

Why the 2002-03 Sixers are better

	Sixers point guard Eric Snow is shooting a career-best .454 from the field.

1. Eric Snow.
Snow is a much better offensive player now than he was during the 2000-01 season. His scoring has improved from 9.8 points per game in '00-01 to 13.1 this year, while his shooting percentage is up from .418 to .454. Snow was tentative on offense during the Finals, but he showed with his 25 points last Sunday at Denver that he is developing confidence. That is doing a lot to take pressure off Allen Iverson.

2. Players.
The Sixers have have better overall players on the roster now than they did two years ago. Keith Van Horn, Kenny Thomas and Greg Buckner are better all-around basketball players than guys like George Lynch.

3. Offense.
Philadelphia is better able to score points this season than during its Finals run. The '00-01 team relied on players like Tyrone Hill, Dikembe Mutombo and Lynch, defensive-minded players, meaning Iverson had to take 35 to 40 shots a game. Derrick Coleman provides more of a scoring punch than any of those three and Snow has improved, so things have changed.

Why the 2002-03 Sixers are worse
1. Defense.
The Sixers were in the top five in the league in defensive field goal percentage in 2000-01, but their .450 mark this year ranks 23rd. They are giving up a lot of quality shots, which is shocking for a Larry Brown-coached team.

2. Chemistry and consistency.
This season's team has only been together for a year and hasn't played together long enough to develop the consistency it needs on both ends of the floor, especially on the defensive end. Philly has done so much tweaking that the players don't really know each other well enough yet.

3. Defending the paint and shot-blocking.
The 76ers started the 2000-01 season with Theo Ratliff, a great ticket-taker in the lane, and eventually traded for an upgrade in Mutombo, who had a sign on his chest saying "Do not enter. Your shot is in peril." Teams recognize that there is no one like that in the lane this year, and the loss of Todd MacCulloch has also hurt them, not only in terms of shot-blocking but also in defensive rebounding.

Fred Carter is an NBA analyst for ESPN.