The Lakers are coming to Philadelphia on Friday night, and the Wachovia Center will be buzzing and very likely packed for Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson, and this is a big deal. OK, it's a big deal if this were June of 2001.
You remember 2001. For a few weeks, Philly was consumed by basketball and specifically, a hyperactive point guard shaped like a Twizzler who was quite possibly the best entertainment in the NBA. Iverson carried a team of misfits to the NBA Finals in a remarkable solo act that has since been copied only by LeBron James.
Iverson is still surrounded by mainly spare parts. The only difference now is he and the Sixers aren't going anywhere special, much less back to the championship round. Far from it, actually.
That was nine years ago. This is now. This is Iverson, back in a Sixers uniform after a two-team detour, but well past a blissful honeymoon period that began when he returned from exile to Philly on December 2. The energy from that re-debut lasted, um, about a game and a half. Or roughly when the moisture dried up from the kiss he planted at center court on the night he suited up.
The fading superstar and a once-proud franchise have both seen better days, and maybe it's only right that they find some comfort in each other, here in the midst of a difficult time. They've been through a lot both apart and together this season. Iverson began the year with the Grizzlies, which was the equivalent of asking Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno to coexist. What a shock: It didn't work. The Sixers, meanwhile, welcomed a new coach bringing fresh new ideas but lost games almost as quickly as fans lost interest.
So maybe in a bit of desperation for both Iverson and the Sixers, they agreed to a family reunion and tried to stretch it for more than a weekend. Those usually don't work out, either, and now we see the player and the team fighting for a bit of respectability in what is destined to be a lost season.
The best anyone can make of Iverson with the Sixers is to say it's been smoother than Iverson with the Grizzlies. And a lot happier than Iverson with the Pistons. And sounds better than Iverson with the Nuggets. He's back where he belongs, in the city that appreciates him and puts him next to Schmidt and Clarke and the Doctah in the Philly sports heroes Hall. But even Iverson, determined as he's ever been, can't restore much shine to a team that needs a remake more than a nostalgic trip.
The best scenario for the Sixers this year was to subtract, not add. Rather than adding Iverson, unloading Elton Brand would've been more beneficial in the long run. Brand has been a bad fit almost from the start. He's had some philosophical difference with the direction of the club and his contract (three years, $50 million left) has a chokehold on the Sixers. Brand and the Sixers could use a new beginning. Both would be better off. He'd probably flourish on another team and the Sixers could start the rebuilding process a lot more quickly.
Because that's unlikely to happen soon, the Sixers' season comes down to Iverson and whether he can make the club competitive on the floor and in the seats. His impact in both areas, so far, has been mild. The Sixers are much better off with Iverson than without him; they lost 15 of 20 before he arrived and have since beaten the Mavericks, Nuggets and Blazers. His spirit brought a refreshing change to the locker room, and although the Sixers aren't exactly selling out, at least fans in Philly are curious about the team, which represents an upgrade from November.
"He gives us some toughness and leadership," said coach Eddie Jordan. "He's been great for us."
Regarding his beef with Memphis, Iverson was correct in one sense: He does have something left. Just not as much as his All-Star selection might suggest. He's at career lows in points (averaging just under 15 a game), assists (4.4) and number of times he can get the benefit of the doubt on foul calls. Most impressively, he hasn't been a problem chemistry-wise. That was the big fear in Memphis. All told, adding Iverson has been a bargain for the Sixers.
And yet, in the big picture, his presence does little or nothing for the club. With Iverson around, the Sixers won't lose enough games to increase their odds of getting a high Draft pick, nor win enough to reach the playoffs. He's not a long-term solution nor will he convince folks to snap up season tickets. Eventually, for the sake of their future, the Sixers must find someone to take away Iverson's minutes. The sooner, the better.
This isn't 2001 anymore. We knew that when the Sixers brought Iverson back. And when they meet the defending NBA champion Lakers, that game will officially serve as a grim reminder of what used to be.
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