Bleachers' Brew #184 The Question(s)

The Question(s)

by rick olivares

Why the New York Knicks did not sign Allen Iverson:

1. Under Coach Mike D’Antoni who is pushing for his seven-seconds-or-less offense with the downtrodden Knicks, if they had Iverson in tow, it will be forty-seven-minutes-no-less playing time. And as Donnie Walsh said, it will eat up the playing time for the younger players.
2. Gone are the days when the Knicks seemed like it was their official hair-fashion. Now sporting more or less a clean-cut look save for rookie forward Jordan Hill’s dreadlocks (dreads are cool),  sported cornrows the last thing the Knicks need is Danilo Gallinari, David Lee, and Darko Mlicic in cornrows.
3. Four teams – the Philadelphia 76ers, the Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, and the Memphis Grizzlies – have decided that Iverson isn’t the answer to their problems. And with every stop, the former Georgetown Hoya’s stint keeps getting shorter. In fact, if you go to the NBA’s Info Page right now (before they change it), Iverson’s photo is still with a Detroit jersey. His stay with Memphis was so quick that LeBron James was a host of Saturday Night Live longer (90 minutes) than Iverson got minutes with the Grizzlies (41 minutes). If that isn’t a reality check on the Knicks then Charles Dolan, Donnie Walsh, and Mike D’Antoni should have their heads examined. But already just being a part of one of the worst franchises in the NBA should merit a brain scan.
4. For the sake of argument, if New York gets Iverson, how does that affect their chances of making a huge bid for LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, or any other marquee player for the 2010-11 season? If Iverson is ditched after one season, is it a repeat of his claims of “disrespect” in Motown or a repeat of the situation in Mile High City with Carmelo Anthony? Methinks, the Knicks braintrust would rather get a team player in James.
5. When the Knicks see Iverson, they see the second coming of Stephon Marbury (Allen wore #3 with Memphis while Starbury wore #3 in New York). It looks, feels, and smells just like that re-make of Friday the 13^th.
6. It’s hard to get a player who was once nicknamed “The Answer” but now goes by “The Cancer.”

What’s next for Allen Iverson?

1. Compare notes with Marbury on their career paths then write a book on misunderstood playas where he’ll take shots at Philadelphia’s organization, Larry Brown, George Karl and the Nuggets, Melo, Michael Curry and the Pistons, Memphis, and what could have been in New York. The title would be “Knicked” (or some might say “Answers to Questions You’ve Always Wanted to Ask But Were Afraid To).” The foreword will be written by the Reverend Jesse Jackson who will bring up the ever-predictable race card.
2. Wait for an NBA team to pick him up. He is definitely not over the hill.  Some one out there will need to put people in the stands and win a few games; the future be damned. Or he can follow Marbury’s footsteps and play with the Celtics (but can he handle playing behind Ray Allen).
3. Ask SLAM to put him on the cover for a story: Who’s Afraid of Allen Iverson Redux?
4. Get more tattoos now that he has a lot of free time on his hands.
5. Play in Europe. I hear they pay just as well.
6. Or he can just call it quits.

 

More thoughts on the Iverson issue:

I am wondering by Charlotte Bobcats Head Coach Larry Brown has been calling NBA teams on Iverson’s behalf. Why don’t you get him for your team, Coach? Or you’d rather have him on someone else’s team and watch them implode? Excellent strategy!

Somehow, this reminds me of the cornrowed Latrell Sprewell who was chilling in his home in Milwaukee after being released by the Golden State Warriors following his attempt to rearrange PJ Carlesimo’s windpipe. What’s the relation with Iverson here? AI is perceived to strangle teams’ hopes here if you have been reading newspapers and magazines outside SLAM. Spree, was a force of nature with G-State but was deemed to be a cancer on his squad. The Knicks came calling and soon he was a Knick where he led them to the NBA Finals in 1999 were they fell to the San Antonio Sterns. So will Walsh and D’Antoni relent and sign Iverson in spite of heir earlier pronouncements? Time will tell.

It’s a clear case of damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don’t. But since the season (at 3-9 of this writing) this early is going downhill, why not? If before teams would tank late in the season for a chance to get the top pick in the draft how different is this “newspeak” of developing players now for the future (read: let’s lose now then we can jettison the deadweight to clear cap space for a monster payday for LeBron)? But the NBA, whether because of poor front office moves or the global recession, is littered with bad teams nowadays. As this sees print, only 14 of the league’s 30 teams have winning records. But three of them are just a game above .500.

The Knicks are playing games both on and off the court. They are losing on the court and could lose big time if they don’t bag James in next year’s free agent grab fest. Should they fail on both counts, then this decade of mediocrity (an understatement if there was ever one) will continue and New York will still be searching for answers.

 

Recommended reading:

When The Game Was Ours by Larry Bird, Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Jackie MacMullan

Shooting Stars by LeBron James and Buzz Bissinger

The Beckham Experiment by Grant Wahl