The man known through most of his career as “The Answer” who over the past few years had morphed into the “The Distraction” today became “The Unemployed”. The Philadelphia 76ers announced that Allen Iverson had been released from his contract and will not take the court again this season for the team.
Iverson Has Played His Final NBA Game
The experiment is over.
Iverson had missed 9 of the Sixers last 12 games dealing with family matters concerning the health of his daughter. No details have been released as to the nature or seriousness of the health issue, leading the media to deluge the team with questions about Iverson rather than the ream. Once again, Iverson’s antics had upstaged his teammates on the cusp of a playoff spot and broke the continuity of the team.
The signing of Iverson, for all sakes and purposes, was nothing more than a mere stunt by Ed Stefanski and the Sixers management team. The hopes were that Iverson would fill the growing empty seats at the Wachovia Center. They did for one game, Iverson’s return, but attendance dipped back to league-low levels shortly thereafter. The fans were not fooled by the sideshow carnival, proving that P.T. Barnum was incorrect that a sucker is born every minute.
The release of Iverson will hopefully be the last chapter of an overhyped career. Iverson over his years has never delivered wins, garnering just a 51% winning percentage in games that he played in. Certainly not Hall of Fame standards by any means. His one successful season had nothing to do with his play, it was the masterful coaching of Larry Brown in realizing that any Allen Iverson-led team must be the best defensive team in the league to compensate for his incessant chucking of the ball and refusal to include his teammates in the offensive flow.
Iverson’s legacy that will be left behind is the damage he has done to the NBA with his selfish style of play and gangster persona. His negative impact on the sport is comparable inverse to the positive influence of Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. In summary, he has single-handedly brought the league to its lowest level of fan interest in over 30 years by spawning a gaggle of AI-wannabes that have emulated his selfish style.
Much of the challenges the NBA currently faces in restoring the game is to undo what Iverson created. The NBA must return to the focus of team basketball, with emphasis on passing the ball and constant offensive motion. Iverson’s isolation-style offense has lowered the quality of basketball play and turned away hard-core fans in favor of street thugs with gravity-challenged pants, most of whom cannot afford a game ticket in the nose bleeds.
Iverson impact was also felt on the international stage as well, being the face of the 2004 Olympic team that luckily earned a bronze medal and were the embarrassment of Americans. He deserves most of the blame on his shoulders for one of the gloomiest days in USA Summer Olympics history.
Good riddance to Allen Iverson. Enjoy receiving the rest of that guaranteed contract from the Sixers. Once again, you’ve shown no shame and hopefully your days in the NBA are over for good.
