| AI Didn't Stand for Artificial Interest After All |
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| Written by Chip Crain |
| Wednesday, 09 September 2009 09:03 |
Allen Iverson has signed with the Memphis Grizzlies after meeting with Michael Heisley, Chris Wallace and Lionel Hollins. God told him to do it. I always felt that Iverson's interest was not genuine. Maybe this was God's way of telling Iverson that it 's time to grow up. That any offer is better than none. Why he signed no longer matters however. He is a Memphis Grizz now and come October 28th I will be there cheering for him to help the team win the game. Because frankly that's all Memphis fans really care about anyway. Wins. Iverson is the most storied player ever to grace a Grizzlies uniform. He may no longer be the player that averaged 27 ppg and 6.2 apg over his career. He's definitely not the player who averaged over 30 pts and 7 assists a game for Philadelphia from the 2004-05 to the 2006-07 season. At 34 and with a lot of miles it is unlikely that he will ever play to that level again but he is capable of helping the Memphis Grizzlies win games. What Iverson will be able to do is come off the bench and shoot. I pity the backups and rookie guards trying to stop him. Iverson can get his shot off against the best players in the league. Not always the best shots for the team but he can get his shot off just the same. Now he gets to educate the scrubs to his particular brand of basketball. These guys won't likely be able to keep Iverson from getting good looks at the basket like the starters could. Now I know that Iverson has said he wants to start but honestly would the team be better with Iverson starting alongside Mayo, Gay, Randolph and Gasol with Conley leading the team's bench or would it be better to have the true playmaker start and let Iverson shoot at will while Young, Carroll, Arthur and Haddadi or Thabeet play defense? Memphis now has a legitimate starting 5, an outstanding scorer coming off the bench and an improved defense to go with the scorer. They may still be the butt of jokes around the league but at least they are a scary joke now. With 6 players capable of scoring 30 pts in a game on any given night no team can afford to overlook the Grizzlies anymore. Are the playoffs possible? Who knows? A lot depends on how things happen. Will the Grizzlies be able to avoid the injury bug? Will other teams? Will the locker room blow up or will the presence of two legitimate veterans make the team focus harder. Can AI teach the team to win close games this year? The good news is that the team has shown their willing to take chances to make this team better and to provide legitimate entertainment for the fans. That alone should be worth something.
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