Still The Answer

I have always felt that Allen Iverson would leave the game on his own terms. I did not see him as one of those players who would stick around past their prime in search of an elusive ring(although no one in the NBA is more deserving of one). I felt that his pride would not allow him to continue playing if he could not continue to play at the highest of levels which we have all come to expect from him.

And, after his worst statistical season as a pro, and a mutual split from the Pistons for the remander of the season...... I feel the same way.

As a diehard Sixers fan, I watched Allen torch opponents and dominate the league for the better part of a decade. I watched him rack up scoring titles, All-Star Selections, an MVP trophy, and I watched him carry an otherwise mediocre team to the NBA Finals on his back. These are the images I have of Allen Iverson the player; the 50 point outbursts, the electric steals for fast-breaks, the never-say-die attitude, and the will to win. These are the images that turned Allen into not only my favorite NBA player of all time, but my single favorite athlete in history. Thus, I do not take his struggles this season, nor the criticism that has befallen him lighty. Granted he is not without his baggage, but what athlete isn't. I am not saying that Allen Iverson is the same player today that he was in 2001 when he dragged Eric Snow and co. to the finals. I am simply saying, this dog has more fight left.

The Pistons were a bad fit from the beginning for The Answer, and the speculations since day one that the trade was made simply to unload his expiring contract at the end of the season surely worked to bruise Allen's enormous ego. We all know that Allen likes, or rather needs, to have the ball in his hands to be effective, and all of a sudden this is a problem. Complaints of his selfishness or his inability to work in a cohesive unit such as the Pistons surfaced almost immediately. (Interesting that these complaints were never heard when the same style of play was leading the league in scoring and elevating his role-player-ridden teams to elite status). Allen was stuck into a ready-built system and forced to learn on the fly, and the results were subpar; similiar to last year's Shaq to the Suns and Kidd to the Mavs flops. And because of this failed experiment people are beginning to write Allen's career off, just as they did to Shaq's after last season (still talking?).

How quickly we forget. Just last year, Allen played in all 82 of the Nuggets' games, averaging 42 minutes, 26 points, and 7 assists per. Allen is still capable of playing at an extremely high level and being one of the elite players in the league, he just needs the right opportunity, and contrary to what many experts are saying, I believe that opportunity exists. Allen's stint in D-Town is presumably over, and I eagerly await the next stop on his course, as I reminisce on what has already been an extraordinary career.