Allen Iverson

Allen Iverson could have been a professional in any sport of his choosing but I think we're lucky he chose basketball. From his crossover of Jordan to his collection of gravity-defying dunks, Iverson played the game with a unique flair for the dramatic. His youtube resume has it all: ridiculous passes, ankle-breaking crossovers, a high school football mix, and a legendary press conference.

But now it's clear that for all the gifts AI has, fitting in on a team where he's not the focal point (or at least a starter) isn't one of them. So are the New York Knicks really the answer? Forget the fact that he would take time away from younger players (since this feels a little like tanking... if you can improve your team for a reasonable cost, don't you do that?). Is it even possible that this will work out? I talked him up going to Denver ("AI can do anything, play the point, focus on passing, play football.") and he didn't live up to expectations. This only became more obvious when Billups came in and improved the team. The team needed a pass-first guard to distribute to an awesome array of firepower and AI wasn't that guy (or wasn't willing to be that guy?). In Detroit, he should have taken a sixth man role to Rodney Stuckey who had the makings of being Detroit's "point guard of the future". He would have been the ultimate 6th man - providing instant offense and veteran leadership off the bench. But if AI can't start, AI isn't going to give it his all which he showed again in Memphis. So now AI is going to come New York? Seriously? People at Madison Square Garden boo loudly and irrationally (inadequate child performers are routinely booed) and they're not likely to have much to cheer about this season except a possible lottery pick. Of course, this all assumes AI refuses to give 100% toward helping the team win in every way possible. If he does that, his prodigious (if decreased) athletic talents could help the Knicks a lot. Or he could be the ultimate team player and become a total pass-first PG and help the Knicks young talent improve... I'm not saying he will but he could.

Ultimately AI wants a title, right? If he wants that to happen, he should show the league he can be an exceptional sixth man and then he'd be attractive to a contending team looking for more scoring off their bench (and who isn't).