Down, but not out.

So it’s the Summer of 2009 and the weather we’ve all been expecting has finally kicked in. Thank you David Suzuki. No matter how late the blistering sun has decided to show up, I for one am grateful it has arrived…but this also means the beginning of the 2009-2010 NBA Season is around the corner, and do you know what hasn’t happened yet? Allen Iverson doesn’t have a team to play for.

Yep. That’s right – the 6’0, 180 lb guard with a career boasting 27 PPG, 6 APG, a Rookie of the Year award, 1 League MVP, 4 scoring titles, 2 All-Star MVPs, and a trip to the finals with the rest of the Sixers on his back after 16 years of Philly not even being there – does not have a team to play on yet.

And do you know what the worse part is? Most of us, and I mean you, don’t even care.

The stats I just listed are things that show up on his player card, but the things that aren’t mentioned are also some of the most significant moments in basketball history. We forget how he changed the face of players by making it okay for arms to be covered in tattoos and players to have their hair weaving in and out like a maze – an image that many of us embraced whole-heartedly. Allen Iverson single handedly made it okay to break MJ’s ankles and took the notion of having a lot of heart to a new level. While all of this was a wagon many ball players jumped on with the most excitement, it felt like the best thing since…anything.

But now, with the season about to begin a lot of us have forgotten about that and have simply brushed off all his accomplishments as “things of the past.” Since when is everything he’s given us as fans now not good enough?

While the media continues to pile on the dirt by claiming his reign is over most of us have decided to go along with it by picking up a shovel of our own. Where is the loyalty? We (I still mean you) don’t even route for him as an underdog (be clear, he’s NOT an underdog). Do you know how many times I hear supposed AI fans say, “Iverson is my favourite player, but look what he did this year in Detroit.”

Huh?

Am I missing something here? Is there a point I’ve overlooked or a situation I’ve misinterpreted? Because this is Allen Iverson that we’re talking about right? RIGHT?

The NBA has been dying to tear Iverson down since day one when he didn’t have the face they were looking to sell and now that Chauncey Billups and the Denver Nuggets are the “perfect” justification for demoting him we’re all swallowing this BS like it’s Sunday dinner. Some of you need to open your eyes and remember the guy who was spitting blood into his uniform just so he could stay in the game.

SMH. It’s not over for the crossover King, not by a long shot. Which ever team decides to take a “chance” on him this season will be one that knows that too. And just like he’s had to do for his entire career he’ll prove himself all over again. So forget what they told you, he’s still The Answer I believe in.

See what SLAM Mag had to say about AI on both sides:

The End of Iverson?
How Quickly We Forget

Also peep the video below to remember the love you once had:

Peace.

Everything & Anything