2010 NBA Report: Where Will Allen Iverson Play Next? The Answer Is....
Allen Iverson hasn't played an NBA game since Feb. 20, when he looked nothing like the AI of old, dropping 13 points to go along with three assists and a rebound on a 5-of-13 shooting night. Oh, and the Sixers lost 122-90.
Since then, nobody has seen AI. Rumors have swirled about his whereabouts. Some have speculated that he owed massive gambling debts; others discussed his impending divorce, and some believed AI when he said he was spending time with his sick daughter. My guess is a combo of all three.
But it's weird to think that for the first time since 1996, AI will not be a major story line in the NBA. In fact, he won't be a story line at all. "The Answer" to the above question in the title seems to be Besiktas, a Turkish team, who offered Iverson $2 million.
Is this what AI is reduced to? He couldn't even get one—not ONE—invite to an NBA training camp. Yes, he has a notoriously bad attitude. Yes, he's a 35-year-old point guard who just left his team midseason.
But he's also only a year removed from a campaign that saw him put up 17.4 PPG, 5 APG and 3.1 RBG. You don't think there's one team out there who couldn't use a veteran point guard. Or one team that could use the sure added boost in jersey and ticket sales from AI?
I could think of a couple teams who have a hole at point guard where AI could fit in. The Bobcats have trouble selling tickets, and with Raymond Felton now in New York, could use a new point guard. Plus, Larry Brown, the coach in which AI enjoyed the most success over, is their head coach.
The Toronto Raptors could use another big name player to draw fans with Chris Bosh now in Miami. Which brings up Miami, a perfect place for AI. Iverson's career will never be complete until he wins an NBA title. In Miami, he'd certainly start over current point guard Mario Chalmers.
Miami, which is built to win now with a very veteran bench, should be willing to pay the $2 million for AI's services for the season. The Heat, a heavy favorite in the East, have enough big name players for AI to not have to carry the team, and serve as a role player.
For AI, he needs to show that he can be a team player, and if he has any hope of returning to the NBA, he's going to have to do it as a role player. With Miami, he can do so while winning AND starting.
The Answer is simple....AI should be down in South Beach, not in Turkey. But only if everything were so simple in Iverson's storied, yet troubled career.
Michael Perchick is the writer/editor of TheJockosphere, a sports/Twitter site, reporting the top tweets and news directly from athletes. Follow him on Twitter @TheREALPerchick, and at http://thejockosphere.com/.
