Hey who didn't see this coming? Frankly it was the right move. For the right reasons too!
The harsh reality is Lou Williams is out for at least 8 weeks. The 76ers do not have a replacement on their roster. I mean Royal Ivey is not a legit back up who can take over the starting role. And Jrue Holiday is not a realistic option either. Jrue is a Rookie and he is a shooter. That is what he does and that is what he should be doing.
With Iverson on board you at least get a veteran who can play adequate point guard and he will get some assists even as a ball hog. He has average 6.2 assists over his career actually. Which compared to John Stockton or Magic that sucks. But Lou Williams was good for 5.1 thus far. Yes he is learning but he isn't going to be playing.
The following statement says it all:
"In light of the recent injury to Lou Williams, which will sideline him for close to eight weeks, we felt that Allen was the best available free agent guard to help us at this time," team president Ed Stefanski said.
Yeah he brings luggage galore. And yes this is about fannies in seats also. But at the end of the day you need to have some one play PG.
And come on folks we all know this is not a Championship team and theoretically you want them to lose to get a high pick. But you can't put just anyone at the point and stumble through the season.
Iverson at least brings a stable presence to the point and a semblance of order can be had. Which helps the kids. May even help Iggy and Brand. And as I have stated before I don't see this piling up the wins and blowing the high draft pick scenario.
At the end of the day you owe the fans and you other players some cohesion to build on. And when Lou is back it's not like he will be ready to jump right in. So 8 weeks will probably turn into 9 weeks. Having Iverson at least gives me reason to watch this team play. My lord who could sit through Royal Ivey or Jrue Holiday playing point guard?
And I have already seen the Willie Green at point sitcom. And I don't need to see another Kevin Ollie like veteran brought in to fill the spot.
Iverson is coming here for a song and a dance of a pro rated portion of a NON GUARANTEED $1.3 Million veteran's minimum!
Look the argument against him coming here is the "I don't practice", "he's a thug,still", and the "we want to lose" are all predictable arguments against his return.
1 - Whether he practices or not, the team will get more valuable experience with him playing than they would any other present option. If you know a better option please tell us.
2 - Is he a thug? I have met him a few times and he couldn't have been any nicer. But I have heard horror stories also. Look this is a get through this season move. No body is expecting a road scholar or a boy scout. Frankly the people that should care are not worried about it so why should any fans? I'm not!
3 - Winning or losing? If we were so close that bringing Iverson in would make the wins come, they should have signed him over the summer! Come on people who are worried about this. What are you smoking? You think Iverson is going to make that kind of impact? We already sucked with him on the team before why won't we again? Do you see a better line up than I do?
Really replacing Lou Williams with Iverson is going to propel us to a 5 seed? I mean whatever the 76ers were is what they will be. Maybe that will be too many wins for a high draft pick. But Iverson is not going to impact that for the positive or the negative.
Actually if you believe he is a cancer then you are arguing for a reason to get him. If he is a ball hogging jerk and throws up 35 shots a game then we are definitely going to lose! So those people should be happy.
The bottom line is we finally have a reason to talk about these 76ers!
Keywords: 76ers, Allen Iverson, basketball, NBA, Philadelphia 76ers
