<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> Maybe, finally, Allen Iverson understands what his role is on this basketball team now. He ought to. He's been putting on the same stage play for a long time now. For 27 minutes after the Sixers' 101-90 loss to the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday night, Mo Cheeks' was the only audible voice in the Sixers' locker room. He was the only one speaking, telling his players to stay together, challenging them to meet the measure of the moment before them. If they're not careful, if things don't change right quick, this Sixers season will be gone before it reaches its midpoint. They're 18-20 now, four games behind the Nets in the Atlantic Division and falling, and after Cheeks finished his speech, it was time for the team leader to take some responsibility. Instead, he absolved himself. "I've always been the main focus on the team," Iverson said, "so I've always had that sense of urgency. You've heard me say it a million times just from me being here for so long. You can't teach heart. You can have all the talent in the world, [but] if you don't have any heart, you're going to struggle in this league as a player and, if the team doesn't have the heart, then the team is going to struggle." </div> link: http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/256...006-599804.html
Not a big surprise. AI never was the leader of this team. Eric Snow and Aaron McKie were (mainly Snow). AI has always been the "heart" of the team, but it was Eric that provided leadership both on and off the court, and that is why it was a huge mistake trading him (despite the contract issues).
And it's working, and for good reason. We NEED to break up this basketball team, it's plainly obvious. This unit that we've assembled for the year,can't defend, Allen Iverson and C-Dub is it's only offense, aside from Chris Webber don't ask anyone to try and box out. And god forbid, Maurice Cheeks takes AI out to start the 4th and we're down by 15!
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting B-22:</div><div class="quote_post">The media is trying to break this team.</div> Agreed. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting Super_Sixer_Fan:</div><div class="quote_post">And it's working, and for good reason. We NEED to break up this basketball team, it's plainly obvious. This unit that we've assembled for the year,can't defend, Allen Iverson and C-Dub is it's only offense, aside from Chris Webber don't ask anyone to try and box out. And god forbid, Maurice Cheeks takes AI out to start the 4th and we're down by 15!</div> God..when people say things like this it just makes me want to slap the sh.t out of them. How could you be so negative? We NEED? Since when have you been in charge of what the Sixers need and need not do?
Allen Iverson has never been a great leader even since his college days. He's not good at making his teamates better and his leadership skills aren't as evolved as his game. When he was at Georgetown, he basically had the offense ran around him and the gameplan was "pass the ball to Iverson and let him score." This affected his teamates and it made other Hoya players, such as Othella Harrington, worse instead of better like a good leader is supposed to do. This year's Sixers have this same problem. Allen Iverson does his thing every night and scores at will but it doesn't always result in a win for Philly. The Sixers tried to bring in Chris Webber last year to improve this team and Webber, like Harrington, hasn't thrived alongside Iverson like he did with the Kings. Unless Iverson can step up and start improving his teamates, I don't the Sixers will be legit contenders anytime soon.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TheAnswer2:</div><div class="quote_post">Agreed. God..when people say things like this it just makes me want to slap the sh.t out of them. How could you be so negative? We NEED? Since when have you been in charge of what the Sixers need and need not do?</div> What is wrong with being "negative"? Half the time it isn't negativity, it is simply being a realist. Do you honestly think we have a shot at winning a championship in the next three years? If you do, you're kidding yourself. Oh, and since when is it anybody's right to tell somebody what they can and cannot say? Nobody here is in charge of the Sixers, so by your last statement I guess we should all stop talking about them, right?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting BigMo763:</div><div class="quote_post">What is wrong with being "negative"? Half the time it isn't negativity, it is simply being a realist. Do you honestly think we have a shot at winning a championship in the next three years? If you do, you're kidding yourself. Oh, and since when is it anybody's right to tell somebody what they can and cannot say? Nobody here is in charge of the Sixers, so by your last statement I guess we should all stop talking about them, right?</div> Nope, we can talk about them. But when you say you need to tear a team apart, it doesn't come off good. You wanna be real? How about this..we wouldn't be in this situation now if King had analyzed Iverson's game better and made different decisions earlier in his career. The same mistake was made in Minny.
The thing is Iverson doesn't need a second man like Chris Webber or Glenn Robinson. The kind of second guy Iverson needs is a Ben Wallace type of player and that was shown in 01 when we had Mutombo. We're not going to win with Webber, I think we should trade Webber for some expring contracts. Ben Wallace is a FA this year.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TheAnswer2:</div><div class="quote_post">Nope, we can talk about them. But when you say you need to tear a team apart, it doesn't come off good. You wanna be real? How about this..we wouldn't be in this situation now if King had analyzed Iverson's game better and made different decisions earlier in his career. The same mistake was made in Minny.</div> Oh, definitely man. I've been saying that for so many years now, but you can't put the blame solely on Billy for that. Part of the blame has to go to Larry Brown, and when he left for Detroit, this franchise was really screwed. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting Diesel:</div><div class="quote_post">The thing is Iverson doesn't need a second man like Chris Webber or Glenn Robinson. The kind of second guy Iverson needs is a Ben Wallace type of player and that was shown in 01 when we had Mutombo. We're not going to win with Webber, I think we should trade Webber for some expring contracts. Ben Wallace is a FA this year. </div> I agree with you there too... about the part where AI needs a group of defenders around him to be successful. I believe he can be successful with our current starting line-up, but our team defense has prevented that. No way we're getting Ben Wallace. He'll re-sign with Detroit.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting BigMo763:</div><div class="quote_post"> I agree with you there too... about the part where AI needs a group of defenders around him to be successful. I believe he can be successful with our current starting line-up, but our team defense has prevented that. No way we're getting Ben Wallace. He'll re-sign with Detroit.</div> Yeah the Ben Wallace part was a pipe dream. I really think we can't be succesful with our line-up. Getting at least about 47 wins is what my expectations are for succesful. We need defenders and we just don't have it. I remember Korver hustling a lot more last year and was much better no the defensive end. Hunter can block a shot or two and thats it. Dalembert is a fouling machine, althought an excelent team defender. Iverson doesn't pressure the point guard at all. Lots of problems. Then don't get me started on our bench. I like our defensive effort lately though. Past two games were both below 90 in defense.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting BigMo763:</div><div class="quote_post">What is wrong with being "negative"? Half the time it isn't negativity, it is simply being a realist. Do you honestly think we have a shot at winning a championship in the next three years? If you do, you're kidding yourself.</div> Three years is a long time who knows if we will or won?t have a chance at a title in three years. There is always a possibility of something going down like it did in Miami and us becoming contenders. However, I don?t think it would be crazy to see us as contenders in three years, Webbers contract will be off the cap, who knows if AI will still be playing, but if he is not we will have a lot of cap room to make some moves.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Diesel:</div><div class="quote_post">The thing is Iverson doesn't need a second man like Chris Webber or Glenn Robinson. The kind of second guy Iverson needs is a Ben Wallace type of player and that was shown in 01 when we had Mutombo. We're not going to win with Webber, I think we should trade Webber for some expring contracts. Ben Wallace is a FA this year. </div> Just what I was thinking as I was reading this post. He needs a Big Ben who can score inside though. He needs like...a Diet KG, a Garnette Lite...SOMEONE who can score and grab board and play defense.
