<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Maybe it's because there is no one else. Maybe it is the realization that in the Eastern Conference anything, after all, is possible. Maybe it is being healthy again, or the lessons learned from Athens. Most likely though, it is the understanding that (gasp) Allen Iverson isn't getting any younger. "I used to always hear you get better with age," the 29-year-old Iverson said with a shrug after dropping 40 on the Indiana Pacers to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 102-90 road win on Wednesday. In Iverson's case, he is getting better. Which is one heck of a surprise, isn't it? This was supposed to be the ultimate slash (to the hole) and burn (his career) kind of guy. A life-in-the-fast-lane sensation that could last only as long as that crossover dribble made him as good of a player as the NBA had. But here he is, still as good of a player as the NBA has. Only now, it's as much for his understanding of the game as his unbridled ability to master it.</div> <div align="center">Full Story</div> Iverson reign was most defiantly in his MVP season and after a couple seasons after that, we heard talks about Iverson supposedly being past his prime. And as evidence, his past few seasons somewhat showed that reality. However, Dan Wetzel (Yahoo! Sports Writer) brought up some valid points in this interesting article (He also made a case about Iverson possibly being up there for the MVP if it wasn?t for his team sub .500 record), and judging from what we've seen thus far, is ?this years? Iverson really better than the MVP Iverson? The team records for sure doesn?t benefit Iverson "this years" because this year team can't compare with the 00-01 squad, but as far as individual play goes, did Iverson really get better or did is he just simply off to a good start and will eventually break down later on? Also I would like to mention that, most players doesn?t reach their primes till their late 20's to early 30's, so is this the same case with Iverson? Many would disagree with this because they believe his speed is the benefactor to his game and as he aged his speed would diminish and so would his entire game, but surprisingly Iverson was able to keep that lighting speed, and now he uses it for more than just scoring. When you take a look at what Iverson done this year and his MVP season, it?s quite different as far as individual play goes. I remember in his MVP season, he would take a one-on-three fastbreak with him being the only one running. Now this season, it could be a 2-on-1 fastbreak and he would stop and wait for his teammates to get back. During the MVP season, he took any shot when he just got the SLIGHTEST day of light, now at times when he does have an open shot he looks to pass instead. These are just one of the many things that showed Iverson change over the course of his career. Next we have his maturity level. At first he used to be satisfied with putting big numbers (50+ points) and losing, now when you hear him talk he says think such as, ?I could care less if I scored 50 points?all I want is a win?. So his maturity level has certainly gone up throughout his career I believe. Lastly, with Snow departure Iverson has also stepped up by being the vocal leader that Snow once was. Iverson sets the tone for the team, and with his words he makes sure that he keeps his team keep their head up with a positive mindset and always has them keep fighting no matter what. As evidence of this, when the 76ers were down by at least 25-30 points against the Spurs, Jackson failed to give help on the weak side, and you literally heard Iverson screaming at him saying ?Keep playing!?. You could clearly here this because the game was just about over and the crowd was dead silent. With the game out of reach you might have thought that Iverson would look to get his points, but instead he looked to get everyone else rolling. So what do you think? Did he really get better playing wise, or is it deception that manipulates us into thinking he got better when in actuality it?s his maturity level is what made him better? Or has even improved at all?
Iverson is going to be same ol' Iverson no matter what anyone says. I don't think his speed will dimenish, and even if it slightly does his speed is so incredible right now you won't even notice it. He'll still be as fast as a Kobe Bryant or another other person, he just won't be the quickest guy in the league. Oh and he REALLY did improve.
WEll I read somewhere(forget) that a human being is strongest at the age of 29 in their whole life. This may be bull crap, but it may be true for Iverson. 29 is around the prime area of a player if I'm not mistaken. Maybe it is true. I hoep it is.
We won't be able to tell until his career is over. I mean next year he could average 30+ points. But I'm really not sure
I think this has been a season so far equal to his MVP year. He would be the lead runner for the award right now if the Sixers where playing better to answer the question first do I think he really is better playing wise? Yes he is. He has been trying to get his teammates involved, and though a couple times it fails he has been smart with his shots he has been shooting around 50% and averaging 45 points the last three games. Why do I think he is playing better? I think it is the experence at point guard he got playing in the Olympics earlier this year though it was a tough time for team USA he gained much experence at the point guard slot, and learned how to make smart passes. Is he in his prime right now I believe he is, but has his prime just begun, I do not think so. I think his prime began in the 2001 season when he won MVP. It was the first sign that he was really beginning to mature into a leader winning the award over Shaq and other good canidates becoming the shortest and lightest player ever to get the awards. The only thing Iverson has struggled in this year has been holding on to the ball which is expected considering this is his first season playing point guard (with the expeception of the all star game) since his rookie season. I think AI can only get ebtter this season. He looks like he is on his way to his fourth straight scoring title if Nash didnt have so many weapons to get asssits with in the Suns orginization I might even say I believe that Allen Iverson would be able to lead the league in scoring and assists this season. Here is a new Iverson article from Sixers.com breaking down his play as of late as well as the update on Glenn Robinson... <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> It's likely that many of the 15,642 fans in attendance at the Wachovia Center for the Dec. 20 game against Utah weren't fully aware of the magnitude of what they were watching Allen Iverson do that night. Sure, Iverson was having a tremendous game, and a driving finger-roll with 1:41 left in the game put him over the half-century mark for the evening with 51 points. But that finger-roll also rolled Iverson into uncharted waters. When coupled with his 54-point effort in a 116-97 win at Milwaukee two days earlier, the 51 against Utah made Iverson the first player in the history of the 76ers/Nationals franchise to post back-to-back games of 50 or more points. What's more, Iverson became the first NBA player in four years to accomplish the feat, and only the seventh in league history to do so. But those were just the two more recent games of a longer hot streak that Iverson has been enjoying lately. Iverson has scored 200 points in the Sixers' last five games, an average of 40 PPG. He had 40 points on Dec. 12 vs. Milwaukee, then posted 31 against Denver on Dec. 14 and 24 against New York on Dec. 17 before his two 50-point games. Iverson has shot 52.6 percent from the field over that stretch (71-135) and 78 percent from the free-throw line (50-64), while averaging 7.4 assists and 3.0 steals per game.</div> <div align="center"> Full Story</div>
It definatly should be the finals year and this year so far. If you look at the talent that was next to A.I during the finals, it was amazing how we even got there. We went on #3's back he averaged 30+ in the playoffs and thats how we got to the finals. This year A.I is impressing me also, 40+ points the last three games, I have the same feel as the finals year when he put us on his back and carried us. Iverson may be making a case for MVP again like he did in the finals run. I am just hoping AI can keep this hot streak up, he is looking pretty good these last games.
So far this has been the best season Allen has had since the 2001 season. Ai is doing it all, he is staying healthy, he is now more of a leader and he also is becoming a smarter player. Some of us though that with Allen getting older that he would slow down and not be the same player, but so far he has shown the opposite and the reason of this is because he knows the game better know that he is an older player. If the Sixers start coming together and they start winning games, I'd say Iverson was mvp (if he keeps up his production).
