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| Saturday, July 20 Updated: July 23, 3:04 PM ET Let's play Iverson-Sixer 20 questions By David Aldridge Special to ESPN.com |
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My middle classness has me unsure of what to make of all this Allen Iverson business. The following conflicting 20 questions are currently running through my brain: 1. Is this being blown out of proportion by we in the media because it's the middle of summer and nothing better is going on at the moment?
2. Doesn't Iverson need to take some responsibility for what happens to him? Especially since he has told everyone, present company included, that he wants his kids to be proud of him? 3. Why would he need to get strapped if he was only looking for his wife? 4. Don't the Sixers, for the team's sake, have to re-ignite trade talks and get AI out of town while he still has value? 5. Don't the Sixers, for their bottom line's sake, have to resist the temptation while they're upset to move one of the league's most marketable players -- one who is beloved by Joe Sixpack and his pals in Philly? 6. Can the police be given the benefit of the doubt here, or should overzealousness to nail a popular local figure at least be explored as a possible reason this case was investigated so stringently? 7. Won't the commish, who's made such an issue about the off-court behavior of both players and coaches, have to suspend Ive for at least two games at the start of the regular season, no matter how the case is adjudicated? 8. Is there not anyone in Iverson's inner circle who tells him, from time to time, "Yo Allen, that's a bad idea, dog?" Will he listen to anyone at this point? (OK, that's two questions.) 9. Does his "practice" rant during that odd news conference in April take on different tones now? 10. If I run the New Orleans Hornets, and I have a franchise-type player in Baron Davis making it clear that he won't accept my $89 million, and I probably have to deal him, don't I have to inquire about the availability of a certain high-scoring, raised-in-the-South, charismatic, ticket- and merchandise-selling machine? 11. Would it do Allen some good to do some time? 12. Would any of this be happening if his last name were Smith, not Iverson? 13. Are there 12 people in the state of Pennsylvania who will convict Allen Iverson of anything? 14. Will he use the obvious anger he has at the world right now as fuel for another MVP run? 15. What will Larry Brown do in the fall the first time Iverson is late for practice, or doesn't show at all? 16. What is Tawanna Iverson thinking right about now? 17. What has Allen told Deuce Iverson, toddler, about all this? 18. Where is the gun -- if there was a gun? 19. Doesn't Allen have to make some kind of public statement -- not one admitting guilt or expressing innocence, but something -- to the legions of people who continue to support him during his darkest moments? 20. Should Ed Snider, the owner of the Sixers, swallow some pride, pick up the phone and do whatever it takes to bring Pat Croce back into the family?
Dispatches from Shaw's Summer League
"We're looking for a little more aggressiveness," coach Lon Kruger said. "Personality-wise, I think he continues to work on that. He's shooting the ball better, rebounding a little better. He needs to turn the corner, but he'd just be a senior in college. He's still young. You'd like to think he'd step up, but depending on what else happens -- trades or anything else this summer -- it could be that he could have a good year and maybe not play as many minutes. Last year, he played on a team that didn't win many games."
"Plus, he's ticked off he didn't get drafted," OB says. "That's always a great motivation." But Boston's biggest project this summer is second-year forward Kedrick Brown. There will be minutes for him backing up Antoine Walker at the three if the Celtics can land a power forward and get 'Toine out of the paint, or Paul Pierce if they can't. The C's are hoping that Brown will be more aggressive with a better handle this season and try to use his explosiveness to get to the rim. Last season, he settled for jumpers because of his weak dribble. They put together a tape for Brown that features Seattle's Desmond Mason, the Nets' Richard Jefferson, Cleveland's Ricky Davis and Indiana's first-round pick, Fred Jones -- all slashers who use the drive to set up their perimeter game.
McHale says he's not concerned about Brandon's motivation this year after Brandon expressed interest last season in coming off the bench. "That's another misconception about Terrell," McHale said. "He likes to play it cool. Everything with Terrell is he's one of those never let 'em see you sweat kind of guys. Believe me, I've pushed his buttons many, many times, and you get a lot of results."
On the floor, second-year man Lavor Postell had a good run with New York's team, as did forward Jamel Thomas.
The Spurs are still looking for an assistant coach to replace retired Hank Egan. They offered the job earlier this month to Penn coach Fran Dunphy, an old acquaintance of head coach Gregg Popovich. But Dunphy turned them down, and Terry Porter looks like he'll join his old coach, Rick Adelman, on the bench in Sacramento. Former Kansas guard Kevin Pritchard, whose ABA team won that league's championship this year, could wind up with the job.
"My freshman year in high school, I sucked," Brown said. "I was horrible. I didn't have footwork. Same as last year. I didn't have any footwork. And by my junior year, I got better. Every year, I got better. It's not where you're at now; it's where you're gonna be. I think if I continue to grow, I'll be fine. This year, I'll be better than last year." Brown will go to Hawaii for Pete Newell's Big Man's Camp next month, then go to Florida for some more low-post work before training camp. It's a lot different from his approach last summer, when he missed most of the summer with nagging injuries he couldn't push through. Learning to work hard is the mantra Doug Collins is trying to impress into Brown every day. "He's talked to me about making a commitment to work hard every day," Brown says. "Doug is real big on, when you have a good practice or a good game, coming back the next day and keep growing from it. Once you have a good practice, he's real picky on seeing what you do the next day in practice, or seeing what you do the next game. He wants you to keep going. It's helping a lot, because some days when I'm beat up and hurt and don't feel like practicing, he's there to motivate you to work hard. He'll yell at you and make you play hard." David Aldridge is an NBA reporter for ESPN. |
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