Allen Iverson Live

Support from all corners of the world has been pouring in for Allen Iverson.  As Scoop Jackson wrote on ESPN, Allen Iverson just needs a place to land.  The unthinkable incidents seem to all happen at once for Iverson – his daughter gets seriously ill, the Sixers announce his departure, his wife files for divorce, Stephen A Smith writes about his alcohol and gambling problems…

Larry Brown has spoken out, and he believes that Allen Iverson will return.

Maybe he’ll never play again at the level I saw him play at, but I think he can still help somebody,” Brown said. Even if Iverson does seek to return, the question remains whether a team is willing to take him on.

Mar. 11 – 8:07 am et.  Source: Charlotte Observer

According to one source, guys around the league are pissed at Steven A. Smith right now for his most recent column on Allen Iverson.

Guys around the league are pissed at Stephen A. Smith right now for his most recent column on Allen Iverson, the one in which he claimed Allen is going to drink and/or gamble his life away. One of my NBA friends in Philly says a bunch of Sixers can’t wait for Stephen A. to show up in their locker room so they can have words with him.

“I’m thrilled,” said Brown, who coached Iverson and the 76ers for six seasons. “I think it’s a great thing …

“You know, he still can play, and he’s in an environment where they love him,” he said before the Bobcats played the Nets last night. “I don’t think there’s any athlete in Philly more loved than him.”

Iverson agreed Wednesday to a prorated amount of the $1.3 million veteran’s minimum one-season salary. The 6-foot guard will make his debut Monday night against the Denver Nuggets at the Wachovia Center.

“You know, I spoke to him when he retired,” Brown said. “It was just to keep people off his back and not have to answer that question. He’s been really, really troubled by this whole thing. And now it’s all behind him.”

Iverson’s return on Monday is surely to be in front of a sell-out crowd at the Wachovia Center.  Stay tuned for the latest!

According to Yahoo! Sports, Allen Iverson met with the Memphis Grizzlies owner and GM on Monday in Atlanta.  However, they have yet to reach an agreement on a contract.    So the wait continues…

Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley, coach Lionel Hollins and general manager Chris Wallace attended the meeting. The source said there isn’t a timetable for Iverson to make his decision.

The Grizzlies have offered a one-year, $3.5 million dollar contract that could potentially be pushed to more than $4 million if the rights to guard Juan Carlos Navarro are renounced. While Iverson would like to be reunited with his former coach, Larry Brown, in Charlotte, the Bobcats have expressed only mild interest in him, given the franchise’s financial restraints. For now, Memphis appears to be Iverson’s only strong option to return to the NBA.

Despite Iverson’s preference to start, the Grizzlies would likely try to bring him off the bench while starting Michael Conley and O.J. Mayo(notes) in the backcourt. Hollins doesn’t want to slow the development of Conley and Mayo, the source said. The Grizzlies hope that adding Iverson would boost ticket sales and their profile.

In my opinion, the best situation would be for AI to land back with his old coach in Charlotte.  I think a lot of fans also feel this way.  However, it sounds like the Bobcats have financial restraints.  Since Iverson has expressed his interest in making the Grizz “a winner”, it is still good news.  His enthusiasm can be a good thing and at the end of the day, we all want to see AI back in the league…

The suspense is killing us.  However, it does look more likely than not that Allen Iverson will re-unite with Larry Brown on the Charlotte Bobcats.  The news around the internet is summarized below:

Iverson-Brown II? Maybe, maybe not - The Charlotte Observer’s Rick Bonnell wrote in response to the report: “I’m told by a great source that’s not true. However, that doesn’t mean Iverson won’t be a Bobcat. It sounds like there’s a good chance that will happen. My source says definitively that Iverson’s first choice is to play for Larry Brown again in Charlotte, and that there have been serious discussions about making that happen.”

Bonnell said that before any move were to occur, the Bobcats face issues with their payroll and a logjam at guard. But he adds: “You’d be adding a great scorer to a team that was last in the NBA in scoring, and you’d be adding a star to a team struggling to sell tickets and create a buzz.”

Iverson and Bobcats hammering out a deal? – Rumor has it the two sides have either agreed on a deal or are getting pretty close to one. Either way, one is expected to probably be signed sometime this week, according to the Sporting News.  The arrival of Iverson would likely not be good news for shooting guard Raja Bell(notes), who would surely get pushed down onto the bench.

Note that Raja Bell played with Iverson during their run to the 2001 NBA finals.  Raja Bell came off the bench back then, is he willing to do it again?

Iverson Wants Reunion with Brown – If Iverson does sign with the Bobcats, the team likely would need to figure out whether to trade or relegate shooting guard Raja Bell to a reserve roll. Another issue could be the contract itself—as Sean Deveney wrote earlier this week, the Bobcats haven’t been in the spending mode this summer.

This author thinks that Allen Iverson should be re-united with this former Coach Larry Brown to play for the Charlotte Bobcats:

In my opinion, it is the Bobcats because he can reunite with Larry Brown and it would be like the 2001 Sixers team again—except A.I. would not have to average 31 ppg. This is because the players around him are more talented. I am not saying they would go to the Finals, but if this happens they will make the playoffs as a six or seven seed.

Full Article Here.

Charlotte Bobcats coach Larry Brown told the media Friday he was open to accepting free-agent guard Allen Iverson as a part of the team.
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Brown, who led the Pistons to an NBA title in 2004, seemed in a conciliatory mood toward Iverson — considering their tumultuous relationship when he coached Iverson with the 76ers earlier in Iverson’s 13-year career.

But the Charlotte Observer had a quote from Brown that raises questions about Iverson’s future in the league.

“I know he has a big chip on his shoulder now,” Brown said. “He’s got a trainer and is taking care of himself.”

Larry Brown has heard all the speculation. He’s heard everything, from people saying Allen Iverson won’t draw a lot of interest as a free agent this summer to Iverson’s best bet might be to reunite with Brown in Charlotte.

Brown, speaking before his Bobcats lost to the Pistons on Sunday, said he wouldn’t bet on either scenario.

“There will definitely be a lot of interest in him,” Brown said. “It’s not a time for me, but Allen is a special guy. He’s going to compete every night and try to win. I hope things work out for him.”
“I am just disappointed,” Brown said of the failed Iverson project in Detroit. “I feel bad for Allen because I remember how excited he was (when the trade happened) and how he thought this was going to be his chance to win a championship.”

The Pistons shut Iverson down for the rest of the season and playoffs on Friday.

Iverson draws praise from his former hall-of-famer coach, Larry Brown.

“There’s never been anybody like him,” Brown said of Iverson before the Pistons beat his Bobcats, 90-86, Saturday. “Once they (Pistons) figure out how to use him, things will straighten out. They will be a real serious team when (playoff) time comes.”

If there is any coach that knows Iverson, it’s Larry Brown.  Recall that magical year when the went all they way to the finals with Allen winning the MVP, and Larry winning the Coach of the year.

The other night (against Indiana) he got 12 assists and took 12 shots. He would’ve been killing me if he only got 12 shots up (with the 76ers).”

Brown laughed, but he was serious about Iverson’s maturity.

“All that kid has ever wanted was to win,” Brown said.