When I lived in Philly, I bought season tickets after they drafted Iverson. I sat six rows behind the bench, sitting next to DJ Jazzy Jeff of Fresh Prince (Will Smith) fame. Back then a relatively unknown beat reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer would drop by daily to pay his respects to Jazz -- his name is Stephen A. Smith. Yeah, that guy on ESPN. I'm probably in a lot of photos because people would come by and ask for a pix, and there I was always leaning away. Iverson was one of the most exciting players then and is still today. I was there his first year when he juked and double crossed Jordan at the foul line -- btw, the Sixers lost that game but everyone remembers that crossover on Jordan. I'm a true Sixers fan, but these are my thoughts on Iverson. He's probably one of the most talented players, pound for pound, to ever play the game of basketball. If he could only imagine what he could've been with a little bit of practice. Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods are known as the greatest to play their respective sports, and what they have in common are these two things: 1) Work ethic and 2) Being the most competitive son of a bitch. I know they say you can't win a championship with a 5'10" guard -- he's listed as 6 foot in the media guide and I've met him and he ain't no 6 feet tall. He could've defied a lot of odds had he just practiced, but in his view, "We're talking about practice. Practice man! Practice!" That's why you can't win a championship with Iverson as the centerpiece.
I am not a fan of Kobe, but you can't deny his work ethic, his competitiveness and the fact that he hits clutch shots. At the end of the day, it's about championships and Iverson has none, and Kobe's got 3. For all those people who are saying LeBron and Carmelo this and that, Kobe's still got 3 on them. It's about championships and unfortunately, Philly hasn't had any of those since Dr. J could dunk a ball. Tom Brady has 3 and Peyton has zero. Who do I want as QB on a potential 90 yard drive with less than 2 minutes left? Brady. Who do I want to give the ball to with 3 seconds left and down by 2? Kobe. Who do I want at bat with the winning run on 3rd base? Jeter. Who do I want putting a 10 footer with a right to left break on the 72nd hole of the Masters? Tiger. I would mention hockey but I'm not sure if it's still around.
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2 comments:
i have to say, it's sad to see AI leave philly, but hopefully the sixers can rebuild. but i did love watching AI. he is an incredible player, and with cooperation and team ethics, i think he could have done a lot for the sixers. it's time to look to the future...
You speak d'truth.
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