He's here; Now what
-400.jpg)
News blogs, sports blogs, entertainment blogs, and more from Philly.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.
He's here; Now what
Since Sunday, those following the 76ers, and maybe just NBA basketball fans, have followed the saga of bringing Allen Iverson back to the Sixers. Now, as of this morning when the Sixers released the news, we know he's agreed to return. The details are: pro-rated of the $1.3 minimum, non-guaranteed, becomes guaranteed on Jan. 10, he will make his "return debut" on Monday against the Denver Nuggets.
Get your tickets quickly, because for the first time in a while, a Sixers game is hot.
Now the "Will he return?" saga is over and thus begins the "How will this work?" saga.
I'm here in Oklahoma City, preparing to head over to Sixers shootaround at the Ford Center. In about an hour, I'll post exactly what the Sixers have to say about this move, including head coach Eddie Jordan, as well as videos. If you want the insta, in-the-minute updates, follow on Twitter, where things are posted as they happen: Deep Sixer. If you want to chat about this move, what might happen, why it happened, how it might work, tune in for the Live Chat at 2 p.m. Eastern: Sixers Chat.
Just got back from the Ford Center. And posted a video of Eddie Jordan talking about Iverson, the possibility of him starting, and the changes in the offense (Jordan said it wouldn't be hard to teach Iverson the "iso" plays, meaning the clear-out, Iverson-to-the-hoop plays.) You can find that video in the Deep Sixer video player below on the right.
Here are some quotes from Jordan: "I told him the rules we had in place and Ed [Stefanski] laid down the conditions as far as rules that everybody abides by. And I told the team, we all have flexibility in our personalities, some guys do this, some guys do that, some guys listen to their music loud, some softly, some walk the straight and narrow, some guys waver. But as long as you're in the border of that road we’re going, it’s fine. But once you break that border, there are fines to be paid and consequences."
Maybe, at least for today, we should just revel in knowing one of the best players in franchise history is returning. But I'm assuming there are some die-hard Sixers fans out there who want to know how this might fit in. Here are some gathered insights:
1.) The only way this deal was going to go down was as non-guaranteed because the Sixers want to keep control of the situaiton. This is smart because now they're getting the best available player without strapping themselves to any of the potential drama (just being real here). Check out the quote from Jordan about laying down conditions.
2.) Right now, rookie Jrue Holiday is starting, but that won't last (of course!). He's going to be a very, very good player, but he won't be seeing the kind of minutes he's been seeing since Lou Williams broke his jaw. Look for him to play about 15 minutes a game now. Does that stall his progress or is playing 30 minutes a game too much right now for a 19 year old? That's debatable. As long as he keeps those 15 minutes and gets in every game, he should be making progress without carrying an overwhelming burden.
Jordan said Holiday was a "tough-minded" kid who will be OK, he'll be fine. Jordan said he hasn't yet talked to Holiday about it.
3.) Iguodala. Hmmmm. My vibe is he's OK with this move to bring Iverson back, if only because it's been such a rough start to this season and obviously they need something, they're almost dull to the losing at this point.
For the most part, I think you're going to hear today from a team that's excited Allen Iverson is back, because they've fallen to irrelevant in this city -- and in the NBA -- and for as long as this lasts, they're back on the map.
4.) As for the on-court play, the read-and-react offense of Eddie Jordan, I think that's obviously going to take a backseat for now. It's too late for Iverson to learn the offense in-depth and, really, do we want him to? At this point, he's back as a Sixer, the team is 5-13, I think the idea is to put the ball in his hands and see what he can still do.
Jordan said this was the Sixers "seizing the moment."
Don't forget the Live Chat at 2 p.m.
--Kate
yawn, another comcast rerun. wasn't matumbo available? thank goodness they get the knicks and nets for all those games.— fakeplastic- eddie jordan's plan for iverson? whatever iverson wants.— snakeplissken
- HATERS! why post up hate msg's. this is a good move pure and simple and if u dont like it don't watch and if u do like it see u @ the Wachovia center!— cousindannyjr
- AI took the Sixers from nowhere to the playoffs. He made Stephen A. Why can't he do it again? Because he is old? No because he has the heart of a lion and a Warrior. He brought basketball back to Philly once and he will do it again.— jpelle36
- Next front office move- deal before All-Star break with Utah Jazz for soon to be free agent sharpshooter Kyle Korver. Cudos to the front office for signing Iverson. I hope Eddie Jordan puts winning first and everything else second (including his system). I think Jordan is a fabulous communicator and a true expert in his field, so I think he and Allen will develop a very healthy respect for one another. Look for the Sixers to climb dramatically in the standings.— incog69
- hope is a good thing, we should all embrace it, but reality is harsh and cruel with very little mercy. with that said, if they all check there ego's at the door and iverson cuts his posse down to lets say 20 maybe we will play some respectable basketball and sell some tickets in the process. when the fan base grows sometimes the playing level grows with it, or at least it could, and thats all we can hope for.— 4u2digest
- If anyone really thinks this is a purely basketball decision then he or she has their respective heads buried deep in an area where the sun don't shine. The 76ers are part of a vast media conglomerate, one which wishes to rival other entertainment giants, including ESPN, but needs quality programming to do so. Right now, the Sixers have abysmal TV ratings, awful attendance and a dreadful product. Enter Allen Iverson! Stefanski and Jordan, I would wager, wanted him as much as they wanted the swine flu. Whether Comcast will allow this franchise to remain under their corporate banner or be sold to some unwitting new owner is at stake with this move. At the very least, it will be interesting, but the Sixers greatest problems are defense and rebounding and Iverson cannot help in either of those departments. By the way, to call Iverson a thug is ridiculous and smacks of outright racism.— chuckw
- Anybody know when T.O. is due back in Philly?— jcpaul
- if this bunch could somehow learn to REBOUND and play D they could contend for a playoff spot,, and if not, a lottery pick would not be the worse thing in the world— phillyroni
- Philly Dom,, truest, best post of the day,,, this teams problem is DEFENSE AND REBOUNDING. If they could learn that we would see a great difference. Plus I Agree, where was Kapono at the end of the game. we needed a three ,, right, who is coaching this team,, Charlie Manuel ??— phillyroni
- Well, he always says the right things to reporters. Now we are going to see what he does. He is on a team that might lose a lot of games. He has not historically handled that well. I wish him the best with this .... his last chance.— dondon
- news flash: billy king will be back next week taking over for stefanski his 1st business decision will be firing jordan and handing over the keys to interim head coach m. cheeks— only 9
John Mitchell is in his second year covering the 76ers for the Inquirer after joining the paper in November 2011. He covered the Washington Wizards for the Washington Times from 1998 to 2008. He's also worked at the Philadelphia Tribune, the Wilmington News Journal, Courier-Post, Trenton Times and Elmira Star-Gazette.Born and raised in West Philadelphia - not too far from Will Smith - he graduated from Overbrook High School the same year the 76ers won their last championship. He's a proud graduate of Howard University and the proud father of two sons, Jared and Jordan.
ABOUT MARC NARDUCCI
Marc Narducci has served in a variety of roles with the Inquirer since beginning in 1983. He has covered the 76ers as a backup and a beat writer. In addition, Narducci has covered everything from the Super Bowl to the World Series and a lot in between. Narducci also has a true passion for South Jersey scholastic sports, which he has covered for many years.
