A.I.'s Homecoming & Youth Doesn't = Indestructible

"There may be one million people who love me; there may be 10 million people who hate me. What do I do? I go to battle for those 1 million people” (Allen Iverson). This quote by Allen Iverson sums up his controversial profile as a basketball player since he entered the NBA. After 13 seasons in the league, A.I. returns to his original team, the Philadelphia 76ers. He was welcomed with over 20,000 screaming voices that were in a season first sold out Wachovia arena. A.I. says he is at peace with his decision, and that is important for a 34 year old NBA player. The 76ers lost to the Denver Nuggets, but it was A.I.’s first game in a month, so chemistry still needs to be built.
A.I. rattled up 11points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assist in 37 minutes of game play. He was a little over played, as A.I. was visibly breathing for air a little harder than usual. Andre Iguodala had an outstanding 31 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals in 41 minutes of game play. Samuel Dalembert who had a great 6 blocks in the first half. The 76ers played off the A.I. return energy in the first half, but they lost to the Nuggets behind the strong second half performance and game takeover of both Billups and Ty Lawson. It’s too early to see if A.I. will only be an impact on ticket sales for the organization or if he can help them make a return to the playoffs. Only time will tell, just like A.I. proved himself as an NBA elite over time.
Andre Iguodala not only had a great game, but he created a WOW moment that will be remembered when he launched and canned a 93 feet long shot one-handed just as time in the second half expired. All he gestured after was a shrugging of his shoulder, which was appropriate.

Rip City isn’t ripping away wins like expected earlier this summer, but they are being ripped themselves by the injury bug. Their long list of injuries includes the Head Coach, Nate McMillan, Rudy Fernandez, Travis Outlaw, Nicolas Batum, and Greg Oden. They lose to the N.Y. Knicks embarrassingly with a score of 84 (Portland) to 93 (NY). Greg is a huge loss for the Trailblazers because he was just building a nice offensive niche on the team, and already showed his dominating defensive presence in the paint for Portland. He was starting to look like the lucrative draft pick that management envisioned. The knee fracture he received just put Oden back into square one.
Oden’s injury shouldn’t be an excuse for Portland because if the aspire to be an elite team, then they need to play and win through adversity. Injuries shouldn’t set back a team that has championship aspirations. It’s time for Portland to put away the woes of injury and play, while leaning on their All-Star, Brandon Roy.
Here It Is & Remember the best place to his something is in plain view.