I got a call late yesterday afternoon from my wife.
She said only two words.
Allen Iverson.
But she said it in a way that told me he had converted another fan.
It was the tears that did it. She’s a sucker for a man who cries. How she wound up with me I’ll never know. She became the world’s biggest Eric Lindros fan after he broke down while accepting the MVP Award and vowing to lead the Flyers farther in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
As usual, A.I. did not disappoint yesterday at the press conference formally announcing his return to the Sixers. It took only a few questions for the tears to flow. An emotional Iverson clearly was a man happy to be going home. The feeling is mutual.
No, he didn’t talk about “practice.” Still, it was impossible to take your eyes off the guy.
That is in fact what Iverson brings to the table at this point in his career. All by himself, he has done what the entire Sixers front office and roster has been unable to do. He makes the Sixers matter again.
Don’t believe me? Call the Sixers ticket office. If you can get through.
They sold out Monday night’s game – his return to the Wachovia Center court – in a matter of hours after news of his signing.
Yesterday, Iverson said all the right things. He usually does, that classic “practice” rant not withstanding.
Iverson gets it. And the fans get him. He is raw, unvarnished, both in interviews and on the court. He puts everything out there, warts and all.
That’s why the fans love him.
And that’s why they will create one of those very special Philadelphia sports moments Monday night when Iverson steps onto the court.
The ovation from the fans will be thunderous.
Count my wife among them.
She said only two words.
Allen Iverson.
But she said it in a way that told me he had converted another fan.
It was the tears that did it. She’s a sucker for a man who cries. How she wound up with me I’ll never know. She became the world’s biggest Eric Lindros fan after he broke down while accepting the MVP Award and vowing to lead the Flyers farther in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
As usual, A.I. did not disappoint yesterday at the press conference formally announcing his return to the Sixers. It took only a few questions for the tears to flow. An emotional Iverson clearly was a man happy to be going home. The feeling is mutual.
No, he didn’t talk about “practice.” Still, it was impossible to take your eyes off the guy.
That is in fact what Iverson brings to the table at this point in his career. All by himself, he has done what the entire Sixers front office and roster has been unable to do. He makes the Sixers matter again.
Don’t believe me? Call the Sixers ticket office. If you can get through.
They sold out Monday night’s game – his return to the Wachovia Center court – in a matter of hours after news of his signing.
Yesterday, Iverson said all the right things. He usually does, that classic “practice” rant not withstanding.
Iverson gets it. And the fans get him. He is raw, unvarnished, both in interviews and on the court. He puts everything out there, warts and all.
That’s why the fans love him.
And that’s why they will create one of those very special Philadelphia sports moments Monday night when Iverson steps onto the court.
The ovation from the fans will be thunderous.
Count my wife among them.
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