The Sixers have their “Answer.”
What we don’t know is if they have a future.
Break out those old No. 3 jerseys. Allen Iverson is back. The 5-11 former All-Star will take a physical and be introduced today as the newest old Sixer.
How long do you think before he’s asked about practice? That’s right.
We’re talking about practice.
Actually, I want to talk about a couple of other things. The Sixers already accomplished two things – both of which they clearly were banking on with what seems like a move of desperation.
First, they are back on the Philly sports radar. Just a little more than 20 games into another marathon NBA campaign, the team was all but invisible. Not anymore. They are back on the Back Page. They are being talked about on sports radio.
On a weekend when Michael Vick returns to Atlanta, the Eagles will be trumped by what should be a night to remember when A.I. trots out onto the Wachovia Center floor on Monday night.
The Sixers also are getting the expected bump at the box office. The team says they “have seen a tremendous increase in interest.”
The Sixers had ranked 29th in the NBA in attendance. Just 11,965 fans were going through the turnstiles on average. The place likely will be packed Monday night.
Finally, here’s the real bottom line. For now, Iverson is starting. But what will happen when Lou Williams returns from his broken jaw, which is expected to keep him out of the lineup for eight weeks?
My guess is that depends on how the Sixers play with Iverson in the lineup. If they suddenly get hot and go on a win streak, don’t look for Iverson to suddenly take a bench role.
And that won’t be good for whatever future this team has. By the way, they got thumped again last night in Oklahoma City. Yes, they play NBA games there. It was the Sixers eighth straight loss.
Things can’t get any worse for the team.
We’ll find out Monday night.
What we don’t know is if they have a future.
Break out those old No. 3 jerseys. Allen Iverson is back. The 5-11 former All-Star will take a physical and be introduced today as the newest old Sixer.
How long do you think before he’s asked about practice? That’s right.
We’re talking about practice.
Actually, I want to talk about a couple of other things. The Sixers already accomplished two things – both of which they clearly were banking on with what seems like a move of desperation.
First, they are back on the Philly sports radar. Just a little more than 20 games into another marathon NBA campaign, the team was all but invisible. Not anymore. They are back on the Back Page. They are being talked about on sports radio.
On a weekend when Michael Vick returns to Atlanta, the Eagles will be trumped by what should be a night to remember when A.I. trots out onto the Wachovia Center floor on Monday night.
The Sixers also are getting the expected bump at the box office. The team says they “have seen a tremendous increase in interest.”
The Sixers had ranked 29th in the NBA in attendance. Just 11,965 fans were going through the turnstiles on average. The place likely will be packed Monday night.
Finally, here’s the real bottom line. For now, Iverson is starting. But what will happen when Lou Williams returns from his broken jaw, which is expected to keep him out of the lineup for eight weeks?
My guess is that depends on how the Sixers play with Iverson in the lineup. If they suddenly get hot and go on a win streak, don’t look for Iverson to suddenly take a bench role.
And that won’t be good for whatever future this team has. By the way, they got thumped again last night in Oklahoma City. Yes, they play NBA games there. It was the Sixers eighth straight loss.
Things can’t get any worse for the team.
We’ll find out Monday night.
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