I was looking today at the list of NBA non-playoff teams, trying to figure out which ones had solid futures, and which ones were fucked… and the 76ers appear to be the most fucked team in the league. There’s just nowhere good for them to go.
Allen Iverson’s career has been spent waiting for the 76ers to put the right pieces around him, and the Sixers have gotten it right exactly one time. And even then, the end result (a trip to the NBA Finals) was way more Larry Brown than it was Billy King. It might not even be possible to do at this point… it’s a shame.
The Sixers can try to trade him, but I don’t know where else he fits. Among the teams who are bad enough to want to add a player like Iverson, they still have to have the ability and willingness to take on his contract, and something worthwhile to offer in exchange for him. And then, any team that trades for him is going to have to restructure how the entire team works, or hope Allen Iverson’s willing to completely restructure his game.
Here are some teams who might possibly want to trade for Allen Iverson, and I’m reaching on several of them:
Atlanta: Maybe they could do a sign-and-trade with Al Harrington and package him with some other young player, but I dunno how appealing it would be to Atlanta to have Allen Iverson, Joe Johnson, and 16 swingmen.
Golden State: The Warriors would probably like to take everything apart and start over, but who are they going to send back, Baron Davis? Mike Dunleavy? The upside there for Philadelphia is that they’d have lottery picks locked up for the next few years.
Minnesota: I’d just like to figure out a way to get Iverson and Garnett on the same team… but Iverson and Garnett are nearly the only worthwhile assets on either team. If Billy King and Kevin McHale were in love, there would be huge “Gift of the Magi” potential here. “But my love, I traded my Iverson to get you a Garnett. Awww….”
Denver: They could use a 2-guard, but I don’t know if they want it to be the kind of 2-guard who dominates the ball. But it’d be interesting, and they could probably make a trade worthwhile for the Sixers.
New York: The Sixers will have to take back Marbury or Francis, who are kinda like Allen Iverson, except without all the hustle on both ends and any inclination towards unselfish play.
Toronto: Longshot. They’d probably love to have him, but there’s nothing to give back.
Dallas: Huge longshot, but… Mark Cuban may develop a coke habit in the offseason and so something crazy. If they lose Jason Terry, who knows… they’d need some backcourt scoring.
Portland: They’d like to have Iverson, but… if the Sixers trade him for Zach Randolph and Darius Miles, Maurice Cheeks will hang himself from the Rocky statue.
So good luck with that, Sixers. I just don’t think the Sixers are going to get anything back for him that would make their team better than it is right now.
And if Iverson stays, and Webber stays, (it’d be about as easy to trade Webber as it would be to convince PETA to hire Qyntel Woods as a spokesman), the Sixers just aren’t going to get a lot better. They’ll have the mid-level exception and the draft to improve themselves. I love Andre Iguodala, but other than him, there’s no one else on the roster who the Sixers would miss if they were killed in a bus accident tomorrow. They might not even notice.
The Sixers just appear to be fucked.
Tomorrow is the day for a lot of NBA teams where they clean out their lockers, say goodbye for the summer, and have their exit interviews. It’s a lot like the last day of school, except no one’s really happy.
Pat Forde writes sort of a preseason puff piece on the West Virginia football team. This one’s about head coach Rich Rodriguez and his straightforward, down-home lifestyle. I just wanted to point out 
As the NBA Playoffs roll around, it’s about damn time 
Kobe Bryant thought it was hilarious, too. 
