Sure, it’s only two games, but the Detroit Pistons (playing without Allen Iverson) were able to shed their eight-game losing streak (playing with Allen Iverson) by beating the Orlando Magic in Orlando and the Boston Celtics in Boston in what amounted to pretty solid wins. (Yes, both teams are missing one of their starters, but a win’s a win, and with Carmelo out for tonight's game against the Denver Nuggets, they should scratch out another victory.)
Their losing streak started somewhere around the time that the Pistons brain trust asked Richard “Rip” Hamilton to come off the bench, which allowed Iverson and his ego to start. Now, I’ve always been a fan of Iverson, all the way back to the Georgetown days, and it’s clear that he wants to be part of a winner and fit into a team concept, but that’s like asking a cobra to become a flying squirrel – just because the cobra flares its hood and slithers off a shelf doesn’t mean that it’s getting airborne any time soon. When Iverson tries to integrate himself into the Pistons team concept, he looks tentative, and the rest of the team follows suit.
The solution seems clear: put Rip Hamilton back in the starting lineup and bring Iverson off the bench with one Vinnie Johnson-ish goal – score, baby, score. The hell with team concept and sublimating one’s ego; instead, let’s see a return to the Iverson of old who could drive and score (not drive and dish) past anyone in the league. And if he can’t do that anymore, let him spot up from wherever he wants and get his shot off.
Or better yet, jettison him and let him go to a team that can use a shooting “point” guard on the downside of his career with (admittedly) a better haircut than he’s ever had before, and let a solid bench become a contributing force once again. While this year is a lost cause as far as championship caliber performance is concerned, every game is an audition for the A-list talent around the league who can fill those two max salary slots in 2010, and everything must be done to make Detroit a destination for free agents. And that's the real Answer.
Their losing streak started somewhere around the time that the Pistons brain trust asked Richard “Rip” Hamilton to come off the bench, which allowed Iverson and his ego to start. Now, I’ve always been a fan of Iverson, all the way back to the Georgetown days, and it’s clear that he wants to be part of a winner and fit into a team concept, but that’s like asking a cobra to become a flying squirrel – just because the cobra flares its hood and slithers off a shelf doesn’t mean that it’s getting airborne any time soon. When Iverson tries to integrate himself into the Pistons team concept, he looks tentative, and the rest of the team follows suit.
The solution seems clear: put Rip Hamilton back in the starting lineup and bring Iverson off the bench with one Vinnie Johnson-ish goal – score, baby, score. The hell with team concept and sublimating one’s ego; instead, let’s see a return to the Iverson of old who could drive and score (not drive and dish) past anyone in the league. And if he can’t do that anymore, let him spot up from wherever he wants and get his shot off.
Or better yet, jettison him and let him go to a team that can use a shooting “point” guard on the downside of his career with (admittedly) a better haircut than he’s ever had before, and let a solid bench become a contributing force once again. While this year is a lost cause as far as championship caliber performance is concerned, every game is an audition for the A-list talent around the league who can fill those two max salary slots in 2010, and everything must be done to make Detroit a destination for free agents. And that's the real Answer.
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