Last night, the prodigal son returned. If you are a Philadelphian and an avid sports fan as yours truly surely is, then you know that I'm talking about Allen "The Answer" Iverson. He and the Denver Nuggets came to the Wachovia Center to play the Sixers last night. I always liked "A.I." and always thought he was a fantastic player but, in truth, he could be a distraction (There's that word again!) at times with his off court drama and celebrated fueds with Larry Brown and a couple of other coaches who came (and went) after him.
But, as he returned to a hero's welcome. He got a standing ovation and much love from the sold out crowd and you would've thought that this was a playoff game instead of what it was... just another NBA game in late March. Iverson was gracious and said all of the right things before the game. Then, he got on the court and did what he does best... torched the Sixers for 34 points. Although, these Sixers are different... they're younger, have fresh legs, play team ball, good defense, and a spread offense. They hung on and won the game, 115-113.
The Sixers are locked in the 7th playoff seed of the Eastern Conference, while Iverson's Denever Nuggets are fighting for that last playoff spot in the Western Conference. Who would've thought that the fortunes of these two teams would be so different after a year? Despite that, all was seemingly forgiven and forgotten... and, judging from the reaction of the Philadelphia crowd last night, Allen Iverson knows that he can come "home" again.
Terrell Owens, take note!
No comments:
Post a Comment