Merry Christmas, Denver!From the Philadelphia Inquirer's David Aldridge:
Iverson, pending NBA officials' approval, will be traded to the Denver Nuggets for a package including guard Andre Miller, forward Joe Smith and both of Denver's 2007 first-round picks, according to a source with knowledge of the trade talks between the teams.
Before I begin, let's make one (what should be obvious) thing clear: When a team is forced to deal a mega-superstar such as Allen Iverson, they will never, ever, ever, ever -- I can keep going -- ever "win" said trade. It is impossible. When you trade a Hall-of-Famer with a few MVP-quality years left in the tank, you lose. Every. Time.
Now, with that said, this trade is absolutely horrible for Philadelphia. Here's why...
Billy King and the Sixers wanted three things in return for Iverson: talent, salary cap relief, and draft picks. Amazingly, they got all three -- a borderline All-Star in Miller, Joe Smith and his $6.8 million expiring contract, and two first-round picks. Unfortunately, that's the problem right there. What the Sixers should've done was pick one or the other and hone in on it. Instead, King settled for some half-ass combination of the three and got burned. Brutal.
As for the Nuggets and all this nonsense about Carmelo and AI never being able to co-exist? Ha! You're about to witness AI v. 2.0: The Rejuvenation, ladies and gentlemen. I wouldn't be surprised if Iverson's challenging Nash for the APG-crown come March.
UPDATE: Forward Ivan McFarlin is also going to the Nuggets. This changes
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
12-19-2006 @ 4:00PM
Unsilent Majority said...
Nice work Billy King, way to hold out for JR Smith
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12-19-2006 @ 4:03PM
Jamie Mottram said...
'Melo and the Answer on one team! It's as if the Earth has two suns!
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12-19-2006 @ 4:00PM
Craig said...
Wow that trade absolutely sucks! How to screw over an entire franchise, trade your heart and soul for nothing!
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12-19-2006 @ 4:00PM
Miss Gossip said...
Iverson + Melo + J.R Smith = 80 points per game.
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12-19-2006 @ 3:59PM
Unsilent Majority said...
I can't wait for them to lose the lottery twice in one sitting!
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12-19-2006 @ 4:17PM
mutoni said...
thank you, basketball gods! i love that i'll be covering the nuggets all year. and oh yeah, the sixers
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12-19-2006 @ 4:20PM
wheels03 said...
why would anybody want that ball hog.he needs to learn to spread the wealth.
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12-19-2006 @ 4:20PM
Unsilent Majority said...
So who's going to start at point guard, AI or Earl Boykins?
The league better pray that Golden State doesn't crap out, can you imagine Philly drafting Oden and Durant???
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12-19-2006 @ 4:26PM
basketball said...
Melo and AI on the same team. I don't know if there is enough basketball to go around for the two of them. But it will be an amazing 1-2 scoring punch.
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12-19-2006 @ 4:22PM
RD said...
Yeah, this trade will bring the group of guys in blue together and become a team. Add one more individual and you still have a group of players. What the organization needs, are team players. On Monday night we saw the results of team basketball.
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12-19-2006 @ 4:29PM
Bob said...
There are not enough basketballs in the arena to keep them two ball hogs happy! I say this won't last as long as Pamela & Kid Rock and one or both will be bitching.
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12-19-2006 @ 8:32PM
ch said...
two first round picks in next year's draft is 'something', not nothing.
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12-19-2006 @ 4:49PM
TheHype said...
Oh boy, Wiz' Trio Scoring Title is in jeopardy with a capital Trebek! better watch out rest of the world, AI's kicking ass---uh.."playing hard" and taking names!
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12-19-2006 @ 4:49PM
syzygy said...
AI dominated the ball out of necessity. It should be interesting to see how his game changes when he actually has a few other options on the offensive end.
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12-19-2006 @ 5:06PM
syzygy said...
AI dominated the ball out of necessity. I don't know if that makes him a ballhog or an exceptionally talented player on a team full of bums. It should be interesting to see how his game changes now (or 10-15 games from now) that he has a few other offensive options.
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12-19-2006 @ 5:06PM
Unsilent Majority said...
Howie, the Big 3's scoring title was my first thought as well. Well at least Caron and Antawn rebound.
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12-19-2006 @ 6:51PM
fdanaysayers said...
Forgetting about the REAL big three and thats Amare, Marion and Nash! I'm thinking A.I. can teach Melo how to be a man..
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12-19-2006 @ 5:34PM
greg oden time said...
I like the trade but the 6ers need to tank the year for it to really be worth anything. the two picks from denver are both gonna be in the 20s (one is denvers and the other is from dallas - both these teams are contenders in the west). if the 6ers dont land a top 2 pick, its gonna be tough for this to end up being a great deal. but if they can get oden or durant, its more than worth it with the other picks adding some compliments and the cap room they will have.
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12-19-2006 @ 6:49PM
West Coast Bias said...
I'm shocked at how much you all (particularly you, Skeets) are devaluing the draft picks. Two draft picks (even in the 20s) in what will arguably be the deepest draft of the past (or the next) decade ain't no small thing. And for a rebuilding team, it's the best thing that could have happened to them. Now: Whether they can convert either or both of those precious picks into actual talent value is another thing, but the talent will be there in the 20s... this year.
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12-19-2006 @ 7:17PM
Steve AI D said...
Two things:1. Is AI gonna get his number 3 from Demar Johnson, if no what number will he wear? 2. What does this do in terms of All Star voting. AI led the east in guards but he is about 100,000 votes behind Tmac in the West.
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