Allen Iverson is arguably the top name on the albeit limited 2009 free agency list. And though his stint in Detroit could accurately be described as disastrous, and his skills are diminished with age, he's still The Answer, and scorers of his mold will always be sought after. Except by his former coach from Philadelphia. Kind of.
Larry Brown said this week that while he 'loves' Allen, he doesn't see a reunion between the hard-line coach and the temperamental superstar next season with the Charlotte Bobcats. What's surprising is in saying that, he's looking out not for his own squad, but for Iverson.
Iverson told the AP this week that though he would definitely be open to coaching Iverson again, he doesn't think Charlotte is the right place for Iverson. Why?
"I want him go to where he knows he can win," Brown said. "I think from my standpoint, I don't know if we're ready to win at the level I think a kid at his age, what he's done, should have. I want to see him go where he could win a championship.'"
Wow, for Iverson, that's a really nice piece of honesty from his former coach.
For the Bobcats?
Ouch.
As the AP piece states, the Bobcats haven't won more than 35 games in a season. But last season they made significant strides after the addition of Raja Bell and Boris Diaw. With D.J. Augustin showing flashes as the point guard of the future, Gerald Wallace continuing his do-it-all role, and Emeka Okafor improving every year, the Bobcats have a bright future after narrowly missing the playoffs this year. While they're obviously not title contenders, saying that probably isn't going to give your team tons of confidence.
Iverson has supposedly been visiting Charlotte lately, which could mean a lot, or nothing at all. He definitely would be a great fit for the Cats if his price goes down. Way down. The Bobcats' biggest need is a a scoring option that can create his own shot. That's definitely Iverson. But Iverson would have to severely temper his instincts to dominate the ball for the Bobcats to be as successful as they were this season, or more so.
Most interesting is that Brown, who's notorious for having very little patience with his team, doesn't seem to think the Bobcats will be in the championship picture any time soon. Throw in the recent announcement that the Cats are for sale, and things in Charlotte don't seem stable at all.
