Allen Iverson Talks About Free Agency

NBA TV's Eric Snow recently sat down with Allen Iverson who admitted that being a free agent for the first time in his life hasn't been quite what he expected. "I thought it would be a fun process," Iverson said. "Obviously it hasn't been." (The full interview can be viewed after the jump.)

Objective observers saw Iverson's present predicament (being low-balled by basement-dwellers, unwanted altogether by contenders) coming as soon as he protested a reduced role in Detroit last April -- a role, incidentally, he still doesn't believe he should have to accept.

"Everybody [made] a big deal out of the 'coming off the bench' thing," he scoffed. "It was never even an issue until it happened in Detroit. Nobody ever talked about me coming off the bench until the situation happened in Detroit, and then that put it in people's minds, and gave them something to think about and something to talk about."

In other words, it's Detroit's fault that teams dare think of him as a sixth-man, not the fact that his skills have declined. It was always difficult to construct an efficient offense to revolve around his unique skill-set (just ask Billy King); now that he's lost a step or three (and never developed a consistent outside shot), it's virtually impossible.

Call it being stubborn, call it being competitive, but this self-deception is the primary reason why he's likely going to finish his career with a bottom-feeder like the Bobcats or Grizzlies instead of a team that might actually make the playoffs, let alone compete for a title.

Iverson spends much of the interview saying all the right things -- his advice for younger players trying to follow in his footsteps is refreshingly heartfelt -- but it's obvious he doesn't truly believe everything he's saying, instead merely offering a nugget of truth followed by polished P.R.-speak.

"I want to contribute," he said. "I want to be a part of some type of success, whether it's on a championship team or on a team on the uprise (sic), but with me signing with somebody, I want to be with somebody that's dedicated to trying to win a championship."

Does he "want to contribute?" Most definitely. But joining a team "dedicated to trying to win a championship?" If so, why has he been most closely linked with the Clippers, Bobcats and Grizzlies, three of the worst teams of the last several years? Not even a 25-year-old, MVP-winning Iverson circa 2001 could deliver a title on one of those teams.