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Volume CXXXII, Number 19 |
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Iverson: worthy Olympian in 2004
J.P. BOX
COLUMNIST
The problem with Allen Iverson is that he just doesn't fit in. Take one look at him, and you know that he doesn't belong in the NBA. Listed at a generous six feet and 165 pounds, he plays a game with men who outweigh him by 100 pounds and stand a full foot taller. But it doesn't matter -A.I. is simply the greatest basketball player in the world.
Relying on his heart as much as his talent, Iverson plays basketball with reckless disregard for his wellbeing. Most players his size would never play shooting guard-he's too small, too fragile, too skinny to take it inside. He should be playing the point, dishing out ten assists per game and dropping in 15-20 points from the perimeter.
But not Iverson. He can't resist the temptation to slash inside and float a lay-up over the out-stretched hand of whichever Goliath occupies the lane on any particular night. It's not enough that he has the quickest first step in basketball-he continues to accelerate as he approaches the basket.
As the defense collapses, he becomes a magician with the basketball, finding some creative way to squeeze off a seemingly impossible shot. Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady attack the basket with the same vigor and make the impossible look easy with a stylish reverse or an emphatic dunk.
But not Iverson. Everything he does on the basketball court looks difficult. When you're under six feet tall in the NBA, nothing comes easy -not the career 27.0 points-per-game average, 5.6 assists, 4.1 rebounds, or 2.4 steals. Out of the 12,925 points that A.I. has scored in seven seasons, few have come easy for the undersized shooting guard. The man simply outworks, outplays, and outsmarts his competitors, night in and night out.
Playing perhaps the finest basketball of his career, Iverson has single-handedly pushed the 76'ers into the third spot in the improved Eastern Conference. Without A.I. leading the charge, Philly would be praying for lucky ping-pong balls in the LeBron James sweepstakes. Instead, Larry Brown's team is contending for a NBA title.
Despite performing at a higher level on a consistent basis than any other player in the NBA, Iverson is in danger of being left off the 2004 USA Olympic Dream Team-for reasons completely unrelated to basketball.
Larry Platt, author of Only the Strong Survive: The Odyssey of Allen Iverson, wrote the following in a recent ESPN Page 2 column: "If Allen Iverson is passed over for the 2004 U.S. Olympic team, it will be a missed opportunity-and not just for him. It will be bad for the game, because, as Iverson himself suggests, it will fly in the face of a traditional American value: merit."
Remember, the problem with Allen Iverson is that he just doesn't fit in. In a book entitled Beyond the Cheers: Race as Spectacle in College Sport, C. Richard King and Charles F. Springwood offer a provocative analysis of the prototypical sports star: "…these new African-American stars are nonthreatening, insofar as they generally avoid political activism, especially black politics, and they are represented as the cultural peers of white America."
Iverson does not fit this mold-nor does he try. He may be the single best basketball player in America, but he is by no means the cultural peer of white America. His general style and self-presentation stand in stark contrast to that of a Michael Jordan-or a Ray Allen, the player who was awarded Iverson's spot in the 2000 Olympics.
No disrespect to the Sonic's newest shooting guard, but Iverson is a more dynamic and influential player on the basketball court. Allen may have the sweetest jump shot in the NBA, but his offensive creativity pales in comparison to that of Iverson's. In 2000, Allen may have been a more polished all-around player.
However, you cannot make the same argument in 2003. With a MVP season and a NBA Finals appearance under his belt, Iverson has proved his worth on the court and has certainly proved his status as one of the game's twelve best.
After finishing sixth in last year's World Championships, USA basketball needs the hustle and skills of Iverson more than ever. In 1992, the USA sent the 12 best basketball players in the world to Barcelona. In 2004, the selection committee might send a blend of the 12 most talented but non-threatening ballers in America.
Iverson is right to question the meritocracy of the upcoming selections. Based on merit, Iverson is, without a doubt, deserving of a roster spot. However, as he very well knows, the upcoming decision may not be based solely upon his abilities -it may come down to style and presentation.
If the game's most inspirational player is declined a roster spot, it will be an unprecedented and outrageous insult. In effect, the message that will be sent is that his cornrows and tattoos outweigh his prodigious talents.
Does the NBA and USA Basketball believe that another embarrassing sixth-place finish is preferable to having Allen Iverson represent the United States? Before passing over the Answer in 2004, the NBA better think long and hard about what it is trying to hide from the world-a man who is as passionate and dedicated to basketball as he is skilled; a man who deserves to represent the United States.
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