Iverson claims he didn't know the Grizzlies were rebuilding

[MainEv3nt]

Q. Did Griz brass tell you the franchise was rebuilding?

 

Iverson: No. Nobody ever said anything about rebuilding. You know I wouldn't have come to a team, at 34 years old, that was in a rebuilding process. I'm trying to win a championship. I thought I would have won a championship by now. I didn't come here for no money. I didn't come here for another scoring title or an All-Star game. I've done all that stuff. I want to win. If we are not trying to win, I have a problem. I'm assuming we are trying to win."

 

http://blogs.commercialappeal.com/the_memphis_edge/2009/11/iverson-doesnt-want-to-be-a-reserve-or-distraction.html

[Guest N4S]

This shows the intelligence of AI.

 

All he needed to do is look at the team history and roster.

[deestillballin]

Wow AI, I love ya man but dang how did you NOT know that. Hence why the caption is he Claims lol

[Real Deal]

I could try and make sense of this, but I won't try too hard. Memphis has three young players in Mayo, Gasol and Conley that are in the starting five. Rudy Gay isn't exactly a veteran, either.

 

Technically, a rebuilding team really has no shot at making the playoffs, so in a way, you could say that if Memphis does have a shot at that eighth seed, they aren't really rebuilding (they already have the pieces, just not the age).

 

I still think that Iverson needs to start, though. He's better than Conley. As far as this topic, though, I really don't know how to approach it, because I don't know how Iverson defines rebuilding. However, if he thought for one second that he could win a ring with this team, he's sadly mistaken.

[Celtics3420]

lol, if he really didnt care about money, scoring titles and all that, and was just trying to win a ship, then he would have signed with LA, Cleveland, Orlando, San Antonio or Boston for the Vet minimum and come off the bench(or even start on a couple of those teams). I'm willing to bet he's just mad he's not starting on a mediocre team, let alone on a championship contender.

[papertrail]

Charlotte should trade Felton to Memphis for A.I.

 

Then that helps them with rebuilding and helps Charlotte get some scoring.

[SRT Spidey]

iverson is a sad sight these days..

[GamerGuy]

How do you not know what your role is going to be when you sign with a team? And how do you not realize that the Grizzlies aren't exactly title contenders? I mean, it's not like he was traded and had no idea, he signed with them.

[La Bomba]

Iverson has the IQ of a frog. How dumb can you actually be to believe this team has a chance of winning a championship.

 

"I'm trying to win a championship."

 

You seriously think you'll come close to a high seed, much less a championship with this current team? Get off the crack pipe.

 

I like how be blames the Grizzlies for this.

 

"Nobody ever said anything about rebuilding. You know I wouldn't have come to a team, at 34 years old, that was in a rebuilding process."

 

Cut this idiot and let us tank in peace.

[Multi-Billionaire]

lol, if he really didnt care about money, scoring titles and all that, and was just trying to win a ship, then he would have signed with LA, Cleveland, Orlando, San Antonio or Boston for the Vet minimum and come off the bench(or even start on a couple of those teams). I'm willing to bet he's just mad he's not starting on a mediocre team, let alone on a championship contender.

 

Like I said, it's bull....

 

Signing with Grizzlies and his motive in signing there had nothing to do with winning a championship, it's about the role he wouldn't have gotten elsewhere.

 

 

My unborn kid could see this... it's too transparent and AI plays the "I'm the victim" card

 

 

Trying to see it from AI's perspective, maybe he's very competitive and sometimes that competitiveness blinds the person from seeing the clear picture... but couldn't you be more tack? Like LeBron in New York smiling, but there's no guarantee he'll go to New York. In only AI's first game, he already pulled this move, it's sad. Couldn't you wait until at least your 5th game or something? It just says a lot about him. Being fiercely competitive doesn't mean being idiotic or pretentiously oblivious to what everyone else is seeing.

[Amare320]

Even i cant understand his current view on anything sorry. Would of been great to see him as a Bobcat though, would of shut him up and would he would of probably had more chance at winning too.

[headliner]

Iverson’s attitude has to change. No team wanted him in the summer except the Grizzlies. He needs to be like most veterans and humble himself and just help the young players grow. At the end of the day it’s about maturity and being a team player. I think if he were to grow up other team in the league may change their view about him and consider bringing him in. Thus far Iverson will have no chance with the Grizzlies or any other team in the league.

[Erick Blasco]

I hope fans aren't too shocked by this. Iverson's been this way his entire career.

[The Next Knick]

All he had to do was decide to sign with a contender, and he wouldn't be in this situation.

[Multi-Billionaire]

^No are you nuts? The $2 million difference between a veteran minimum he could have signed with Lakers, Magic, Celtics, Nuggets and the one he signed with Grizz was too much for a half billion athlete like him to pass.

[Real Deal]

All he had to do was decide to sign with a contender, and he wouldn't be in this situation.

The Lakers can't use him in the triangle offense. We were looking to toss Jordan Farmar for that same reason (tried to trade him to Houston last season).

 

Boston gave that backup role to Daniels, who is younger and will fit in better with a Celtics team that doesn't necessarily need Iverson's offensive production.

 

Cleveland could use him, actually, but they already have Williams, West, and Gibson at the point, with Parker and Moon at the two. Just too many mouths to feed right now.

 

The Spurs like George Hill a little too much, and he wouldn't fit into their system, either.

 

No excuse for Orlando, but Iverson would be playing 15 minutes a game behind Nelson, and he would rather play and contribute to a championship, than to coattail one like Sun Yue.

[Multi-Billionaire]

^Okay Orlando is good, then why didn't he sign with them?

 

He said this:

 

“If we’re winning, I can play 10 minutes and I’m happy,” he said. “When we’re losing, that’s when I trip out.”

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=mc-iversongrizzlies110309&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

 

 

He definitely knew Magic were title contenders, then why I ask didn't he sign with them? Remember he said if the team was winning, he can play 10 minutes (I'm assuming that's bench minutes) and he'd be happy.

[Real Deal]

Players don't just pick a team and go there. Orlando didn't want Ron Artest...doesn't mean Artest sucks.

 

If anyone can go sign a contract and be with any team they choose, I guess that's my calling.

 

And as far as Memphis goes, if they told him he was going to start, they are to blame. Iverson is not a bench player, period. If the Grizzlies want to make the playoffs, they start Iverson. He is still a 20+ PPG scorer, and he can still throw 6-7 assists per game.

 

But that's not going to happen, because Iverson is done in Memphis. He won't be playing another game in a Grizzlies jersey.

[Multi-Billionaire]

Players don't just pick a team and go there. Orlando didn't want Ron Artest...doesn't mean Artest sucks.

 

If anyone can go sign a contract and be with any team they choose, I guess that's my calling.

 

And as far as Memphis goes, if they told him he was going to start, they are to blame. Iverson is not a bench player, period. If the Grizzlies want to make the playoffs, they start Iverson. He is still a 20+ PPG scorer, and he can still throw 6-7 assists per game.

 

But that's not going to happen, because Iverson is done in Memphis. He won't be playing another game in a Grizzlies jersey.

 

 

To me that's bull[expletive]... pardon the language.

 

He said if team was winning, he'd essentially be happy as a bench player.

 

 

Which championship contenders in their right mind would refuse signing a 14-18 ppg scorer coming off the bench? If AI stays true to his words, it means he would have been happy playing as a bench player for championship contenders.

 

Again, which championship contenders in their right mind would refuse signing an automatic 14-18 ppg scorer off the bench? You have roles, systems with Lakers, Celtics, Nuggets, I understand but I bet if AI had come out saying he'd be happy and accept coming off the bench for them, they'd sign them. I don't think there'd be any question, even the Lakers.

 

 

AI happily accepting his role as a bench player is a devastating weapon to have for any championship contenders. Heck, even if the team like Lakers and Phil Jackson would struggle to incorporate a happy AI and even if they had doubts, I don't think there's any question they'd still have signed him, First, to keep him away from the other contenders, and Second, to really mould him into a weapon off the bench.

 

 

 

But AI saying that BS just so he wouldn't have to say "I'm goddamn selfish!!!". Hell, if he stays true to his words, he would have stuck with the Grizzlies and tried to turn around their culture. But he said this after just one game with them! One loss! It's still November lmao. San Antonio, Portland started poor last season but still had 54 wins. Who is he fooling when he said he "didn't know Grizzlies were rebuilding"? Does he think people are that stupid?

[Multi-Billionaire]

Very good quotes from NBA execs, who definitely have more knowledge than all of us about the situation...

 

 

"If his name was something other than Allen Iverson, and I could depend on him getting 14-15 points off the bench -- hell, yeah, I'd sign that guy," a Western Conference executive said. "It's everything else. He has to be the man. You're not the guy on your team anymore, AI."

 

 

"He does have to show some sort of growth," the Eastern Conference exec said. "Even if it's just cosmetic. That's what he needs to show."

 

"Gary Payton with the Heat," the Eastern Conference executive said. "You're going to tell me AI couldn't do that?"

 

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=iverson-091107

 

 

 

NBA execs are paid to do this, they're the professionals, they're directly related to the business. Unlike us, who form opinions and express on basketball sites.

 

These are just two execs... but if 29 teams wouldn't sign the automatic 14-18 ppg player when they knew he could be had for a mere $3 mil (for a player of his caliber), that's almost the whole league, you know you're on a decline.

 

So it's not like some Mickey Mouse posting on a basketball site, "AI is on a decline"... these are essentially NBA executives, the professionals, from 29 teams who said that. Even if all of them were morons, they still are the employers who give jobs. AI needs to look himself in the mirror.

Edited November 8, 2009 by Snake

[Real Deal]

I already told you the contenders that refused to sign him. Contenders aren't going to risk bringing him off the bench because he has never proven he can produce effectively in that role, and there are a lot of players that can't. Simple as that.

 

If you're a contender, you aren't going to risk it.

 

Among the contenders in the NBA (LA, Boston, Orlando, Cleveland and San Antonio), only one of them is struggling at the point guard position, and there's absolutely no way Phil Jackson tries to incorporate a 6-0, 160-pound guard that shoots first into the offense, especially when he's not that great of a defender. It doesn't matter if he scores 20 a game or 40. In the triangle offense, which is a heavily-armed passing offense that relies on off-the-ball movement and spacing, there's no reason to sign Iverson.

 

Iverson wants to win a championship as a contributor. Nobody wants to Darko their way into a ring unless they are 40 years old and unable to play 20 minutes per game. I don't care what you, my brother, Michael Jordan or even Allen Iverson has to say on the matter...people want to contribute for their titles. People want playing time if they are able to earn it. Iverson is better than Conley, and keeping him on the bench is a shot at his ability to contribute and the Grizzlies' chances of making the playoffs, let alone getting out of the first round or going further than that.

 

I'm not going to sit in here and perform in this circus again. I have better topics to discuss. Yeah, we all get it: he's a thug, he's a loser, and he's devastating to any team he plays for, and he should just come off the bench because he's no longer starter-quality anymore. We all know. I disagree fully.

[Multi-Billionaire]

I already told you the contenders that refused to sign him. Contenders aren't going to risk bringing him off the bench because he has never proven he can produce effectively in that role, and there are a lot of players that can't. Simple as that.

 

If you're a contender, you aren't going to risk it.

 

Among the contenders in the NBA (LA, Boston, Orlando, Cleveland and San Antonio), only one of them is struggling at the point guard position, and there's absolutely no way Phil Jackson tries to incorporate a 6-0, 160-pound guard that shoots first into the offense, especially when he's not that great of a defender. It doesn't matter if he scores 20 a game or 40. In the triangle offense, which is a heavily-armed passing offense that relies on off-the-ball movement and spacing, there's no reason to sign Iverson.

 

Iverson wants to win a championship as a contributor. Nobody wants to Darko their way into a ring unless they are 40 years old and unable to play 20 minutes per game. I don't care what you, my brother, Michael Jordan or even Allen Iverson has to say on the matter...people want to contribute for their titles. People want playing time if they are able to earn it. Iverson is better than Conley, and keeping him on the bench is a shot at his ability to contribute and the Grizzlies' chances of making the playoffs, let alone getting out of the first round or going further than that.

 

I'm not going to sit in here and perform in this circus again. I have better topics to discuss. Yeah, we all get it: he's a thug, he's a loser, and he's devastating to any team he plays for, and he should just come off the bench because he's no longer starter-quality anymore. We all know. I disagree fully.

 

 

He has never proven he can produce effectively in his role because of his attitude. Pistons experience? It was because of his attitude. What's the difference between Payton on the Heat and AI on the Pistons? Attitude. AI arguably has a lot more left in the tank than Payton had.

 

You're saying what Payton did with the Heat was not Darko-ing? Payton definitely had a better role than Darko ever had when Pistons won title, but it's still taking a lot less shots, a lot less money, much less role.

 

What I and these execs are saying is IF AI changes his attitude, these contenders would sign him. Definitely. No question. Even if there's nothing on his resume as a bench player, but that attitude that he's WILLING to come off the bench, that changes the whole thing.

 

 

 

What I hate about AI is not that he's a thug. In fact, I don't care if a person is a thug. But what I hate is his inconsistency, he doesn't walk the talk, he said he'd be happy playing 10 minutes as long as the team wins, but he ended up signing with a team that was not even in the playoffs, and are clearly in a development mode. I wouldn't call Grizz are in "rebuilding" mode, because they actually have nice pieces in Mayo, Gay, Gasol, Conley and some able role players like Carrol, Young, Arthur, and the developing Thabeet. Which makes this whole thing even stink more than it did... he said he is about winning, so why complain after just one freakin loss? In November?

 

 

You can't answer that, Real, because all you see is AI had his rights to want to start. All you see is he is capable of 20 and 7 and doesn't deserve to be asked to produce less. Now let me let you know who I am, I think AI does have the rights to want to start. But you have to consider beyond stats. Starting him at what cost? At the cost of stopping ball movement, at the cost of overdribbling, at the cost of way too many turnovers and too much gamble defense? You can't say he has this and that stats and he's better than the other player. You're still about stats Ask Poohdini, I'm sure he agrees with me, once AI enters the game, all of those (stoppage of ball movement, overdribbling, turnovers, and even weaker defense than Conley) emerge.

 

 

You see Grizzlies are blessed to have Mayo, Gasol and Conley on the roster now. Because they are imo the only three Grizzlies I can identify that genuinely want to move the ball, pass. I praise Mayo the most because not many soph players realize the importance of ball movement especially on a team with so many scorers. It's actually become essential on this team. It is not a coincidence he asked for Billups' advice in the summer, how to be a leader, how to be a defender, how to be a good teammate. Without Mayo, this team would have near-literally exploded, AI would only make it worse, not better.

[Real Deal]

LMAO, you obviously didn't watch the Clippers/Grizzlies game just now. Oh yes, they are very fortunate to have the players they have, and all of that ball movement? Most definitely, perfectly put on display against the Clippers tonight, especially late in the game.

 

Ask a Grizzlies fan how well Mayo moved the ball late in the game tonight. Or any of them, for that matter.

 

Must have been evident when they were completely picked apart, by 22, against the Pistons with Iverson not playing a second in the game.

 

Must have been evident when Iverson came off the bench and played very, very well (better than Conley, in fact) against the Kings and the Warriors, yet the team still lost due to Gay's chucking and Mayo's terrible defense against Martin and the Kings, or Mayo and Conley's pathetic performances versus the Warriors.

 

Memphis struggles because they don't have a leader that can produce instant offense when needed on a consistent basis. Marc Gasol is the only defender on the team as well. Iverson gives them instant offense, effective mostly in the fourth quarter, yet he doesn't play much in the fourth, and they lose games. They are better when he's playing. Without him, they are nowhere near what you describe, and you should know that.

[Ramiel]

I still don't understand why he went to the Grizzlies in the first place. If he wanted to win a title he really should of looked at more and better teams. I think AI is still a great Basketball player, he can put up 20 to 30 if he wanted to.

[Multi-Billionaire]

LMAO, you obviously didn't watch the Clippers/Grizzlies game just now. Oh yes, they are very fortunate to have the players they have, and all of that ball movement? Most definitely, perfectly put on display against the Clippers tonight, especially late in the game.

 

Ask a Grizzlies fan how well Mayo moved the ball late in the game tonight. Or any of them, for that matter.

 

Must have been evident when they were completely picked apart, by 22, against the Pistons with Iverson not playing a second in the game.

 

Must have been evident when Iverson came off the bench and played very, very well (better than Conley, in fact) against the Kings and the Warriors, yet the team still lost due to Gay's chucking and Mayo's terrible defense against Martin and the Kings, or Mayo and Conley's pathetic performances versus the Warriors.

 

Memphis struggles because they don't have a leader that can produce instant offense when needed on a consistent basis. Marc Gasol is the only defender on the team as well. Iverson gives them instant offense, effective mostly in the fourth quarter, yet he doesn't play much in the fourth, and they lose games. They are better when he's playing. Without him, they are nowhere near what you describe, and you should know that.

 

 

Memphis before AI was a team in development. Mayo was a runner up for ROY but many criticized him for being a ball hog. Now he's trying to change that. Putting AI in there would somehow improve their ball movement? Don't make a joke when you are the one who said:

 

A 6-0, 160-pound guard that shoots first into the offense

 

 

He should play in the fourth quarter for stagnating the team ball movement further? For turning the ball over? For scoring? It can be done by Mayo, Gay, Gasol, and Randolph (who as cancerous as people claim, isn't as cancerous as AI). There's no aspect of the game that AI offers that isn't already done by his teammates.

 

---

 

Remember when he said:

 

Iverson even sounds as though he's embracing the role of mentor in Memphis.

 

"That's the fun part about being a veteran is that you get a chance to lead guys to places they've never been before and give them something they’ve never had in the league," he said.

 

http://realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/61929/20091004/grizzlies_eager_to_learn_from_iverson/

 

 

Puke.

 

If it's no partying, then it's quitting on the team after one loss... just because he came off the bench. Ladies and gentlemen, that's how AI "mentors". He leads you to places they've never been before but he never said it's the places they want to go Quitting on a team is mentoring, oh I get it now.

Edited November 8, 2009 by Snake