La Bomba Posted November 18, 2009 Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 The A.I. Era came and went without the man playing a single game here, his tenure comprising three road losses, 37 points and several rants about his lack of playing time. On Monday, the Grizzlies waived him. On Tuesday, the franchise went about trying to erase any memory of him. It was a divorce made in heaven, or at least that was the sense from watching Hollins -- rejuvenated, refreshed, relieved -- interact with his players. It was no secret that Hollins never bonded with Iverson, whose plan to run roughshod over the organization -- and Hollins, in particular -- failed in spectacular fashion, his 10-day leave of absence for "personal reasons" punctuated with a voided contract and half-priced jerseys. "We wish him the best," general manager Chris Wallace said. So now the Grizzlies are moving on, with a home game tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers and a revised marketing plan. And while the basketball side of the organization has not done the business side any favors this season, John Pugliese, Grizzlies senior director of marketing and communications, sounded stoic and even optimistic when asked about this latest hurdle. "Our campaign was not focused around Allen," he said. "It was focused around the young core of talent we had. So from a campaign standpoint, nothing will change. We have a loyal group of fans who are in this 'Griz Country' and part of 'Griz Nation,' and we've gotten a lot of support in the last day." Still, the Grizzlies had designed a slogan that played off Iverson's nickname, "Answer the Call." Except Iverson is no longer calling. The Grizzlies are not offering ticket or merchandise refunds to disgruntled fans. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/nov/18/griz-move-on-without-answer/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted November 18, 2009 Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 (edited) How did Iverson compromise three losses; Sportswriters get over yourselves please. Edited November 19, 2009 by Ya Dig! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted November 19, 2009 Owner Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 It's all Iverson's fault the team is hunting John Wall...and it'll be his fault in April, also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erick Blasco Posted November 19, 2009 Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 How did Iverson compromise three losses; Sportswriters get over yourselves please. lol comprising not compromising! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted November 19, 2009 Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 lol comprising not compromising!Touche. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
His Greatness Posted November 20, 2009 Report Share Posted November 20, 2009 Larry Brown on Iverson:“I think so, but he doesn’t think he needs to. Here’s what happened - when he thought about coming with me he said coach I don’t care if I start, you just give me an opportunity to start. And I said that’s fair. I hope I do that with all my players. But I told him that if he came with me, I have two guards sitting there and they would be unhappy, and I didn’t think that was fair. So when the Memphis situation came up, I looked at their roster. One, he made more money with them which I thought was a factor. And two, they just had Conley and Mayo and he was under the opinion that he would get a chance to start. Well, he missed all of training camp and I think that hurt. And then he was a little impatient. But the real factor was his family wasn’t with him. His family’s in Atlanta and I think they didn’t want to move to Memphis. And I think that was the major reason he wanted to leave.”http://sportsradiointerviews.com/2009/11/19/larry-brown-on-the-still-homeless-allen-iverson-if-you-think-youre-going-to-manage-his-minutes-and-hes-going-to-be-satisfied-with-that-its-not-going-to-happen/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Bomba Posted November 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2009 Atlanta is a 45 minute plan ride from Memphis and about 7 hours by car. If that's the reason he quit, he shouldn't of signed in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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