Dear Detroit Pistons Organization, Blogs, and Fans:
I have been reading countless articles through the mainstream media and on Detroit Pistons blogs this morning talking about Allen Iverson being a cry-baby over playing time. Some have said he was faking his back injury, some have said “I knew this would happen when Iverson was told to come off the bench”, some have even said he should just sit out the rest of the season.
I would expect that sort of idiotic and uninformed response from the mainstream media, however I hold bloggers (especially team blogs) to a bit of a higher standard since they generally are obsessive and fanatical about the NBA and their teams. To quote the okay great Mark Jackson, “C’mon, you’re better than that!”
After reading the response in the blogosphere to Allen Iverson’s post-game comments about playing time, after the Detroit Pistons lost a close game to the Cleveland Cavaliers last night, I wonder if anyone actually bothered watching the game.
Allen Iverson played a mere 18 minutes, but scored 11 points on 5-8 shooting. Rip Hamilton played 34 minutes and scored only 13 points on 4-14 shooting. When Iverson was on the floor the Pistons were +2 in the plus/minus, when Hamilton was on the floor the Pistons were -14 in the plus/minus (worst on the team I might add).
Now i’m not normally a big ‘numbers guy’ so I want to qualify a look at the stats by saying that everyone, including Hamilton, is entitled to an off game. Who I blame in last night’s game is your Pistons coach Michael Curry. This is a players league. The Coach these days has fewer and fewer roles and responsibilities to influence the game. With that said, one of the biggest jobs of the NBA Coach is to monitor what’s working and what’s not on any particular night. It was obvious and plain as day last night that Allen Iverson was what was working, and Rip Hamilton was what was not. Iverson was scoring, he was gelling with teammates (especially Rasheed Wallace) on offense, he was penetrating and kicking, he was scoring with ease.
So if I am so easily seeing last night from home that Rip Hamilton was having an off night and Allen Iverson was playing well, was Michael Curry’s courtside seat not a good enough view? Why in the world did Michael Curry not adjust the playing time to ensure Allen Iverson had more minutes and Rip Hamilton had fewer. Does Michael Curry not want to win?
I’m not really leaning towards either Allen Iverson or Rip Hamilton being more deserving than the other for the starting nod. I think they both are excellent players and bring something a bit different to the table. What I am concerned with is the media and blogosphere response to Allen Iverson. The guy is a future hall of famer, one of the greatest scorers this game has ever seen. Pound for pound he may be the greatest scorer ever. Allen Iverson has always been considered to be a warrior on the court, playing through countless injuries, bumps and bruises, as a result of his fearless, slashing style of play. The guy takes a beating more than probably anyone in the league. Doesn’t he deserve the benefit of the doubt concerning his back injury?
It is a completely disrespectful, short-sighted, and fickle response to question Allen Iverson’s back injury. Instead Detroit fans and analysts should focus more on the fact that Allen Iverson with the recent lengthy time off he’s had (the longest stretch of rest he’s had in years), it may mean he’s finally ready to return to his level of dominance we are used to seeing. But he will need some minutes to do so. And 18 minutes a game, isn’t going to cut it. Not if the Detroit Pistons want to have any hope in hell of winning a playoff series against a high caliber team like Cleveland, Boston, or Orlando.
Allen Iverson is still The Answer, give the guy a chance, I think he’s earned it.
Sincerely,
Dr. Dime
