As a group of journalists, however, NBA writers have certainly learned a few things about themselves. The range of emotions I’ve seen in our circles have been vast and varying. From general skepticism, to criticism, to flip-flopping, from hope and positivity to desperate anger and depression. And…that’s just in the last three weeks.

We’re not a demographic of similarities. Many of us are full-time employees outside the realm of sports journalism. Many of us are paid to write about the NBA. Some of us have used our writing to earn spots in organizations. Mostly, however, we love basketball.

It’s that love that’s carried us through the darkest of hours. If you’re even a casual reader of NBA journalists, the flurry of activity during the lockout has been particularly interesting. In a world which is obsessed with day-to-day dealings of NBA teams, game rundowns and performance reviews, the inability of teams to even mention their own players names has sort of thrown a wrench in the gears of us writers.

That’s what’s been so great about this lockout. The analytic nature of writing that’s been born from the liquefied remains of the 2010-2011 NBA season have been a mitosis the world has never before seen. At first, many of us laughed at the ridiculous nature of having to write full-time while the league only existed in a Skull and Bones manner.

Reading pieces about “Which player is better” or “Draft Class Review: 1993” seemed silly at first. Jesus, what kind of barrel-scraping are we doing here? But really, if you have been reading anything that’s produced from NBA writers in the last four months, it’s been a delight.

Whether it’s an insane breakdown of how Al Harrington should have eaten that enormous hamburger or exquisite details of CBA talks and understanding salaries, there’s something to be gained from all of this:

The 2011 NBA lockout will birth a new kind of NBA fan.

The way we looked at baseball after Moneyball came out? Well, NBA writers have been looking at basketball like that for years. Unfortunately, that kind of stuff has been pretty boring for the regular, involved fan. Now, NBA writers with nothing to do ended up going a bit bonkers with their statistical analysis and flooded the market with a product we were all forced to buy.

Now that we’ve acquired the taste of statistical analysis, we’re able to stop and enjoy it. To boot, the lockout has given fans time to take a hard, involved look at their team in a way they probably never have. That is, under a new system, could they finally bring it home?

I’m excited for the new NBA season. That we’ve had to go all summer without free agency, trades, draft speculation and the like is, honestly, downright stupid. Letting the NBA spoil on the counter as the leftovers of last May was a poor decision. Now that we’re on the path to recovery, there’s no doubt the recipe for success has been tweaked and poured over.

After all, we’ve been in the kitchen all summer.

At this event, Under Armour execs briefed those in attendance on the direction of the brand from a basketball standpoint, and even treated us to a first-time viewing of their brand new ad, featuring their hoops roster of Brandon Jennings, Kemba Walker, Derrick Williams and Greivis Vasquez. We also had the chance to speak with all four guys.

First up was Kemba, who addressed everything from his now legendary step-back jumpshot against Pitt in the Big East tournament, to whether or not he really thinks he should’ve been named National Player of the Year.

“I’ll play for anybody,” Iverson told Yahoo! Sports.

A 10-time All-Star and former MVP, Iverson still wants back in the league even though he’s 36 and played only in Turkey last season. He’s one of the game’s greatest scorers, but his history of off-the-court drama and issues with coaches tainted his career, even in his last few seasons in the NBA.

But now he’s publicly admitting he wasn’t at 100% mentally or physically during his last couple NBA seasons bouncing around from team to team after being moved out of Denver…

“That wasn’t me at all,” Iverson said. “Obviously, I was dealing with the situation with my daughter and going through a divorce, and I wasn’t there mentally. In my career those last couple years were so hard for me because I wasn’t there. Mentally, I wasn’t there.

“During those 48 minutes on the basketball court, all I [ever] cared about was that time right there. Nothing else distracted me. But at times, I felt myself standing on the court just thinking about my daughter, thinking about the situation with me and my wife. I wasn’t giving [the teams] everything I had mentally.”

Iverson is now saying the Divorce is nearing a close, and his kids are all healthy and he is ready to give 100% to the game and to any team that will take a chance on him:

“Everything is fine,” Iverson said. [My wife and I] are still going through the process. But it’s not like it was. … I just felt like the right thing – even if it’s not me and her [together] – we got to be friends and cool with each other because we got five kids together. That was the most difficult part. And then once I got to there, as far as that situation, then everything was basically cool. My kids are healthy. I don’t have anything to worry about but basketball.”

So what’s the verdict? Should an NBA team take a shot on Allen Iverson? Personally, regardless of how he went out I think plenty of teams have reason to take a chance on Iverson. He was just too good of a player in his prime, and too productive post prime to ignore his pleas completely. If he is serious about being comfortable now coming off the bench, he’s worth a look. At the very least he can put butts in seats for a bottom dwelling team, but at the best he can be a key rotation player for a championship contending team that plays the game at a high pace. Iverson is at his best filling passing lanes and getting out on the break for a team that’s not afraid to run and let him be creative.

Current Magic players Chris Duhon and Quentin Richardson told the Orlando Sentinel that they will play in the event.

Howard also has issued invitations to Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway and Grant Hill, among others, although it’s unclear whether any of them will participate. The agents for O’Neal and Hill didn’t immediately return messages from the Sentinel. [Via]