Who's the NBA's
best Shooting Guard?
Here's 'The
Answer'
By JG21
First, a little note on Larry Brown......
Larry Brown has made it clear that
his relationship with Allen Iverson is
"rocky" to say the least. I have
the utmost respect for Larry Brown and what
he has achieved in his impressive
career. However, what he is doing to
Iverson is not fair at all. We all
know Iverson allegedly missed some
practices, and was late on more
occasions than one, so why does Brown
continually whine about it? All
summer long he has taken shots at Iverson;
and what has Iverson done to counter
Brown's remarks? - nothing, absolutely
NOTHING! All Iverson has done is
utter a request to be the team captain. And
even after this, Brown still continued
to shoot his mouth off in Maui (where
the olympic squad was a while ago)
about how Iverson could destroy the
Sixers if he carried on his current
behaviour. What did Iverson say about
this? - once again NOTHING! So,
"Larry, please leave Allen alone! if he
deliberately misses practices again,
continues to show up late, or decides
to tell you what he REALLY thinks
of you in public, then you can mouth off
about him all you want. You've told
the whole world over and over what Allen
has done, so give it a rest for
once -and please, stop taking shots at
Allen!"
The way i see it, Allen Iverson has
spent too much time defending himself in
the NBA, and has been criticised
more than necessary. All the critics,
haters, basketball-illiterate people
with single-minded comments need to
back-off for once and realize that
this 6-0, 165-pound scoring phenom is
indeed the league's best shooting
guard. Some might not agree, considering
Kobe Bryant and Michael Finley are
still holding it down for their
respective teams. To me, Bryant
& Finely are very good, Iverson's just
better! He's a one-of-a-kind type
of player and that's what makes him
special.
In my opinion, Iverson is the most
talented guard and one of the most
talented superstars in the NBA.
At 6-0 165 pounds, he's "soaking" in talent
and skill. His offensive skills
have not only dazzled many, but also left
opponents wishing they hadn't faced
him in the first place! - simultaneously
winning ballgames for the Sixers.
Aside from being the league's most
explosive player, he's also its
most unguardable shooting guard. He's
totally unstoppable by a lone defender
- anyone who has stepped up to the
occasion of guarding him in isolation
plays has been scarred by
his (Iverson's) individual skill.
Iverson's show-stopping ball-handles and
deadly, ultra-quick signature crossover
dribble, have wrong-footed everyone;
from the likes of basketball great
Michael Jordan, to the likes of "former"
crossover-king Tim Hardaway. His
superior ball-control and unmatched
quickness (among other things) have
not only made him a nightmare to guard,
but also the best creator in the
league. No one can match his ability to
create offensive opportunities at
the high level he does - he can create
shots out of any situation, and
get to the basket at will. Iverson may be
disadvantaged in height compared
to other shooting guards, but his huge
vertical leap and vine-like arms
help him soar and stretch over and around
defenders on one of his fearless
drives to the hoop. He's also a very good
passer (his ability to pass is often
overlooked and sometimes underrated in
my opinion) with a good anticipation
of where his teammates are - remember
that 60 ft. bounce pass he made
to Kukoc - who finished it off with a nice
windmill finger-roll when the Sixers
hosted the Cavs in February last
season?!
All the points mentioned above, coupled
with his incredible speed, high
intensity level of play, undeniable
competitiveness and unmatched
fearlessness, make Iverson nothing
less than the best in his category!
Critics, haters & Iverson bashers
often ignore Iverson's talent and what
good he brings to the basketball
court, by just searching and highlighting
flaws in his game. For example,
some people say he hurts his team because
he's a ballhog and shoots too much.
I disagree. People need to take into
consideration that the Sixers are
winning ballgames with Iverson shooting
the way he is, his shooting wins
ballgames for the Sixers, his shooting &
offensive style played a major role
in turning the Sixers into a winning
team. Take away Iverson's offense
and the Sixers will struggle to put points
on the board - seeing as though
they lack another consistent scoring threat
(now however, Kukoc has re-signed
with the team and is probably going to
start beside Iverson, giving the
76ers another offensive option in the
lineup and easing some of the scoring
load off Iverson). There are also
people that criticize Iverson's
defense and even go as far as saying he
knows nothing about defense. If
this applies to you then consider this;
because of Iverson's size, his individual
defense is not at the same level
as that of Eddie Jones or Kobe Bryant.
However, Iverson does have great
court-vision and anticipation which
helps him spot and intercept passing
lanes - that (with help from his
speed/quickness) has resulted in him being
one of the regular leaders in steals
in the NBA. He has an average of over 2
steals per game in his 4 seasons
in the league; last season he had 2.06
steals/game (3rd in the league),
and the season before he had 2.29 (also 3rd
in the league). THAT, has to count
for something! Sure, his field-goal
percentage is not as impressive
as his crossover, but it can only get better
-by the way, his FG% improved by
a margin of 9% this past season (from .412%
in 98/99 to .421% in 99/00). True,
the Sixers would improve if he made more
of his shots thus increasing his
FG%, but don't forget who was making all
those key shots in close games!
Everyone needs to keep in mind that
Iverson:
- is still the player who had a
dominant rookie season posting numbers of
23ppg, 7.5apg, 4.1rpg & 2.07spg
that resulted in his well-deserved Schick
Rookie of the Year Award, at the
same time earned All-Rookie First Team
honors and set the Sixers' all-time
record with 1,787 points.
- He is still the reason behind the
Sixers' success; no longer are the Sixers
classified as one of the NBA's worst
teams, but recognized as one of the
deadliest teams in the East, and
why? -Allen Iverson. Yes, Larry Brown is
obviously still the main reason
because he's the coach, but who was carrying
the Sixers on the court? who was
posting the big numbers when games were
won? who was making those big shots
with certain games on the line? -Allen
Iverson! Let me put it this way:
take Iverson away and the Sixers are not
much of a threat, plain and simple.
- He's still the one who led the
Sixers to the playoffs for the first time(in
98/99) since 1990/91.
- He's still the one who led the
Sixers through those same playoffs in 98/99,
by upseting the Magic in the 1st
round and advancing to the 2nd round (where
they lost to the Pacers).
- He is still the one who set an
NBA playoff record for steals with 9 (in
game 3 vs. the Magic in the 1999
playoffs).
- He's still the one who at 6-0,
replaced hall of famer Nate "Tiny" Archibald
as the shortest league scoring champion
(when he won the title in 1998/99).
- Last but not least (and with no
disrespect intended), he is still the one
who shook Jordan like a rag doll
with his various dribbles and killer
crossover -not once, but twice!
I won't go as fas as proclaim Allen
Iverson the NBA's best player, with guys
like Shaq, Garnett & Duncan
all capable of claiming the honor. But, i will
emphasize that he's ONE OF the NBA's
best ballers, ONE OF the NBA's best
guards, and (at least in my opinion)
the NBA's best shooting guard. All the
critics, haters and Iverson-bashers
can go ahead and call Iverson the
selfish, disrespectful, egotistical
basketball thug they think he is; and
all the NBA fans who enjoy watching
him ball can go ahead and call him by
whatever nickname they wish - The
Answer, Ivy, AI, Captain Iverson (after
he's elected team captain!). But,
in addition to whatever you call him or
describe him as, be sure to refer
to him as the best shooting guard in the
league!
