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Young, Holiday shine for 76ers

The AP reports:

Even the return of All-Star Chris Bosh couldn’t help the Toronto Raptors.

Thaddeus Young scored a career-high 32 points, Jrue Holiday had 21 and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Raptors 114-101 on Sunday to snap a five-game losing streak.

“Today was just a great day,” Young said. “My teammates were looking for me and they put me in different positions.”

Bosh returned from a seven-game absence to finish with 12 points and 12 rebounds, but the Raptors still lost for the fifth time in six games…

The 76ers went 9 for 12 from 3-point range, including three by Young.

“Thad made his 3’s and I felt that jump-started us,” 76ers coach Eddie Jordan said.

Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News reports:

Young, whose inconsistency has caused him to be taken out of the starting lineup, was back among the first five yesterday because center Sam Dalembert was late for a morning meeting and did not start. Young responded, pouring in a career-high 32 points, missing just five of his 18 shots. He also grabbed five rebounds and came up with four steals.

Holiday, securely planted as the team’s starting point guard, had a solid all-around game with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Though still only 19, Holiday has grown into a player who is being counted on by teammates to be a stabilizing force in the final meaningless games.

Wife of Allen Iverson files for divorce

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:

A week after the Philadelphia 76ers’ Allen Iverson announced he was leaving basketball for the rest of the season to be with his sick 4-year-old daughter, the star’s wife filed for divorce in Fulton County Superior Court.

In the divorce petition filed on Tuesday, Tawanna Iverson said her 8 ½-year-long marriage to the guard was “irretrievably broken.” In the petition, Tawanna Iverson asked for temporary and permanent custody of their five children as well as child support and alimony.

She did not ask for a specific dollar amount.

The children range in ages from 17 months to 15 years.

QUICK REACTION FROM INSIDEHOOPS.COM

This is just not Allen Iverson’s year.

In basketball, he hurt his own reputation by making it clear to the world that he’s more focused on his own individual basketball game than he is on being a part of a team, resulting in barely any squads wanting to sign him even though he was clearly more talented than the majority of free agents who were available at the time.

Of course, Iverson was always an individual force on a court. A scorer, who didn’t typically set teammates up do to any sort of special play-making ability, but certainly made their lives easier simply by drawing so much defensive attention. He was also a one-man wrecking crew who could drop 30 on anybody. He also dragged a 76ers squad into the finals that had no business making it that far. He did amazing things on a basketball court.

But, at this point in his career, his refusal to even consider coming off any team’s bench was a bad look.

The Grizzlies-Iverson experiment didn’t go well, and the team has looked very good since it ended.

He was OK on the 76ers but didn’t really help them. They’re not hot without him, though, so that’s not really on him.

But now, actual sad personal stuff: His daughter reportedly has health issues. And now his wife is calling it quits, seemingly at a rough time.

Regardless of his refusal to accept that he’s best used as a supporting scorer and no longer a foundation to build a team around, I have to root for Iverson in his off-court issues clearing up.

And as for Iverson the basketball player, it would be cool to see him latch onto a team next season, actually help them, and go out on a positive note.

— Jeff

Allen Iverson will not return to 76ers this season

Philadelphia 76ers President and General Manager Ed Stefanski announced today that guard Allen Iverson will not return to the team for the remainder of the 2009-10 season.

“After discussing the situation with Allen, we have come to the conclusion that he will not return to the Sixers for the remainder of the season, as he no longer wishes to be a distraction to the organization and teammates that he loves very deeply,” Stefanski said. “It has been very difficult for Allen and the team to maintain any consistency as he tries to balance his career with his personal life.”

The team will release any additional updates on Iverson’s status as they become available.

Allen Iverson away from Sixers indefinitely for personal reasons

Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson will not be with the team for the remaining three games of the current road trip and is out indefinitely for personal reasons related to a family matter.

“At this time, we feel that it is in the best interest of the Sixers, Allen and his family that he be allowed to deal with a very serious issue that is far greater than the game of basketball,” said President and General Manager Ed Stefanski.

The Iverson family kindly requests that their privacy be respected during this time.

The team will release any additional updates on Iverson’s status as they become available.

76ers trade Royal Ivey, Primoz Brezec to Bucks for Jodie Meeks, Francisco Elson

The Milwaukee Bucks have acquired center Primoz Brezec and guard Royal Ivey (6-4, 215) from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for center Francisco Elson and guard Jodie Meeks, General Manager John Hammond announced today. Additionally, the Bucks obtained Philadelphia’s second round draft pick in the 2010 NBA Draft.

Brezec (7-1, 255) is currently in his eighth NBA season and sports career averages of 7.4 points and 4.0 rebounds in 328 regular season games (214 starts). Last season, Brezec played for Lottomatica Virtus Roma in the Italian League where he teamed with current Bucks rookie guard Brandon Jennings. In 29 games in the Italian League, Brezec averaged 8.2 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting 63.2 percent from the field. In 14 Euroleague games, he tallied 9.4 points and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 55.4 percent from the field.

A native of Postojna, Slovenia, Brezec, 30, began his professional career in the Slovenian League with Kraski (1996-98) and Olimpija Ljubljana (1998-2001). He was selected by Indiana in the first round (27th overall) of the 2000 NBA Draft and played three seasons (2001-2004) for the Pacers before being selected by Charlotte in the 2004 NBA Expansion Draft. Brezec played three-plus seasons in Charlotte before finishing out the 2007-08 campaign with Detroit and Toronto. He signed with Philadelphia prior to the start of the 2009-10 season and appeared in seven games for the 76ers.

Ivey, 28, is in his sixth NBA season and second stint with the Bucks. The Harlem, NY, native spent the 2007-08 campaign in Milwaukee and played in a career-high 75 games (20 starts) and averaged 5.6 points, 2.1 assists and 1.6 rebounds – all career-high totals. Originally drafted by the Atlanta Hawks with the 37th selection out of Texas in the 2004 NBA Draft, Ivey played three seasons in Atlanta before signing with the Bucks. He signed with Philadelphia prior to the 2008-09 season and has played 97 games for the 76ers over the last season-plus. In 360 career NBA regular season games (109 starts), Ivey has averaged 3.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

Elson, 33, signed a free agent contract with Milwaukee prior to the 2008-09 season. Currently in his seventh NBA season, Elson began his NBA career in Denver in 2003 and has also played with San Antonio (2006-2008) and Seattle (2008). In 404 career NBA regular season games (148 starts), Elson has averaged 3.9 points and 3.8 rebounds. Elson is the first Dutch national to win an NBA Championship (Spurs – 2007).

Meeks, 22, was selected by Milwaukee after his junior year at the University of Kentucky with the 41st pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft. He played in 41 games for the Bucks this season and averaged 4.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in 11.9 minutes per game. As a junior for the Wildcats, Meeks set a school single-game scoring record with 54 points, including 10 three-point field goals and 14-of-14 from the line. He set Kentucky’s all-time single-season record for three-pointers made (117) in his junior year.

Sixers go 3-0 against winning teams without Iverson

Tom Moore of The Intelligencer reports:

The 19-31 Sixers have won three in a row – all against teams with a .500 or better record at the time – with Allen Iverson absent and Willie Green starting in his place.

The 6-foot-3 Green and 6-4 rookie Jrue Holiday have given the Sixers better size and matchups in the backcourt than when the 6-1 Lou Williams and 5-11 Iverson started. They’ve also cut down on opponents’ dribble penetration, allowing teammates to stay on their man rather than having to rotate over to help on the ball.

Green has also scored in double figures all three times, averaging 11.3 points on 15-for-25 shooting (60 percent) from the field.

“It’s a comfort area for him,” Jordan said. “It doesn’t bother him to start. He’s aggressive. He’s playing with other front-line guys on our team, so it’s a little easier for him.”

Elton Brand starting to come alive for Sixers

The Philadelphia 76ers are just 13-26 this season, but they’ve actually looked like an NBA team lately. A big reason why has been the emergency of power forward Elton Brand, who is starting to finally come alive.

Tom Moore of Philly Burbs reports:

After injuries limited him to 37 games during the previous two seasons, Elton Brand is finally starting to feel more like the Elton Brand who averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds in his first 10 NBA seasons. And it’s showing on the court.

In the Sixers’ last nine games, he’s shooting 58-for-108 (53.7 percent) from the field. The Sixers are 6-3 during that span, with Brand averaging 18.7 points and shooting 59.2 percent in the victories.

Brand had 25 points on 11-for-16 shooting in a Dec. 28 victory over the Trail Blazers, another 25 in a Jan. 9 drubbing of the Pistons and 18 in Monday’s 96-92 win over the Hornets.

Up next for the Sixers is a road game in Minnesota and tough home games vs Portland and Dallas.

Sixers hot on road

Tom Moore of Philly Burbs reports:

The Sixers are 4-12 at home this season, which is the second-worst record in the league – the Nets, at 2-15, are the only team behind them.

And the Sixers have beaten some better teams away from the Wachovia Center (the Trail Blazers and Nuggets) while dropping their most recent home dates to the woeful Wizards and Raptors.

“It’s funny,” said Andre Iguodala after Saturday night’s 104-94 victory over the Pistons in Michigan. “I think we play better on the road than at home.”

With the next three games at home, beginning tonight against the red-hot Hornets, winners of six in a row, that has to change for the 11-25 Sixers. They also host the Knicks on Wednesday night and the Kings on Friday night.

76ers keep Allen Iverson

Philadelphia 76ers President and General Manager Ed Stefanski announced today that Allen Iverson’s contract with the team will be guaranteed for the remainder of the season. Per team policy, no further terms of the deal are disclosed.

All NBA contracts become fully guaranteed if the player is on the team roster on January 10th. Iverson originally signed as a free agent with the Sixers on December 3, 2009.

“Since his arrival, Allen has done everything asked of him and has been an excellent teammate,” Stefanski said.

Iverson (6-0, 165) has started nine games for the Sixers this season, averaging 15.7 points, 4.7 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.00 steals in 33.2 minutes per game. He is also currently shooting a career-high 46.5% from the floor.

On New Year’s Eve, the third returns of the 2010 NBA All-Star Balloting were announced. The leading vote-getters among guards in the Eastern Conference were Dwyane Wade (1,539,968) and Iverson (806,749). While Iverson appears among Western Conference guards on the paper ballot because he began the season with Memphis, his votes now count towards the Eastern Conference guards. Iverson is already a 10-time All-Star and two-time All-Star Game MVP.

Denver fans cheer Iverson

Dave Krieger of the Denver Post reports:

Allen Iverson could hear the tribute as he stood in the Sixers’ huddle during a first-half timeout Sunday night, but he couldn’t see the video board.

“I couldn’t really pay attention to it because it was during a timeout and Coach was talking,” Iverson said after putting up 17 points and seven assists in Philly’s 108-105 win over his former team.

“But I looked up and seen what was going on and then, just to hear the fans react the way they reacted, it was a great feeling. I kind of got beside myself.”

The video montage showed the usual A.I. magic, driving the NBA forest, slicing through the trees, somehow getting the ball up through the branches and in the net, time after time after time. Out of the timeout, the crowd rose to serenade him back onto the floor.

To the full house at the Pepsi Center, it was like he never left. The fans seemed to have no trouble cheering for the Nuggets and Iverson at the same time. Considering he played only 135 games for the Nuggets, less than two seasons’ worth, it is an extraordinary bond.