Don't Trade Allen Iverson, Ever

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As you may have been able to guess from this picture, I was at the Wachovia Center for the Sixers v. Wizards game.  There was a nice buzz in the arena which was heightened by a few of Iguodala's thunderous slams.  The Sixers had lost to Washington twice previously this year, but in a win Friday night A.I. was simply sick: 47 points, 12 assists, on 17-28 shooting.  At one point late in the game, Iverson crossed up Antonio Daniels so badly that Daniels fell to the floor as A.I. laid up an easy basket.  It brought the entire Wachovia Center to its feet.

At some point in the game I found myself feeling guilty for previously thinking the Sixers needed to trade Iverson in order to start rebuilding.  I now think I would rather have them play mediocre basketball for the remainder of A.I.'s career and have him go out on his terms, beloved by Philadelphia, as a Sixer.  Last time I checked, I still haven't witnessed a championship in Philly, so without championships, at least we can still have A.I. on our side, to enjoy watching.

Gilbert Arenas is a star in the NBA and, unlike Iverson, was chosen to play for the U.S. Olympic team in Beijing.  Kevin Ollie, who started against the Wizards, did a rather nice job holding Arenas in check, making him work the entire game.  All of the Sixers played a rather nice game, CWebb had 30 with 12 boards, Iggy had 19.  Arenas scored 33 with 8 assists, but it was Iverson who with seconds left in the game riled the crowd into a frenzy with his patented "let's hear it" gesture.

Iverson played all 48 minutes. 

A little bonus video for you after the jump.  Related: Video of A.I. crossover on Antonio Daniels

The video will take a while to load, but start the download and pause it, then come back to watch it in a few minutes.  It is a YouTube video which takes a look at Iverson, talking about his famous cross over on Michael Jordan, a little Tupac soundtrack, the famous step over Tyrone Lue and the Lakers in game 1, some Gtown highlights, etc. etc.  The beginning is the best part, it gets a little repetitive and the Tupac music doesn't really work well at times.

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