AI/Grizz to Sever Ties

I Am Awesome-O · Post #1 » by **I Am Awesome-O** » Sat Nov 7, 2009 11:31 pm

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/20 ... l-reasons/

Doesn't say if/when he will be back. That was fast. I hope it's nothing too serious.

Memphis has officially entered the John Wall sweepstakes.

It_Was_Typed · Post #2 » by **It_Was_Typed** » Sat Nov 7, 2009 11:40 pm

Thank goodness this canswer leaves.

jefe · Post #3 » by **jefe** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 12:05 am

http://3sob.com/archives/44-november-2009/747-breaking-news-iverson-leaves-grizzlies

3sob kind of implies that this is the end. Good riddance.

24K_Gold · Post #4 » by **24K_Gold** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 12:08 am

not sure what it means but on rudy's twitter account it say's my prayers go out to allen family...if it's for anything other than a family issue then i have to say it saddens me to see allen end his career like this.ego bigger than the game.

jefe · Post #5 » by **jefe** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 1:30 am

24K_Gold wrote:not sure what it means but on rudy's twitter account it say's my prayers go out to allen family...if it's for anything other than a family issue then i have to say it saddens me to see allen end his career like this.ego bigger than the game.

Posted yesterday morning at 11:43 am . . .

I Am Awesome-O · Post #6 » by **I Am Awesome-O** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 1:32 am

jefe wrote:
24K_Gold wrote:not sure what it means but on rudy's twitter account it say's my prayers go out to allen family...if it's for anything other than a family issue then i have to say it saddens me to see allen end his career like this.ego bigger than the game.

Posted yesterday morning at 11:43 am . . .

And to the Allen family, not Allen's family.

benefit1970 · Post #7 » by **benefit1970** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 1:44 am

I have to say...

As a Blazer fan, I was sorry to hear that Stoudamire is an assistant, and that you have Zach Randolph.

Now I'm sorry you have Iverson.

Your franchise deserves better. You fans deserve better. I hope that everything gets figured out, but Iverson being a douche is not your fault.

Condolences.

-Brandon

evenrane · Post #8 » by **evenrane** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 1:55 am

Is it because he has a real problem? Or because he is a whiny little bitch?

Drwho17 · Post #9 » by **Drwho17** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 2:50 am

As a Piston fan I sympathize with you all, thought the signing was odd anyway with you guys already having Mayo.

Drwho17 · Post #10 » by **Drwho17** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 2:51 am

evenrane wrote:Is it because he has a real problem? Or because he is a whiny little bitch?

Uh yea, probably that mysterious back injury is acting up again like last year on the Pistons when they stuck him on the bench.

CRACKSMATIC · Post #11 » by **CRACKSMATIC** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 2:55 am

damn thats the third time a bargnani 3 has rolled out...

AI4life07 · Post #12 » by **AI4life07** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 3:51 am

damn iverson is messing up big time by doing this! i hope he gets his mind right fast. i want to see him succeed but i can't agree with what he's doing. On the other hand why bring iverson in if he's not gonna start? maybe they were planning to make him start but probably decided not to after he got injured. i can't wait to see what happens next.

Post #13 » by **Boss_** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 8:00 am

^^ To sell some tickets this is a business; but yeah what was the point of even bringing him in? Did your management ever tell him why they were bringing him in to the fans or did they tell Iverson that he was gonna have a limited role off the bench up front when he signed? Because he wouldn't have signed and would have saved himself and Memphis the headache.

AI4life07 · Post #14 » by **AI4life07** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:34 am

i agree the lack of communication between both parties is ridiculous and astounding to me. and when fans realize he's gonna have a limited role for the rest of the season they will just stop coming. no fan wants to see a star player play 20 minutes a game!

Post #15 » by **roc** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:38 am

You mean a used to be star player.

I didn't want to see him play at all in a Piston uni so you can take what I say with a grain of salt.

Downtown · Post #16 » by **Downtown** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 5:21 pm

This whole mess was one that was avoidable. Heisley should have kept his nose out of things instead of insisting they sign Iverson. As long as Heisley keeps playing lead GM I'm afraid the Grizzlies are going nowhere. Sorry guys, it's just how I see it.

Now I imagine you have a disgruntled front office and coaching staff who see nothing but major distractions at a time when they need to be on the same page to figure out how to get the one way offensive minded team to play defense and win some fourth quarters. My guess is that everyone is saying to themselves I told you so and look at ownership as a buffoon.

Like some that like Allen Iverson, I think not all the blame rests on his shoulders. It was discussed pretty much all over the league in various forums that this wasn't a good match. Most of us that follow Memphis said it would be interesting and that assuming they laid out his role when they signed him he could help the team. It's amazing to me now to hear that it wasn't put to him that he would be a bench player when they negotiated his contract. Just by reading that Iverson and Hollins never talked shows that there probably wasn't any input from the coaching staff when Heisley personally wooed him.

I want to believe that it is personal reasons outside of basketball that has made Iverson leave. But I'm not sure. My bigger concern is for the players on youngest team in the league and how they will react in the face of the distraction at a time they are losing so much.

Way to go Heisley. You sure know how to make sound basketball decisions.

Post #17 » by **boogiesdad** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 8:54 pm

Good Riddance...............Now can he take Heisley with him.

dond · Post #18 » by **dond** » Sun Nov 8, 2009 11:19 pm

Sixer fan here ...

I was calling for him to be released or traded 3 years before he finally was in Philly. What a relief it was when they finally pulled the plug. Allen Iverson is/was a great little (as in small) shooting guard that is/was terrific talent. But he does not know how to be a teammate because he has never had to. He has always been "the answer". He is no longer the answer and hasn't been for some time now. Only his huge Salary has made him believe that he still was. When that ran out you see how fast his value plummeted. He was within a whisker of being worth NOTHING to any NBA team until the Grizzlies took a chance and it looks like they lost.

I give management credit for saying NO to him immediately and not letting this linger on. He did this in Philly when he didn't get his way. He did it in Detroit and now he is doing it in Memphis.

The best thing that can happen for the Memphis Grizzlies is for him to just stay home. He can do nothing but harm to this franchise as he did to the Sixers franchise. Consider yourselves lucky if he never comes back.

rag-time4 · Post #19 » by **rag-time4** » Mon Nov 9, 2009 3:43 am

I think that the whole situation with Iverson reflects poorly on the Grizzlies coaching staff and management - because Allen Iverson is a hall of fame caliber player, but the Griz are unable to utilize him in an effective way.

I'm reminded of Jerry West's tenure as the president / GM of the Griz. Jerry West did not give Lionel Hollins a chance to coach the Griz for any length of time. When Hubie Brown resigned, Lionel Hollins coached four games with the playoff-worthy Griz and lost all four games. (0-4 record) Hollins was quickly replaced by Mike Fratello.

When Fratello was fired a couple years later, Tony Barone became the coach, not Lionel Hollins.

In a recent article on Yahoo, Iverson stated that he hasn't even had a meaningful conversation with Hollins.

The worst part of his situation, Iverson said, was that he and Hollins have not discussed the situation in private.

“That’s probably why it’s at this point right now,” Iverson said. “It’s probably going to always be hard for me and him to see eye-to-eye, because we’ve never even talked to each other. Obviously that’s what you do if you’re trying to accomplish the same goal.”

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=A ... &type=lgns

Having a hall of famer like Allen Iverson fall into your franchise's lap should lead to improved play on the court. In the case of the Grizzlies, the fortunate acquisition of Iverson has led to chaos.

A few years ago, the Grizzlies had Bonzi Wells fall into their lap, but becuase the management and head coach were better, Bonzi Wells improved the team. The current staff has acquired a hall of famer and an already bad team has become even worse...

Ballah · Post #20 » by **Ballah** » Mon Nov 9, 2009 4:56 am

It was absolutely clear to everyone that Iverson would demand a starting spot. This wasn't a big secret, it wasn't a surprise, it is exactly what he did last year, it was something that EVERYBODY knew going into this. I would be very very surprised if he didn't make it a condition for signing in the first place. Signing him and not starting him is simply (Please Use More Appropriate Word), you are either ready to make him your starting point guard or you pass on him, its very very simple. The guy might be an **** but hes been very clear on his intentions from the begginning.