http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/sports/16203438.htm Anyone still clamoring for trading TMac for Iverson?
iverson's partying, alcohol problems, and morals is irrelevant to me. as long as he can perform on the court at the caliber he has been, none of that mattters.
He hasn't helped his team play at a high caliber. This is the "we talking about PRACTICE" line of thought. AI may not need practice, but the team needs to practice around him, especially because he dominates the ball so much. The team isn't doing all that well, and I'd imagine a more decidated professional would do everything he can to make sure it gets better.
Another useless/ill-advised thread (too many to keep count, now) by Van Gundier? Say it ain't so... But since I am already here, let me answer your question: Yes, I still would, because AI doesn't have any chronic injuries, while McGrady has a degenerative back problem that will only get worse or keep popping up every single season. No offense to McGrady, but his body is clearly breaking down on him, not due to any fault of his, but it's still reality.
I would like to make a friendly bet with you Tiger that Iverson will break down before T-Mac Don't listen to the words that come out of T-MAc. He has a good 7 years left in him. He's had the back spasms for 6 years now. It's a back problem, it is no indication whatsoever of him breaking down. He was spry and energetic the last couple of games. He's hodling back, he's not breaking down. His back problems were way worse in Orlando and he managed through them. Patrick Ewing played very effectively with back spams. I would like to think that with today's medical advances, perhaps some minor offseason surgery and even game to game treatment makes a world of difference. TMac got stiff sitting on the bench. As simple as that. He got a minor spasm when he elevated and it scared the sh*t out of him considering what happened last year. (he's known to be a bit of a drama queen you know) Last year, he bruised and injured his back. This is milder than anything I have seen. He'll be back strong.
macfan, others share your opinion or something similar to it. I would say whenever AI loses a step, he game will decline dramatically unless he re-invents himself as a distributor more than a shooter. AI's offense is completely dependent on his incredible speed. The issue is when AI's long awaited decline will start happening. He's seemingly defied the laws of nature for a long time. Over the last several seasons, has anyone played more minutes per game than AI? On the other hand, Tracy's back could render him useless at any point in time. This is very scary. Most of us don't share your optimism that his back problems will get no worse.
Whenever they pass the mike to stephen A smith, I just see him screaming at the camera like it just nailed his wife. "Ok, Bill, now let's hear from Stephen A Smith on his commentary on the potential AI trade, Steve?" SAS: AAAAGGHHH!!!! AAAAAAGGHHHH!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHHH!!!!! AAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHH!!!!!
No AI please. You don't trade to get smaller and older. And it's not like AI isn't banged up either or that his body won't break down eventually.
well iverson maybe older but he sure as hell doesnt play like it.. tmac might be done. his back is not going to get better. it bothered me he didnt get hit. his bakc just acted up.. imagine how timid he's going to be even if he does come back. he will just avoid all contact since it took no contact at all to throw out his back again.. i love tmac . and i love his game but on a bussiness stand point id take iverson now.. id take his 31ppg and his 8 assits anyday. plus he is always up there or number one in steals..
t-mac had more than the back issues that kept him out of the lineup last season. he also missed a good portion of games at the end of the year because there was no point in activating him even though van gundy says he could have played. i have no idea what the future holds for t-mac but i really hope macfan is right about him. also i wouldn't even think about trading him for iverson.
I dunno about that. Just for kicks, would u want TO on ur favorite football team? I have a hard time cheering for him even though he's on my favorite team. If we assembled a bunch of talented misfits like Portland, I don't even think I would watch the rockets games.
that's a comparable situation. vin baker who achieved a little successs and fell to alcohol vs. iverson who has had a hall of fame career. I'm sure gms thinking about getting ai think about vin baker. its only natural.
Different situation, what GMs should be thinking about is AI possibly harming chemistry and undermining the coach. He's not a bad guy, but 1) his playing style is to dominate the hell out of the ball and he's not about to change now that he's 31. 2) Dominating the hell out of the ball tends to kill the team's on court chemistry. You need a specific kind of team build around AI in order to really succeed-- basically, you need what Larry Brown got-- guys who defend, rebound, pass, and not worry about making shots. Few teams have that kind of roster now to acomodate AI. 3) It seems he does get frustrated with losing, and when he gets frustrated, he doesn't work as hard in practice, and he complains... So, unless you think your team will instantly become a winner (not a guarantee, Sixers are not a winner), you risk getting a disgruntled employee who ties up much of your cap money. As for AI vs. TMac... look at their games played history. They have missed a comparable number of games over the past seasons. Just so happens TMac's bad injury season came this past year. Also, AI is turning 32 in June. You can expect a decline soon, with or without another major injury.
I will be honest, a McGrady/Yao combo is much more complimentary than a Yao/AI combo...I do think the team overall would be better with McGrady on it, just because he has so much versatility and compliments Yao's game perfectly. However, again, McGrady's back issues -- while manageable -- might not be so for the remainder of his contract. It scares the living hell outta me that he still has three more seasons beyond this one remaining on his contract at max money, and that if he isn't 100% productive every single season -- not to mention come playoff time -- then I would rather have someone who's going to be more productive in the next 2-3 years besides Yao to try and go all out for a championship. Do you guys really think that McGrady can hold up physically in the playoffs? I am not talking first round either, I am talking beyond that. Can he really perform up to his own standard -- i.e. dominate -- if we go deep in the playoffs, or will he physically break down or be timid and forced to 'pace' himself? So yes, as I said, I would rather exploit Yao's prime years -- this season would be his first, IMO -- than watch this limited window of opportunity waste away just because McGrady is terrified of breaking his back. The key here is the next 2-3 seasons, not a long-term view of how they both will end up down the road, not 5-7 years from now. That's not my thinking.
