Iverson Decision On Grizzlies Offer Could Arrive Friday

[duncan228]

Iverson decision on Grizzlies offer could arrive Friday (http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/sep/03/iverson-decision-grizzlies-offer-could-arrive-frid/)
By Ronald Tillery, Memphis Commercial Appeal

Free agent guard Allen Iverson finally is about to live up to his moniker.

Iverson -- known as The Answer -- is expected to give the Grizzlies an answer Friday on whether he’ll accept their one-year offer, according to sources with knowledge of the negotiations.

Iverson’s agent, Leon Rose, informed the Grizzlies earlier this week that a decision would come before the weekend. Iverson, 34, is a free agent for the first time in his 13-year career, and has expressed interest in playing for Charlotte and Memphis in recent weeks.

More than a week has passed since the Grizzlies offered Iverson a contract using money the team has left under the salary cap. The Griz can pay Iverson at least $3.5 million or about $4.4 million should they renounce their rights to Spanish guard Juan Carlos Navarro. The latter figure wouldn’t be much less than the $5 million Memphis was willing to pay Iverson at the start of the free-agent period.

The Griz are also prepared to add incentives to the deal.

Iverson wrote on his Twitter account today that a decision is imminent: “Spoke with a couple teams this week, and I think we are getting real close to a deal. I hope so!”

Griz general manager Chris Wallace wouldn’t confirm a timetable on a potential Iverson deal but put the odds of the veteran scorer playing in Memphis at “50-50.”

“We’ll see,” Wallace said. “It’s a holding pattern. He’s in new territory. He’s never been a free agent. He’s never been a free agent this late in the offseason. I’m sure he’s trying to turn over as many scenarios as he can until he has to commit.”

Presumably, Iverson has been awaiting and weighing opportunities from teams in better position than Memphis to earn a playoff berth. Charlotte is among Iverson’s preferences for that reason plus his comfortable relationship with coach Larry Brown.

Perhaps Iverson could also play a starting role with Charlotte and earn the mid-level exception ($5.8 million) –- neither of which are options in Memphis.

The Griz want Iverson to play a reserve role. He’d likely be a reserve behind second-year guard O.J. Mayo and perform as the team’s primary scorer off the bench.

Iverson, who has balked at being a backup in the past, seemed amiable to the Grizzlies’ wishes about a week ago when he wrote on his Twitter: “Memphis is a place that I would love to play. The Grizzlies have good young players with a great upside. I love the city of Memphis too.

“I would lead by example. I could show how important it is to work hard everyday, play the game the right way, & just like it's your last!”

Meanwhile, the Griz continue to prepare for the worst-case scenario by keeping in touch with other veteran free-agent guards. Team officials are trying to arrange workouts with Brevin Knight, Tyronn Lue, Jacque Vaughn and Luther Head.

Any of those players would be a minimum-salary acquisition.

Ronald “Flip” Murray remains a person of interest for the Griz. Securing Murray, however, would require part or all of the Grizzlies’ cap space.

[23LeBronJames23]

wow for so cheap

[BRHornet45]

sons why won't he go play for the Olympialakalos or whatever the hell their name is?

[manufan10]

sons why won't he go play for the Olympialakalos or whatever the hell their name is?

He'd be a starter.. be the most dominant guy in the league. He should go for it.

[anonoftheinternets]

he shud hav signed with charlotte. I cant believe he is going to come off the bench in Memphis. If he knew this was going to happen, im sure he woudl ahve tried harder with detroit off the bench ...

[Chieflion]

What the fuck? Iverson is basically against himself. He has lost it. Not only I feel sad for him, I feel sorry for Michael Conley and O.J Mayo whose minutes will reduce and the ball taken away from them.

[DUNCANownsKOBE2]

PG: Allen "The Answer" Iverson
SG: O.J. "Orange Juice Mayonnaise" Mayo
SF: Rudy "I'm" Gay
PF: Zach "Z-Bo" Randolph
C: Marc "Laker fans talk about me like I'm better than my brother" Gasol


CHAMPIONSHIP!!!

[duncan228]

Allen Iverson plays waiting game with Grizzlies (http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/sep/05/iverson-plays-waiting-game-with-grizzlies/)
By Ronald Tillery, Memphis Commercial Appeal

The Grizzlies remained Friday where they have been all summer with regard to Allen Iverson: In a holding pattern.

Another day passed without receiving an answer on whether Iverson would accept a one-year offer to play in Memphis this season.

The Griz expected Iverson, 34, to decide before the weekend. But the free-agent guard apparently needs more time even though the Grizzlies have expressed strong interest in him since July.

Memphis offered Iverson at least $3.5 million or what it has remaining under the salary cap. The Griz could increase the offer to about $4.4 million should it renounce its rights to Spanish guard Juan Carlos Navarro. The deal still is less than the $5 million Memphis originally considered paying Iverson to play a reserve role.

Iverson is a free agent for the first time in his 13-year career, and has struggled to find serious suitors. The Griz believe the odds are 50-50 that they will add Iverson.

Griz general manager Chris Wallace told The Commercial Appeal on Thursday that it's understandable why Iverson would carefully consider his options.

"He's in new territory. He's never been a free agent," Wallace said. "He's never been a free agent this late in the offseason. I'm sure he's trying to turn over as many scenarios as he can until he has to commit."

[KidCongo]

SF: Rudy "I'm" Gay

:lmao

OJ will find his way onto the Lakers soon.

[scampers]

I'd like to see Iverson in Charlotte. I don't see him playing a full season with the Grizzlies if he decides to sign with them.

[picc84]

I just dont get this when you are trying to develop OJ Mayo who is primed for a huge year. Why add Iverson of ALL people? You're not going to win anyway.

[Morg1411]

I just dont get this when you are trying to develop OJ Mayo who is primed for a huge year. Why add Iverson of ALL people? You're not going to win anyway.

Because Mayo will find himself on the Lakers. They're going to trade a pair of Odom's sweatsocks for him.

[duncan228]

Allen Iverson, Grizzlies get closer (http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/sep/06/iverson-grizzlies-get-close/?partner=RSS)
Guard, Heisley hope to set face-to-face meeting
By Ronald Tillery, Memphis Commercial Appeal

Allen Iverson is getting closer to playing in a Grizzlies uniform.

The free-agent guard and Griz owner Michael Heisley were trying Saturday to arrange a face-to-face meeting -- a development that indicates Iverson is on the verge of accepting the Grizzlies' one-year offer, according to sources with knowledge of the situation.

Heisley and Iverson have yet to meet because the Griz were only dealing with Iverson's agent, Leon Rose, until now.

But Iverson appears to have run out of options.

He has spent the offseason holding out hope for offers to play in better situations than the Grizzlies' present. Memphis offered Iverson, 34, a reserve role paying at least $3.5 million or what it has remaining under the salary cap.

The Griz could increase the offer to about $4.4 million should it renounce its rights to Spanish guard Juan Carlos Navarro. The deal still is less than the $5 million Memphis originally considered paying Iverson.

Iverson was expected to give the Griz an answer by Friday. The 13-year veteran apparently wasn't ready then. However, Iverson's decision appears imminent.

[dirk4mvp]

Keep this faggot far away.

[duncan228]

Updated.

Iverson, Grizzlies meet Monday (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4451845)
By Marc Stein
ESPN.com

Michael Heisley, the owner of the Memphis Grizzlies, and the team's staff are meeting with Allen Iverson as the sides move closer to a deal bringing the veteran guard to a very young team.

Iverson dropped his strongest hint yet that he will soon be joining the Grizzlies, announcing via his Twitter account Sunday night that he had a face-to-face meeting scheduled Monday with team owner Michael Heisley and other club officials.

"I want to help them develop a winner," Iverson wrote.

Reached later Sunday by ESPN.com, Heisley confirmed that the meeting would take place Monday in Atlanta, where Iverson has been working out in preparation for next season.

Yet Heisley cautioned that an agreement in principle with Iverson has not yet been reached, saying: "[The meeting] does not mean it's a done deal. He wants to meet and have some questions answered and we want to meet."

Memphis is believed to be the only team actively pursuing the four-time scoring champion and has established its willingness to sign Iverson to a one-year deal worth $3.5 million.

The Grizzlies, at Heisley's behest, have been trying to convince Iverson to join them since free agency began, ignoring concerns about the 34-year-old accepting a reserve role or his ability to co-exist in the same offense with O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay and Zach Randolph because of Iverson's presumed ability to generate interest and sell tickets for a franchise that languished in the shadow of John Calipari's Memphis Tigers.

Monday's scheduled sitdown is the first face-to-face contact between Iverson and Grizzlies officials since the process began, with Memphis negotiating to this point primarily with Leon Rose, Iverson's agent.

Iverson has spent much of the past two months hoping that a firm offer would materialize from the Miami Heat, New York Knicks or Charlotte Bobcats -- the latter to reunite with former coach Larry Brown -- but was ultimately forced to concede that only the Grizzlies have the financial flexibility and definite interest to make a commitment to Iverson after his nightmarish 2008-09 season with the Detroit Pistons.

"We're heading into the home stretch before the season, and we have had interest in Allen all summer," Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace told ESPN.com in late August.

Last week, Wallace described the prospect of Iverson signing with the Grizzlies as "50-50" in an interview with the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

"We'll see," Wallace told the newspaper. "... He's in new territory. He's never been a free agent. He's never been a free agent this late in the offseason. I'm sure he's trying to turn over as many scenarios as he can until he has to commit."

Iverson played in only 57 games between Denver and Detroit last season and averaged a career-low 17.5 points, hampered by a back injury and his open struggles to cope with coming off the bench for the first time in his career. He would end up leaving the team in April by mutual agreement before the playoffs.

But Iverson has insisted in recent days that he is amenable to whatever the Grizzlies have in mind for him as well as the steep drop from last season's salary of nearly $21 million, writing via Twitter: "Memphis is a place that I would love to play. The Grizzlies have good young players with a great upside. I love the city of Memphis, too.

"I would lead by example," Iverson wrote.

In a July interview with ESPN.com, Heisley scoffed at suggestions that signing Iverson -- the sort of drawing card that the Grizzlies have never had in an eight-season run in Memphis marked by notoriously low attendance figures -- was dangerous given the presence of Mayo at the same position and the recent arrival of Randolph.

"What appeals to me?" Heisley said, repeating the question. "He's one of the greatest players in the last 10 years in the NBA.

"Obviously I think he'd be a crowd pleaser in Memphis. But like I said ... we're in there but I don't know whether or not we're going to get him."

[024]

wtf? grizzlies are really gunning for the position of the NBA's trashcan. might as well trade mayo + gay for vujacic and walton while they're at it.

[duncan228]

Grizzlies owner meets with Allen Iverson (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jPSH9X0PoQu2tSiX_tSEm_DNLHeQD9AIKB3G0)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The owner of the Memphis Grizzlies and the team's staff are meeting with Allen Iverson as the sides move closer to a deal bringing the veteran guard to a very young team.

Iverson said on Twitter on Sunday night he was meeting with the owner and staff Monday and that he wanted to help the Grizzlies develop a winner. The meeting was in Atlanta, where Iverson has been working out this offseason.

The Grizzlies confirmed the meeting but declined to comment further.

[bdictjames]

With what Memphis has been going through, dumping away star players and signing bozo ones.. (I remember the Gasol-Williams-Posey-Swift-Miller Grizz).. this trade could actually be helpful. Not to help them necessarily be better on the long run.. but to make them at least appear to be a team trying to be competitive.

[duncan228]

Grizzlies, Iverson meet, but make no deal yet (http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/sep/07/grizzlies-iverson-meet-make-no-deal-yet/)
By Ronald Tillery, Memphis Commercial Appeal

Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley met with Allen Iverson Monday night in Atlanta where the sides came away with a better understanding of what the other expects yet no deal was finalized.

But the frank, comfortable and friendly meeting went so well that Iverson could agree to a deal as soon as Tuesday, according to a source familiar with the discussions.

Heisley, general manager Chris Wallace and head coach Lionel Hollins spent more than two hours with Iverson. Most of their conversations were about the Grizzlies’ philosophy and how they intend to use Iverson.

There were no specific contract talks although Memphis wants Iverson on a one-year deal that pays $3.5 million.

Iverson’s starting salary could increase to roughly $4.4 million should the Griz renounce their rights to Spanish guard Juan Carlos Navarro.

Iverson, a 13-year veteran, is a free agent for the first time in his career. Memphis is the only NBA team in public pursuit of the 34-year-old scoring machine.

The Griz initially were prepared to pay Iverson $5 million when the expressed strong interest in July. Iverson, though, held out hope all summer for offers from Charlotte, Miami, New York and the Los Angeles Clippers.

Memphis emerged as Iverson’s only option over the past two weeks.

As negotiations advanced, the Griz expected a decision from Iverson last Friday. By Saturday, Iverson’s agent – Leon Rose – was arranging a meeting between Iverson and Heisley.

The face-to-face meeting was Iverson’s first with Griz brass, who had only talked to Rose throughout the free-agent period.

Both sides departed Monday night convinced that the improbable marriage can work.

Heisley, who is now responsible for all major decisions, is convinced that Iverson’s star power can improve results for one of the league’s worst teams in the standings and at the box office. The Griz figure that the four-time scoring champ has enough left to significantly bolster the team’s offense in what likely would be a reserve role most nights.

The 6-foot shooting guard hasn’t been willing to play off the bench given his past comments and actions.

Iverson’s refusal to accept a reserve role didn’t go over well with his last team. He spent the latter part of last season away from the Detroit Pistons partly due to an injury and team chemistry issues.

Leadership hasn’t been Iverson’s strong suit, either -- one of the reasons why the Denver Nuggets shipped Iverson to Detroit early last season. He played in only 57 games between Denver and Detroit.

It was a negative year in a lot of ways.

Iverson’s scoring average last season with the Pistons – 17.5 points per game – was nearly 10 points below his career scoring average. His trips to the foul line also dropped from about nine per game for his career to roughly six.

But Iverson could be motivated to extend his career beyond this season.

The lack of interest from competitive teams had to be a psychological blow to Iverson. He can become an attractive free agent in 2010 if the Grizzlies’ situation goes well.

Iverson indicated that he’d welcome the challenge of helping to elevate the Grizzlies on one his most recent Twitter postings.

“Memphis is a place that I would love to play. The Grizzlies have good young players with a great upside,” Iverson wrote. “I love the city of Memphis too. I would lead by example. I could show how important it is to work hard everyday, play the game the right way, & just like it's your last!”

NBA training camps begin in three weeks.

********************

Iverson meets with Grizzlies officials (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AraUJaQA.OlTmXX5sEdMBYa8vLYF?slug=mc-iversongrizzlies090709&prov=yhoo&type=lgns)
By Marc J. Spears

Memphis Grizzlies officials met with Allen Iverson on Monday in Atlanta, but have yet to reach agreement on a contract with the free-agent guard, sources with knowledge of the meeting said.

Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley, coach Lionel Hollins and general manager Chris Wallace attended the meeting. The source said there isn’t a timetable for Iverson to make his decision.

The Grizzlies have offered a one-year, $3.5 million dollar contract that could potentially be pushed to more than $4 million if the rights to guard Juan Carlos Navarro are renounced. While Iverson would like to be reunited with his former coach, Larry Brown, in Charlotte, the Bobcats have expressed only mild interest in him, given the franchise’s financial restraints. For now, Memphis appears to be Iverson’s only strong option to return to the NBA.

According to comments attributed to him on his Twitter page on Sunday, Iverson said he was looking forward to meeting with Heisley. “I want to help them develop a winner,” Iverson’s most recent tweet said.

Despite Iverson’s preference to start, the Grizzlies would likely try to bring him off the bench while starting Michael Conley and O.J. Mayo in the backcourt. Hollins doesn’t want to slow the development of Conley and Mayo, the source said. The Grizzlies hope that adding Iverson would boost ticket sales and their profile.

Iverson averaged a career-low 17.4 points in 54 games last season with Detroit. He was upset when the Pistons’ then-coach Michael Curry tried to bring him off the bench late in the season after initially promising him he’d remain a starter.

[benefactor]

I would lead by example. I could show how important it is to work hard everyday
Practice too?

[Culburn369]

He'll show his ass once he gets signed & settled.

[dirk4mvp]

With what Memphis has been going through, dumping away star players and signing bozo ones.. (I remember the Gasol-Williams-Posey-Swift-Miller Grizz).. this trade could actually be helpful. Not to help them necessarily be better on the long run.. but to make them at least appear to be a team trying to be competitive.

Signing Iverson would not help the Grizzlies at all in any way. As it is now, Mayo is much better than Iverson and all he's gonna do is take shots away from the Juiceman.

[bdictjames]

Signing Iverson would not help the Grizzlies at all in any way. As it is now, Mayo is much better than Iverson and all he's gonna do is take shots away from the Juiceman.
Mayo will play the point. I think the whole team would comfortable as long as they are winning more games than last season.

[23LeBronJames23]

We talkin bout practice???

[Kai]

We talkin bout practice???

never heard that one before.

[Chieflion]

Mayo will play the point. I think the whole team would comfortable as long as they are winning more games than last season.
Poor Michael Conley after he improved. Now he is going to be relegated again.

[ata]

He'd be a starter.. be the most dominant guy in the league. He should go for it.
He will be all that even 5 years from now at 39, so why hurry

[Sdayi135]

Iverson tweet: He's going to Memphis (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4457772)

Allen Iverson announced Wednesday morning that he is indeed joining the Memphis Grizzlies.

Via his Twitter feed, Iverson wrote: "God Chose Memphis as the place that I will continue my career."

Referring to a Monday meeting with Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley, general manager Chris Wallace and head coach Lionel Hollins, Iverson added: "I feel that they are committed to developing a winner and I know that I can help them to accomplish that. I feel that I can trust them."

The Grizzlies are believed to be offering Iverson a one-year deal for $3.5 million, which is far less than the nearly $21 million he earned last season in Denver and Detroit but far more than anyone else was prepared to pay the 34-year-old.

Grizzlies officials did not immediately confirm the signing but have made it clear that they have merely been waiting since last week for Iverson to take their offer.

Marc Stein is the senior NBA writer for ESPN.com.

[Culburn369]

I hope he continues to fall flat on his tats.