alamo50
05-17-2005, 11:36 AM
76er has let it be known that he's potential trouble
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/apmegasports/dtp11004270246.hmedium.jpg
Duane Burleson / AP
Apparently Chris Webber, right, is unhappy playing with the 76ers’ Allen Iverson, left. The 76ers should trade Webber to the Lakers so he can see what it's like trying to play with Kobe Bryant, suggests columnist Michael Ventre.
COMMENTARY
By Michael Ventre
NBCSports.com contributor
Updated: 11:51 a.m. ET May 17, 2005
In a 1925 interview with Vanity Fair, W.C. Fields proposed that his epitaph would someday read, “On the whole, I’d rather be in Philadelphia,” suggesting the grave would be the one place he deemed less preferable than the city of his birth.
It seems Chris Webber likes Philly even less. And fans there may write his epitaph for him.
On Feb. 23, Webber was traded from the Sacramento Kings to the 76ers in a ground-shaking six-player deal. Last weekend, the New York Daily News reported that shortly after the Sixers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Detroit Pistons on May 3, Webber told “several close friends” that playing with Allen Iverson was making him cuckoo. He also supposedly told one friend, “I’d take a pay cut to get out of there.”
On Monday, Webber quickly spun the story with this statement: “It’s a lie. There’s no way it is true. I have no issue with Allen Iverson and I look forward to next season and building a championship team.”
In case you haven’t been keeping up, there have been a few problems in journalism lately with anonymous sources, including the Newsweek flap over an item about alleged desecration of the Quran, which set off deadly protests. Webber no doubt is aware of this, and is cognizant of the passion with which Philly fans bring to their relationships with the home teams, hence his quick and definitive denial.
But the damage is done.
I was a bit shocked when Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards announced their sudden divorce. But this doesn’t surprise me.
The trade was a noble try by the Sixers, a genuine effort to create some separation in the Atlantic Division between themselves and the Boston Celtics. But if they keep Webber around, he’s really going to go mental, and that would be insane.
In this one, I side with Iverson.
I don’t say this easily. I haven’t always been the biggest Iverson cheerleader. Generally, I agree with Webber’s complaints that Iverson handles the ball too much and his game is too self-centered.
Also, Iverson had lobbied Sixers president Billy King to get him some help. Indeed, King reported after the trade that Iverson was “ecstatic” to have Webber in Philly finery. So Iverson bears some responsibility for not making this work.
But Allen is who he is. In Philadelphia, he’s an institution, although the partisans don’t seem to be as firmly in his corner after nine seasons and only one NBA finals appearance as they once were. Still, he’s their hero, a scrappy street urchin who opens a vein every time he takes the court. His appetite for victory is voracious.
Whereas Iverson has been with one team since he entered the league in 1996, Webber is with his fourth NBA club in 12 seasons. He was traded from Golden State to Washington after one-plus seasons because he couldn’t get along with coach Don Nelson. He was traded from Washington to Sacramento after four campaigns, during which he was stopped in his Lincoln Navigator and charged with assault, resisting arrest, possession of marijuana, driving under the influence of marijuana and five other traffic-related violations, and in a separate incident accused of sexual assault along with then-teammate Juwon Howard.
While in Sacramento, he was cited once for reckless driving, after which he told the Sacramento Bee: “If Sacramento troubles me about a ticket, they will lose a nice person in the community.” Webber also faced a charge of perjury involving an investigation into former University of Michigan booster Ed Martin; Webber eventually pleaded to a lesser charge. He also was involved in a much-publicized tiff with teammate Peja Stojakovic, which was said to have hastened his departure from the Kings.
Now this.
Webber’s often amiable exterior camouflages a cunning mind. He knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s done it before. He’ll let information seep out through intermediaries, then he’ll issue heated denials to protect himself. Meanwhile, his message is delivered.
Although Webber is 32 and his body seems to be feeling the effects of all those futile seasons, he is still immensely talented and would be an asset to the right team. In 21 games with Philadelphia, Webber averaged 15.6 points, 7.8 boards and 3.1 assists. But it would have to be the exact right team, one that coddles him, caters to his desires and makes him its No. 1 star. In Sacramento, Webber was No. 2 to Mike Bibby, but Bibby passed the ball a lot more than Iverson. In Philly, Webber will never be happy feeding on Iverson's table scraps.
The problem now is that the Sixers are unlikely to pawn off their disgruntled power forward on another team. Webber is due to make $63 million over the next three seasons. I would suggest the Sixers send him to the Lakers for Brian Grant and a throw-in, but in the giving department, Iverson is Mahatma Gandhi compared to Kobe Bryant.
The ball is now in King’s court. He has a problem on his hands. Webber just notified him of such. Webber has made it known he hasn’t changed, that he is dedicated to doing what’s best for himself, and right now that doesn’t include sharing the basketball with Iverson.
But unintentionally Webber has also sent an alert to any club that tries to acquire him. He’s telling all potential employers of his own potential to create trouble.
If they’ve been paying attention, they already know that.
Michael Ventre writes regularly for NBCSports.com and is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles.
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/apmegasports/dtp11004270246.hmedium.jpg
Duane Burleson / AP
Apparently Chris Webber, right, is unhappy playing with the 76ers’ Allen Iverson, left. The 76ers should trade Webber to the Lakers so he can see what it's like trying to play with Kobe Bryant, suggests columnist Michael Ventre.
COMMENTARY
By Michael Ventre
NBCSports.com contributor
Updated: 11:51 a.m. ET May 17, 2005
In a 1925 interview with Vanity Fair, W.C. Fields proposed that his epitaph would someday read, “On the whole, I’d rather be in Philadelphia,” suggesting the grave would be the one place he deemed less preferable than the city of his birth.
It seems Chris Webber likes Philly even less. And fans there may write his epitaph for him.
On Feb. 23, Webber was traded from the Sacramento Kings to the 76ers in a ground-shaking six-player deal. Last weekend, the New York Daily News reported that shortly after the Sixers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Detroit Pistons on May 3, Webber told “several close friends” that playing with Allen Iverson was making him cuckoo. He also supposedly told one friend, “I’d take a pay cut to get out of there.”
On Monday, Webber quickly spun the story with this statement: “It’s a lie. There’s no way it is true. I have no issue with Allen Iverson and I look forward to next season and building a championship team.”
In case you haven’t been keeping up, there have been a few problems in journalism lately with anonymous sources, including the Newsweek flap over an item about alleged desecration of the Quran, which set off deadly protests. Webber no doubt is aware of this, and is cognizant of the passion with which Philly fans bring to their relationships with the home teams, hence his quick and definitive denial.
But the damage is done.
I was a bit shocked when Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards announced their sudden divorce. But this doesn’t surprise me.
The trade was a noble try by the Sixers, a genuine effort to create some separation in the Atlantic Division between themselves and the Boston Celtics. But if they keep Webber around, he’s really going to go mental, and that would be insane.
In this one, I side with Iverson.
I don’t say this easily. I haven’t always been the biggest Iverson cheerleader. Generally, I agree with Webber’s complaints that Iverson handles the ball too much and his game is too self-centered.
Also, Iverson had lobbied Sixers president Billy King to get him some help. Indeed, King reported after the trade that Iverson was “ecstatic” to have Webber in Philly finery. So Iverson bears some responsibility for not making this work.
But Allen is who he is. In Philadelphia, he’s an institution, although the partisans don’t seem to be as firmly in his corner after nine seasons and only one NBA finals appearance as they once were. Still, he’s their hero, a scrappy street urchin who opens a vein every time he takes the court. His appetite for victory is voracious.
Whereas Iverson has been with one team since he entered the league in 1996, Webber is with his fourth NBA club in 12 seasons. He was traded from Golden State to Washington after one-plus seasons because he couldn’t get along with coach Don Nelson. He was traded from Washington to Sacramento after four campaigns, during which he was stopped in his Lincoln Navigator and charged with assault, resisting arrest, possession of marijuana, driving under the influence of marijuana and five other traffic-related violations, and in a separate incident accused of sexual assault along with then-teammate Juwon Howard.
While in Sacramento, he was cited once for reckless driving, after which he told the Sacramento Bee: “If Sacramento troubles me about a ticket, they will lose a nice person in the community.” Webber also faced a charge of perjury involving an investigation into former University of Michigan booster Ed Martin; Webber eventually pleaded to a lesser charge. He also was involved in a much-publicized tiff with teammate Peja Stojakovic, which was said to have hastened his departure from the Kings.
Now this.
Webber’s often amiable exterior camouflages a cunning mind. He knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s done it before. He’ll let information seep out through intermediaries, then he’ll issue heated denials to protect himself. Meanwhile, his message is delivered.
Although Webber is 32 and his body seems to be feeling the effects of all those futile seasons, he is still immensely talented and would be an asset to the right team. In 21 games with Philadelphia, Webber averaged 15.6 points, 7.8 boards and 3.1 assists. But it would have to be the exact right team, one that coddles him, caters to his desires and makes him its No. 1 star. In Sacramento, Webber was No. 2 to Mike Bibby, but Bibby passed the ball a lot more than Iverson. In Philly, Webber will never be happy feeding on Iverson's table scraps.
The problem now is that the Sixers are unlikely to pawn off their disgruntled power forward on another team. Webber is due to make $63 million over the next three seasons. I would suggest the Sixers send him to the Lakers for Brian Grant and a throw-in, but in the giving department, Iverson is Mahatma Gandhi compared to Kobe Bryant.
The ball is now in King’s court. He has a problem on his hands. Webber just notified him of such. Webber has made it known he hasn’t changed, that he is dedicated to doing what’s best for himself, and right now that doesn’t include sharing the basketball with Iverson.
But unintentionally Webber has also sent an alert to any club that tries to acquire him. He’s telling all potential employers of his own potential to create trouble.
If they’ve been paying attention, they already know that.
Michael Ventre writes regularly for NBCSports.com and is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles.