by Marcel Mutoni / @marcel_mutoni
In the last week, all indications seemed to point to Allen Iverson becoming a New York Knickerbocker. Donnie Walsh was said to be on the verge of pulling the trigger on the deal … and then, nothing.
According to several reports this morning, the Knicks have decided not to pursue The Answer. Which means that Allen is still an unrestricted free agent, without a team.
The NY Times has the details:
In an abrupt reversal, Knicks officials decided late Thursday not to offer Iverson a contract, putting an end to their brief flirtation, according to a person close to the deliberations. Although team officials were highly intrigued by Iverson, a four-time scoring champion, they finally decided that he posed too great a risk because of his long history of problems on and off the court.
Team officials spent three days weighing the potential merits and pitfalls of signing Iverson, and alternately talked themselves into and then out of making the move … By Thursday afternoon it appeared that the Knicks were fully committed to taking the gamble, with one person close to the team saying there was a 90 percent chance that Iverson would become a Knick. But team officials held one more discussion on the matter Thursday evening and decided to drop it, according to the person close to the deliberations.
Man, if even the Knicks (a team that has a total of two wins so far this season, and one of the most dysfunctional sports franchises in recent history) think you’re too big of a gamble to take, it might be time to re-evaluate things.
The sad saga of Allen Iverson continues, with no happy ending in sight.
