Call him what you like, he's no dummy For the record, I'll state that I believe Allen Iverson did indeed author the apology issued yesterday about the controversial lyrics from his upcoming album. I'll even say I believe he is sincere when he says he didn't mean to offend anyone by writing a song that encourages misogyny, gay bashing, violence, murder and other forms of miscellaneous mayhem. Now what does all that mean? Well, today, Iverson's apology means everything. But as far as tomorrow, who knows? That's the way things work in the world of Allen Iverson. Yesterday was yesterday. Today is today. Tomorrow will be tomorrow. And there's no guarantee anything can flow through with any degree of continuous certainty. What was yesterday, might not be today. And what is today, most definitely might not be tomorrow or the day after that or the week after that. Iverson doesn't just march to a different drummer. He marches to his own percussion section. By now everyone should have figured out that in his mind, this is his world, and we're all less than squirrels trying to find a proverbial acorn. Allen Iverson is who he is. If you understand him, fine. If you don't understand him, that can also be fine - as long as you accept that and stop trying to figure out when or if this guy is going to change. The Answer's answer to that question has always been when or if it damn well pleases him to change. Save your breath. Save your energy. Save your prayers. No amount of cursing, moaning, consoling, praying, begging or anything else is going to speed that process - if indeed there is a process to occur. A.I. might have the basketball skills to become another Julius Erving or Michael Jordan, but those comparisons will have to end on the court. Off the court, Iverson is never going to be mainstream. He's never going to be "safe." He's never going to be what most 76ers fans want him to be. That's not what he chooses to be, and as an American citizen, that's his right. The comical thing is a lot of people think Iverson is stupid. They say that if he would just do X, Y and Z, he would be acceptable, that Madison Avenue wouldn't be terrified of him. Iverson is far from stupid. Stupid people don't get to where he is after coming from where he's been. If it's a choice between Iverson being really dumb or really smart, I'll go with the latter. Iverson tried it our way, remember. He came into the NBA looking for a clean slate and a fresh start. He was denied both. Not only does Iverson know who he is, he knows what the rest of the world believes him to be. And in an artificial world where the proper manipulation of talent, style and perception - not necessarily in that order - is the key to moving to the next rung up the ladder, those are the two most important things you can know. Iverson knows where he fits in and with whom he fits in. As he's always saying, there are going to be a million people who love Allen Iverson and a million people who hate him. Iverson has just stopped sweating over what the million who hate him think. Being an anti-hero is only viewed as bad by that percentage of the population against which you're rebelling. To the other people, the ones Iverson is marketing himself to, there's not a thing wrong with his being an authority-defying, hip-hop, mad-balling, novice gangsta rapper. Now, that might not be as big an overall audience as a Grant Hill or Kobe Bryant might be able to reach, but it has allowed Iverson to get what he wants while staying the person he wants to be. I'm not a gangsta-rap fan; never have been, never will be. I don't get it. I don't identify with it. I was never going to buy a Jewelz - a/k/a Allen Iverson - debut album anyway. So conversely, why would Iverson put a single thought into what I was going to think about the lyrics of his songs? All he had to do was look at the top of the record charts and see how albums by thug-rappers like Eminem, Dr. Dre and the rest of the lot that have gone platinum and double-platinum to know his type of lyrics has a track record for success. Frankly, Iverson and his record label couldn't have paid enough for the type of free publicity his album has received over the last few days. Negative publicity from the mainstream is preferable in the world of over-the-edge music. Here's what the situation boils down to: Allen Iverson isn't the white-bread, squeaky-clean, milk-drinking sports icon you want him to be. He told you from the beginning that he wasn't. What terrifies you is that so many of your children idolize him. Be like Mike, sure. Be like A.I., call out the National Guard. Without a doubt he should recognize that he is a role model to kids. But that doesn't mean it's his job to ease your responsibilities as parents. If you don't like the image Iverson puts out there, you have to do a better job of making sure your kids don't buy into it, because Iverson isn't likely to undergo any drastic makeovers any time soon. He's 25 and going into his fifth year in the league. For those who keep saying he just needs to grow up, here's a secret: He is grown up. Allen Iverson is who he is. It's who he choses to be. It's who he was yesterday. It's probably who he's going to be tomorrow. The day after that, who knows?		Author John Smallwood   Source Daily News   Return to Articles