There's obvious goodness in Iverson Don't expect Allen Iverson to do any of those "image is everything" commercials any time soon or to completely accept the NBA's explanation as to why the premier scoring guard in the league couldn't make the cut for the U.S. Olympic team. Philadelphians shouldn't accept the explanation, either. Or assume that the league has ever bothered to look past Iverson's cornrows, baggy pants or fierce attachment to his friends, his family, and his generation or its trappings and trends. What Philadelphia basketball fans should do is demand that the league follow their lead and think less about façade and more about substance. If we know anything about Iverson, it is that he will never be confused with Michael Jordan, the poster child for the GQ generation. That is his choice, his prerogative, this consistently stubborn declaration of independence from the royal court left behind by His Airness. Such acts of rebellion can cost. Ask Isiah Thomas, who was shunned in similar fashion when a similar Dream Team somehow couldn't find room for him. But isn't it time for the NBA to stop ignoring Dream Team candidates because of cliques or, in Iverson's case, because a candidate marches to a different drummer? The NBA, with it's "Anyone but Iverson" posture during its search for a successor to Jordan, should take time to learn what Philadelphia has learned. Iverson may not be as polished as Jordan. He may not always hit the right notes. And at times, he has the ability to drive his coach, Larry Brown, to distraction or keep 76ers owner, Pat Croce, working overtime as counselor. But all of that is outweighed by Iverson's undeniable attributes. Iverson is a tireless worker who always comes back stronger from whatever tribulations he suffers or creates. One day, he may fire a shot across Brown's bow, but, guaranteed, the next, he rights the wrong sincerely, his mea culpas so heartfelt they are impossible for Brown, the Sixers or the city to reject. Iverson has also never done the one thing that many of the parents in his audience - including this one - nervously assumed he would and could when he entered our midst as an unpolished gem. He has never corrupted our kids. Instead, he has been a tireless pied piper, appealing to the youth of this city unlike any other athlete in recent memory. The appeal is undeniable and goes way beyond a wardrobe most kids would raid if possible. Kids have a window into Iverson's soul that remains opaque to many adults. They sense not only his energy but also his honesty. They appreciate his refusal to step away from the child within or the children who flock to him. They admire his refusal to mimic the so-called mainstream society, which had proven so hypocritical toward Iverson before he came to his fame and fortune. Iverson also speaks to a generation that may be the first in America to cross over social and cultural lines without a second's thought, doing so as neatly as Iverson crosses over on his dribble. Middle America may not want to acknowledge it, but Michael Jordan isn't the only NBA icon who could walk into any high school in this nation, whether it be in downtown Washington, or the outskirts of Boise, Idaho, and suffer nothing in the translation. Iverson can, too, and maybe reach out to the students in ways other than through their wallets. Yes, Iverson talks about the magic of seeing kids wearing his sneakers. Such comments first alarmed me, but I now see that he is not a calculating mercenary, but that he represents the American dream, a dream he never dared dream himself. I believe this is what the kids see when they look at Iverson. This is what I believe adults and the league still have trouble comprehending. Thus the distance between Iverson and the flag-wavers. Thus the excuses that wouldn't have stood for a second if a leading scorer named Jordan had faced a logjam at his position come cutdown time. Thus the presence of some questionable characters who just happen to wear fancier garb than Iverson. Too bad. Because Iverson was absolutely right when he chose to draw a distinction between himself and that widely accepted Olympian of yore, Charles Barkley, when he pointed out that he had never spit at a fan or thrown a bar patron through a plate-glass window. He never passed on the proposition that he should try to be a good role model. Olympic team guards Tim Hardaway, Gary Payton, Jason Kidd, Allan Houston, Steve Smith and Ray Allen, as well as Dream Teammates Kevin Garnett, Vin Baker, Tim Duncan, Tom Gugliotta, Alonzo Mourning and Grant Hill haven't eschewed the responsibilities, either. They just don't seem to have as much difficulty proving they belong as Iverson and, for that reason, the NBA must decide whether its house and its heart are truly open to one not so easy to pigeonhole. "The Answer" deserves an answer for being left out other than that his league couldn't simply spare the minutes or the roster spot needed to make him truly feel a part of its most welcome elite.		Author Claire Smith   Source Inquirer   Return to Articles