With the snow piling up and holiday lights blinking up and down the block, many of us are probably thinking about Santa Claus. But for fans of the Denver Nuggets, excitement is building over another man coming to town for the holidays.
Allen Iverson, a seven-time NBA all-star, will join the Nuggets on the court Friday night. It’s an irresistible gift for Colorado basketball fans, and perhaps perfect timing for a franchise that just this week suffered a bruising blow to its reputation and lineup.
The trade for Iverson is Denver basketball’s version of the 1983 football trade for John Elway or the 1996 hockey trade for Patrick Roy. We don’t know if it will lead to similar championship results, but it is an impressive commitment by the Nuggets’ leadership. Denver had some success in the old ABA but hasn’t won a league title since joining the NBA in 1976.
Owner Stan Kroenke’s investment comes to about $60 million over three years. We’re confident he’ll receive a sizeable return – with the ink still wet on the trade, the Nuggets sold an extra 340 season ticket packages on Tuesday and hope to sell 3,000 more in the next 10 days.
Less certain is whether the addition of Iverson will spark a string of victories or upset the team’s chemistry. Iverson is currently the NBA’s second-leading scorer behind the Nuggets’ Carmelo Anthony. Is Denver big enough for two scoring superstars?
Iverson has fashioned himself as sort of an anti-hero. His “nose for controversy is exceeded only by his penchant for putting points on the scoreboard,” is the way one Post writer put it. Some consider Iverson a “missed business opportunity” since he hasn’t been a darling of advertisers, like Michael Jordan and LeBron James have been.
Iverson has butted heads with some of us his coaches for his disinterest in practice, but he has offset that by working as hard as anyone during the games. Nuggets coach George Karl expects they’ll get along swimmingly.
“I told A.I. I don’t have a problem with somebody who plays hard,” Karl said. “I might yell at you in practice or get on you for practicing, but if you come at 7:30 and bring it every day at 7:30, I’m probably going to be nice to you. It’s the guys that don’t bring it that I get frustrated with who cheat the game or the team.”
Iverson’s arrival caps a tumultuous week for the Nuggets, coming just days after Anthony was suspended for 15 games for throwing a punch during a brawl with the New York Knicks. It will be early next year before the Anthony and Iverson will be on the court together. A.I. will have to make some major adjustments in Denver. How he works with Melo and Coach Karl, two major personalities, may well dictate the Nuggets’ success this year and into the future.
Anthony, Iverson and Karl. Will they be naughty or nice? It’s a holiday season of wonder for the Nuggets and their fans.
