Coach2626's Blog

Pat Riley needs to take a serious look at Allen Iverson, and fast.

So far, the Miami Heat have been bystanders, lazily watching the rest of the Eastern Conference get better.

The Celtics will certainly be better if they end up acquiring Rasheed Wallace, which looks very possible.

The Pistons now have Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva, showing that the organization is at least taking some steps towards rebuilding.

Orlando gets a mixed rating from me, even after acquiring Vince Carter, because I believe the loss of Hedo Turkoglu and there back up big man Gortat will be too much to expect another run deep into the playoffs. But still, they plugged a hole, have a marquee player, and are at least trying to get better.

Shaq is now playing alongside King James in Cleveland. While I may not be a big Shaq fan, the move does add another dimension to the team, and they are now better.

And Miami? They are about as quiet as a feather hitting the ground. Are those tumbleweeds I see?

It leaked today that they at least have a “small interest” in A.I., but here is why they need to get aggressive and pull the trigger on Iverson.

1. They need a veteran point guard with playoff experience. I like what Mario Chalmers brings to the team, but at best, Chalmers should be coming off of the bench as a nice defensive change of pace at guard. Ill take A.I’s consistent 17-20 points and 6 assists over Chalmers’ shaky 10 and 5.
2. Not only will it appear that they want to win now, which will help keep Dwyane Wade around, but he will take a lot of pressure off of him in the backcourt. Iverson’s career 27 points per game would mean a lot less work and pressure for Dwayne Wade, keeping him fresh.
3. Star Power. He may be 34, but Allen Iverson is still a household name, and still has at least 2 or three solid years left in him. He will no doubt bring more electricity to the arena, and sell a ton of jerseys.
4. Like stated before, while everyone else in the East is getting deeper and more talented, the Heat are doing nothing but watch. And for a team that most likely overachieved last year, watching is just not going to be good enough.

For the doubters who say he has too much baggage, I say it’s a thing of the past. Iverson has been relatively quiet the past few years, and has definitely shown he can be more of a team player, like he showed us in Detroit last year.

What do you say, Riley? The ball is in your court. Do you pass, or do you shoot and score?

What does everyone else think?