關於 think like a man basketball players ，我們在網路上蒐集到這些相關的討論、資訊與評價

【A.I. FOREVER】在Youtube看到的一篇很長的comment，寫得非常詳細，從數據上比較其他偉大球星，檢視Iverson的職業生涯表現，給予他更公正的評價。

(by sportsmed77)

[+Kareem Elwakil Those other posters shouldn't have insulted you to make their points, but I think your arguments are extremely weak. The only thing you bring up is that AI's career FG% was 42% and that he jacked up "30 shots" to get his points. His FG% was technically 42.5% for his career (Tracy McGrady's was 43% and Kobe Bryant's was 45%, which really isn't that much higher relatively speaking by the way) and a lot of AI's missed shots had to do with the team he was playing on and how their offense was structured, his role on the team as the only scorer, etc. but I won't get into that. AI averaged about 21 shots per game for his career, by the way. Hardly the 30 shots per game you tried to give him credit for. AI led the NBA in scoring 4 times, and out of those for times, only twice did he also lead the league in field goal attempts (and not by much - plus he averaged more free throws than everyone else) so the argument that "if anyone shot as much as AI did, they would score as much too" clearly is not the case. In his prime, Tracy McGrady averaged about 23 shots per game, Kobe Bryant also about 23 shots per game, and AI also about 23 shots per game. AI, Kobe, and Jordan all had a season where they shot the ball 27 times per game. Per 36 minutes, AI only averaged 19 shots per game for his career (keep in mind, AI played more minutes than anyone else each game during his era). Michael Jordan averaged 23 shots per game for his entire career. For his career, Jerry West averaged 20 shots per game and in his prime, it was about 22 shots per game. Before Lebron James got there, Dwayne Wade was averaging between 20 and 22 shots per game for a few seasons because he was the go-to option. You know what all of these players have in common with AI? They were all SHOOTING GUARDS and the go-to option! They were supposed to shoot! Some SGs are volume shooters who slash and get to the free throw line. Some of them have lower FG% but still are productive for their teams. Other SGs have a higher efficiency, but a player's FG% really depends on a number of factors you haven't even taken into consideration.

To reiterate this point, for most of AI's career, he was a SHOOTING GUARD. I hate when people compare him to point guards and then act like he was worse than them because he didn't play like a PG. It is ridiculous because it is like comparing apples with oranges. By the way, you brought up Jason Kidd and how he was so much "better" than AI. Did you know Jason Kidd's career FG% is 40%? He had 10 seasons where he shot below 40% for the season. AI only shot below 40% for 1.5 seasons and his career FG% is higher than J-Kidd's. J-Kidd averaged 12 PPG for his career and only 2.8 free throw attempts. AI averages about 27 PPG for his career. So just as you can say J-Kidd was a way better passer than AI, I can say AI was a way better scorer than J-Kidd. They had different roles and they excelled in their roles. Jason's job was to pass, and AI's job was to create shots.

It is a myth that AI was not a good passer. AI averaged 6.2 assists per game for his career. That is good for a SG - more than Kobe, more than MJ, more than Vince Carter, more than Tracy McGrady, more than Wade, etc. AI had about 5 or 6 seasons where he averaged between 7 and 8 assists per game while still scoring 26+ points. It is impressive. He had an entire season where he averaged 33 PPG and 7.4 APG with 2 steals on 45% shooting and a TS% of over 54%, and people like you try to say he was just "okay at best"? AI had a unique style, especially for his size and was probably one of the top 5 most exciting players to watch. To say he was not "that good" shows that you likely saw very few AI games. I would say AI is a top 20-30 player all-time. Anyone who actually saw, for example, his 2001 play-offs and regular season run, would know that he was amazing and did so much for that team and if someone looks at the stat box, they will not get the actual story. You had to have seen the games with your own eyes. With AI, stats have always been misleading. I also want to point out that AI's True Shooting % (TS%) is slightly higher than Isiah "Zeke" Thomas and is pretty decent (at about 52%). He had a couple of seasons in Denver where his TS% was almost 57%. TS% is a much more accurate depiction of someone's accuracy when shooting. You know why? Because it takes into account free throws among other factors. AI is one of the greatest players of all-time at getting to the free throw line, and unlike Lebron James and many others, he didn't flop to do it. He was legitimately fouled, hurt, and referees even admitted to conspiring against him and purposely not calling fouls on players who fouled him when they should have. Yet AI is still 10th all-time in free throws made. He was a slashing, fearless guard with incredible talent and an ability to create shots for himself that very few other players have been able to do. His style of play is more comparable to Kobe Bryant or Tracy McGrady (Kobe had a better career, but in AI's prime there were seasons where they were almost equally good). Yet he is 160 lbs. soaking wet so he is an anomoly because small players aren't supposed to be able to do what he does. The two years AI's shooting percentage was the lowest in Philly, he had just come off of a serious elbow surgery (2001-2002) and had played with a broken hand another season. You put so much emphasis on his accuracy those seasons, but what about his heart? How many players would play with the injuries he had? I guarantee you not many. Even while in Denver, Carmelo said AI was playing with a broken finger the entire season. In the 2001 play-offs by the end of the 2nd round, AI had 7 injuries (serious elbow bursitis, knee bursitis, dislocated shoulder, sprained thumb, hip pointer, bruised tailbown, and twisted ankle). Yet he played, and he played his heart out contributing to his team in other ways even when he couldn't find his shooting rhythm due to the pain he was in. I watched every game he played in back then (even taped them so I could immitate some of his moves since I played ball). I would know.

I am definitely convinced that anyone who claims Iverson was an "extremely poor shooter" either did not watch him play or knows a lot less about basketball than they think they know. AI was not a poor shooter. He took incredibly difficult shots - often times while double and triple teamed, and given that he was smaller than everyone else, it is incredible that he still made some of them. He was a shot creator. He was immensely creative. Larry Brown even used to sit on the sidelines and call out to AI to shoot the ball more and create shots. Even George Karl in Denver once told AI to shoot the ball more, stop being so UNSELFISH, and take over games the way he used to in Philly. Unfortunately the media doesn't like to talk about that. Not one of AI's teammates thought he was selfish. I have seen very few players who are as loved and respected by his former teammates and former peers as AI. The amount of love he gets from everyone from Dr. J, Maurice Cheeks, Moses Malone, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Aaron McKie, Eric Snow, Theo Ratliff, Dikembe Mutombo, Chris Webber, Kyle Korver, Chris Paul, James Harden, Larry Brown, Paul Pierce, John Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Larry Hughes, Bill Walton, Rip Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, Shawn Marion, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaquille O'Neal, etc. etc. etc. I can go on and on. Many of these very players have called AI "pound for pound the greatest." I have seen very few players get so much love and adoration by their peers. I was at AI's jersey retirement and heard what so many players around the league past and present had to say about him and it was just insane. I also have never heard one of AI's former teammates call him a bad teammate. They loved him and loved playing with him. It is the media that tries to paint that picture, but his peers and former teammates paint a completely different picture.

What the media says is a myth. AI's former coaches and teammates and peers adore him. In 2001, AI had the most first place MVP votes in history (tied with Shaq) and became the smallest player to ever win the MVP award. You think he is overrated? I guarantee you the people who vote on MVP, the players, the coaching staff, etc. know far more about AI's contributions to the sport, how good he was, etc. than you do. He deserves what he got. Every accomplishment he achieved, he did it despite immense adversity. He is 7th All-Time in PPG, 4th All-Time in Minutes Played, 7th All-time in Steals, won 1st Team All-NBA multiple times... this man played with so much heart and believed in himself so much that you had to believe in him. This man is up there with MJ, Kobe, Wilt, and players of that caliber for most 40 and 50 point games in his career. I hate when people try to take away from his accomplishments rather than appreciating him for what he accomplished at his size and what he brought to the game. He is the reason I played basketball at all. He gave little people hope. He is a cultural icon. I really wish people would stop with the "AI is overrated" nonsense. If your peers think that highly of you to call you "pound for pound the greatest," then obviously you did something right. ]

#alleniverson #theanswer #ai3 #onlythestrongsurvive #sixers #76ers #bubbachuck #basketballneverstops

The Philadelphia 76ers never lost track of Vince Carter, but the Toronto Raptors did.

The 76ers held Carter scoreless for the first 10 minutes of the fourth quarter as they rallied for a 104-98 victory over the Raptors in their home opener.

Allen Iverson scored 24 points for Philadelphia, which defeated Toronto for the sixth straight time. But it was fellow guards Eric Snow and Aaron McKie and forward George Lynch who shut down the explosive Carter.

"We got it done and got stops when we needed to," Lynch said. "Everybody wants to see Vince do something spectacular. We're a defensive team and we don't want to see our teammates get embarrassed. We play well together, we help each other out and that's what it's going to take to win. We're not going to let somebody come in and have a big night against us. We just look out for one another."

Carter scored 25 points but just four in the final period, when the Raptors went scoreless for over five minutes. He did not score in the fourth quarter until making a tough drive with 1:45 left that cut the deficit to 93-89.

"Other people were scoring," Carter said. "You have to go the hot man. It's not all about me. It's a team thing."

Toronto never got any closer as Theo Ratliff and Iverson hit baskets and Philadelphia sank 7-of-8 free throws in the final minute to improve to 2-0. The Sixers were 7-of-12 from the line through three quarters and 12-of-16 in the final period.

Carter made his first six shots but was just 3-of-13 thereafter. In the fourth quarter, he was 1-of-6 as the Raptors could not get him untracked, instead going inside to Antonio Davis, who scored nine of his 18 points in the fourth quarter.

"They were in the penalty so that's just smart basketball," Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens said. "They were in the foul trouble and the penalty and Antonio delivered for us. I wanted to go at them and have the other guys be patient."

"The biggest thing right now is trying to understand each other down the stretch," Carter said. "Sometimes, we're trying to think for the other person, and we have a lot of mixups. In due time it will get better."

In addition to slowing down Carter, Snow scored 16 points, McKie added 11 and Lynch grabbed nine rebounds.

Tyrone Hill had 12 points and 10 rebounds and Toni Kukoc scored 11 off the bench for Philadelphia. Mark Jackson had 16 points and 12 assists and Kevin Willis scored 12 points for Toronto.

"I've always said that it's going to be better for the team if we get five of six guys involved," Kukoc said. "We are playing good basketball right now. It's early, but if we continue to play like this, it's going to be good for us."

"It's been a total team effort," Iverson said. "A lot of people have said that we can't win a championship unless I do it by myself. They hear stuff like that and feed off it. No one feels better than me seeing those guys do what they do on the court."

The Raptors cut a six-point deficit to 75-73 entering the fourth quarter and a jump hook by Willis gave them their first lead since the second quarter at 81-79 with 9:20 to play.

But Toronto went scoreless for the next 5:06, missing eight straight shots. Iverson and Hill each had two baskets in a 9-0 spurt that gave Philadelphia an 88-81 lead with 4:35 remaining.

"We had some really good shots and we missed them," Wilkens said. "We just could not make a shot in that one stretch. They were good shots and the ball just didn't go down for us."

Davis made three jumpers around two free throws by Iverson to pull Toronto within 90-87 with 2:57 left. But McKie answered with a three-point play 50 seconds later before Carter finally scored.

The Sixers shot 48 percent (41-of-85) and limited Toronto to 45 percent (39-of-86). They blocked 10 shots, five by center Theo Ratliff.

Carter came out on fire, scoring 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting in the first quarter. His 3-pointer gave Toronto a 31-21 lead late in the period.

Trailing 43-36, the Sixers went on a 16-2 burst that featured points from six players, including three from Nazr Mohammed. The reserve center played only in garbage time in Tuesday's 101-72 win at New York.

Snow's basket made it 52-45 with 2:16 left and Philadelphia held a 59-53 advantage at halftime.

"It was hard to keep the focus," Iverson said. "We went down a little bit, then we brought ourselves back up and were able to win the game. That's the most important thing, regardless of how sloppy the game was."

The mission was clear: Go to the NBA. Take over. Do so in a way that told the basketball world a new era had arrived.

If you were not a part of his inner circle, Allen Iverson didn't give a damn about you. The thing is, he was atypical in that he wanted you to know it, specifically because it was his way of saying he knew you would never give a damn about him anyway, no matter how much you smiled in his face.

His talent would make you care.

His performance would make you salivate.

His achievements would make you kneel.

All the way to the Hall of Fame, someday.

Iverson's story is not foreign, of course. It's similar to that of many players in today's NBA. Most are African-Americans. Most come from impoverished backgrounds. Almost all strive to elevate themselves to a level of greatness that has forced a global audience to pay attention, to emulate, then join.

Yet very few have ever impacted basketball like Iverson. No matter how hard they try.

"I always tell folks I played every game like it's my last," Iverson said earlier this week, in advance of his Hall of Fame induction on Friday. "And I meant that. But sometimes I don't think people realize what I mean when I say that. It's not just about playing so hard; it's why I played so hard. You know what I mean? It's what I wondered would happen to me if I didn't do it.

"You've got to know my history and how I truly feel to realize where I'm coming from."

But few will ever know. No matter how hard they try.

During to a career that would culminate with Iverson averaging 26.7 points per game, winning four scoring titles and one MVP -- at 6 feet, 165 pounds -- folks witnessed his heroics but barely knew the intimate challenges he faced.

Iverson knew being incarcerated, then granted clemency, wasn't a likable trait for Madison Avenue; that he wasn't the ideal spokesman for the NBA. Iverson knew a visibly polished Kobe Bryant was preferable to the tattoos, cornrows and street persona proudly worn on the sleeves, neck and elsewhere on this former All-American out of Georgetown.

But Iverson also knew everyone couldn't be Bryant or Michael Jordan. He knew that if MJ and Kobe -- and no one else -- were the standard, society wouldn't have a true depiction of NBA stars to come.

"I was 6 feet, so folks could relate to that," he once told me. "I was 165 pounds, so folks could relate to that. But I was also someone who wanted to be me, judged for what I do and who I am, instead of what you say I'm suppose to be. It's true that some [people] don't want to play the game, but a lot of dudes don't know how to. And even the ones that do, most ain't going to be accepted. So what about them?"

Even today that is still a legitimate question.

LeBron James has helped provide answers by showing you he can be a champion, pre-eminent role model and global icon, even if tattoos are draped all over his body. Steph Curry has proven as much, as well, by being a baby-faced, long-range assassin who, at 6-foot-3, looks like a regular dude instead of a Goliath of a man.

From Carmelo Anthony to Chris Paul to Dwyane Wade and beyond, players are speaking not just with their play on the court, but with their willingness to address issues off the court. And although Iverson is no innovator in that department, his willingness to express himself certainly made it easier for athletes to open up more in a day and age that's demanding it, not asking.

News broke that Pistons star Allen Iverson has cut off his trademark braids.

Of course, the Internet has since been abuzz with discussion of Iverson's new look.

Shaq went as far as calling it "cute" (an odd choice of words if you ask me).

So why is the media covering this story, showing video clips of Iverson's new look? Why are there some 20 blog posts on the subject, even though it happened just yesterday?

I can't answer all these questions. But I can tell you why I'm writing this particular article.



The Questions that Led to "The Answer"

Growing up in Philadelphia, my favorite sports were hockey, basketball and baseball.

The Sixers were and will always be my favorite team. As I was growing up, guys like Dr. J and Moses Malone were my heroes.

Then came Sir Charles Barkley. I definitely recognized his greatness, but never did I idolize him like Malone and Erving.

Then, those lean years for the Sixers came. If you're a Sixers fan, you'll know what I'm talking about.

Shawn Bradley and Reese Witherspoon were our "stars".

Oh wait, I have Reese confused with someone...

I have to be honest, it was tough to stick with the team through that era.

I stopped watching. Management and owners seemed to care less about putting a winning team on the court and more about the bottom line.

It was a bad period from 1992 to 1996.

I actually stopped caring, and I hate to say it, but a lot of other Philadelphians did too. If you think I'm exaggerating, ponder this fact:

The Sixers couldn't even sell out the Spectrum at the time, nor could they unload season tickets.

Then that fateful day came: the day Allen Iverson was drafted by the 76ers.

He may have not have won an NBA championship for Philly during his tenure here, but he did something no other star or player since Dr. J had done.

He reinvigorated the fan base and recaptured the love for the Sixers. He got the entire city to care again.

By his second year, Iverson had the whole town talking. It soon became popular again proclaim your fandom. Even people from other cities were wearing Iverson jerseys.



Then the celebs starting coming to Sixers games: I remember seeing Will Smith at the game after Thanksgiving Day in 1997, against the Lakers. The place was packed with a sell-out crowd, and you could feel the electricity.

AI had even put a disenchanted fan like me back into the Sixers' fold. He had made basketball in Philly exciting again.



The Questions Came with "The Answer"

Yet somewhere along the line, as the years passed, the love affair between Philly and Allen ended. Like so many other times with countless other players, the fickle fans of Philadelphia chased yet another star out of their city.

The list of such victims is as long as you can imagine.

Eric Lindros, Randall Cunningham, Moses Malone, Charles Barkley, more Phillies than I care to remember...sadly, Iverson became just one more on that list.

But I still thank the man for bringing me back to Sixers basketball.

What made Iverson so special at the time was he was different, from the cornrows to the tattoos to the extra-long shorts. Iverson was always true to himself.

I'm sure the corporate types of the NBA were having nightmares, but the fact of the matter is fans from all over the world embraced Iverson.

I got so tired of hearing statements like "he's a hoodlum" based solely upon his appearance. I'll tell you as a Caucasian that Iverson having cornrows and tattoos didn't make me think he was a thug. I hated that the media thought they could speak for others.

I remember having a Iverson poster up on my wall in 1997, when I was in college. I remember my best friend coming over and, noticing the poster, sarcastically saying:

"What, is Iverson your homeboy?"

"No," I replied, "Iverson is 'The Man'."

I can't imagine the prejudice Iverson faced through his life or because of his color and image. But I know just how stupid and prejudiced some people acted towards me for being a fan of his.

What I respected the most about Iverson was that he was true to himself and was loyal to his family and friends, even when the media was tearing him apart for his loyalty. He was the real deal on and off the court.

Even when Iverson got in trouble with the police here in Philly (some story of him looking for his wife and pulling a gun on someone at a door), I stood by him and never wavered.

I saw the big picture: So many people wanted a piece of him, hangers-on and people thinking they could make a quick buck at his expense. And I hated that the media used his image agaisnt him every time something bad happened in his personal life.