Sports Betting Professor Review

As the boss says, we’re here to tell the truth.  That’s important because the knives are out for Allen Iverson, as they’ve always been, except that this time he’s finally ripe for the pickings.  The media has hated him from day one, largely because they couldn’t understand him, couldn’t find a way to relate to him or his life story, and because he made it clear that he didn’t give a damn what they thought about him.  And as I’ve said before, the worst thing you can do the media is act like you don’t need them.  It punctures their sense of importance, their idea that they and only they can make or break stars and careers.  When you put them in a box, like Tiger Woods did, or tell them where they can go, like Barry Bonds, they become petulant little children.  And before long they’ll throw a tantrum.

Well, tantrum time may be coming soon. The allegations that he has serious drinking and gambling problems, along with the facts that his wife has filed for divorce and he’s out for the rest of the season, has lined up the ultimate I told you so opportunity for all the haters.  You know who I’m talking about; the people who always find some negative spin to put on anything Allen does.  When you tell them that Bill Russell hated practice, they tell you they don’t believe that.  When you tell that Allen has no problem passing the ball when surrounded with the right people, they tell you that he had no choice but to pass it then.  Mention his real patriotism during the 2004 Olympics, and all you hear about is ‘yeah, but they only got the Bronze medal and it was all his fault’. And if you really press them, they finally fess up that they just don’t like him.

Well now is their big chance, and it’s up to us to be different.  I don’t condone anything Allen may have done that’s clearly wrong.  Any crimes, any marital infidelity, any incidents that could have been avoided.  None of that.  But I do demand that people tell the truth, and be fair in their criticisms.  Don’t try to connect his issues now with his ‘we talkin practice’ rant, or his propensity to take 20-plus shots a night.  They’re not related.  Don’t try to paint him as a train wreck waiting to happen while you say that Ben Roethlisberger just needs to grow up.  Don’t act like 2001 never happened, or act like Allen had an All-Star team around him but insisted on taking 30 shots a game.

My stance on Allen Iverson has evolved over the years.  I was once a card carrying member of the haters, but now I come off like an apologist to some people.  That’s not because I have any personal connection to Allen, but because I couldn’t stand people making fraudulent arguments about him.  When I saw and heard his interviews during the 2004 Olympics, about how proud he was to play for his country, and then heard and read nothing but rehashes of ‘we talking practice’ from two years earlier, I couldn’t ride with the haters anymore.  When I looked at his support and saw the likes of Keith Van Horn, a washed up Derrick Coleman, a washed up Glenn Robinson, Eric Snow, George Lynch, Aaron McKie, and Tyrone Hill, I couldn’t act like he was playing with the 1987 Lakers.  When I heard about how Bill Russell, the ultimate winner and ultimate championship teammate, hated practice, I couldn’t act like Allen hating practice was different.

So here’s where we are now, folks.  We can buy into the crap that’s about to come, or we can get the facts and accept them for what they are.  But until we get the chance to do that, let’s not pile on.  The man is in a bad way right now, which he has admitted.  Pray for him, and hope that he gets right and gets on with life.