Disgruntled Iverson Leaves Grizzlies

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Iverson skips Clippers game


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Associated Press

LOS ANGELES -- Disgruntled Memphis guard Allen Iverson returned to his home in Atlanta after receiving permission to leave the team to attend to personal business.
Team owner Michael Heisley gave the four-time NBA scoring leader permission to skip the Grizzlies' game Saturday night against the Los Angeles Clippers following a 114-98 loss to the Lakers the night before.


Iverson
According to a team spokesman, Iverson participated in a walkthrough at the team's hotel in the morning and then hopped a flight in the afternoon after he and personal manager Gary Moore met with Heisley.
Iverson has played in three games since returning from a hamstring injury, averaging 12.3 points, 3.7 assists and 22.3 minutes. Coach Lionel Hollins spoke to him briefly before he left, but would not elaborate on the conversation.
"It's a personal issue that they asked for permission to go attend to," Hollins said. "It was granted, and it's indefinite. I have no other information."
Iverson played 21 minutes against the Lakers, making two of five shots and finishing with eight points and three assists. In the postgame dressing room, the 10-time All-Star reiterated his displeasure about coming off the bench for the first time in his 14-year career.

TrueHoop: A.I. Out?

Allen Iverson isn't thrilled about coming off the bench for the Grizzlies. But does that mean his time in Memphis is over? Blog


"It's something that I never did in my life, so obviously it's a big adjustment," he said. "I'm so tired of discussing that, talking about that, every single day. It's just not something that I want to discuss. That's something you've got to ask the coach. He makes all the decisions around here. Obviously, they signed me for a reason. They've been watching me play this game for 13 years, and they know what I do on the basketball court."
Iverson also acknowledged that he had become a distraction.
"When I hear anything about the Memphis Grizzlies, I don't hear you guys talk about anything other than the situation with me coming off the bench," he said Friday. "I mean, there's got to be something else with this team to talk about besides that. But I guess that sells a lot better than anything else when it comes to this team."
The worst part of his situation, Iverson said, was that he and Hollins have not discussed the situation in private.
"That's probably why it's at this point right now," Iverson said. "It's probably going to always be hard for me and him to see eye-to-eye, because we've never even talked to each other. Obviously that's what you do if you're trying to accomplish the same goal."
When asked before Saturday's game to respond, Hollins bluntly: "If Allen wants to talk to me, my door is open. I talk to him during the game before the game and after the game.
"I understand star power, and that's to be expected," Hollins added. "I wouldn't mind even talking about Allen's star power if it was about the game and his performance during the game, versus what Allen has said and what he will or won't do."
The Grizzlies used Marcus Williams as the backup point guard against the Clippers.
"It's the way we'd been going since training camp, until the last three games," Hollins said.
Asked if he had any timetable as to when Iverson might start for the Grizzlies, Hollins said: "I have no comment about that."

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press


Allen Iverson leaves Grizzlies for personal reasons - ESPN

[doc mercer]

He is a great role model:

YouTube - DJ Steve Porter - "Press Hop" featuring A. Iverson featuring Mora, Green, Namath, Gundy & T O

[Dirty]

Griz owner: No indication Iverson to quit


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ESPN.com news services

Memphis Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley has shot down the idea that Allen Iverson is mulling retirement as he takes an indefinite leave of absence for a personal matter.
Frustration stemming from his reserve role combined with the stress related to a recent family issue has caused Iverson to consider hanging up his jersey for good, The Commercial Appeal of Memphis reported Monday morning.
But Heisley said there was no indication of such consideration by the 34-year-old guard, and the owner told the newspaper that "if he was going to retire, he'd tell me first."

TrueHoop: A.I. Out?

Allen Iverson isn't thrilled about coming off the bench for the Grizzlies. But does that mean his time in Memphis is over? Blog


Iverson returned to his home in Atlanta late last week with Heisley's permission.
"I expect him to come back," Heisley said. "If he does retire, I'll be tremendously disappointed. I feel bad because I don't think that's the way he should go out."
Iverson has played in three games since returning from a hamstring injury, averaging 12.3 points, 3.7 assists and 22.3 minutes. But he has expressed displeasure over coming off the bench thus far this season.
"It's something that I never did in my life, so obviously it's a big adjustment," he said last week. "I'm so tired of discussing that, talking about that, every single day. It's just not something that I want to discuss."
Iverson has also acknowledged he had become a distraction.
"When I hear anything about the Memphis Grizzlies, I don't hear you guys talk about anything other than the situation with me coming off the bench," he said Friday. "I mean, there's got to be something else with this team to talk about besides that. But I guess that sells a lot better than anything else when it comes to this team."
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.


Memphis Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley: Allen Iverson 'would tell me' if mulling retirement - ESPN

[Dirty]

Iverson, Grizzlies agree to part ways





MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Allen Iverson experiment with the Memphis Grizzlies is over.
Memphis announced Monday that the team has ended its one-year contract with the 10-time All-Star and former league MVP in what it called a mutual agreement. Iverson was not placed on waivers by the 6 p.m. ET deadline on Monday so is expected to be waived on Tuesday, a league source told ESPN.com's Chris Sheridan.

Iverson
Under the agreement, Iverson will receive only a fraction of the $3 million he was scheduled to earn. If he clears waivers, he will become an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday night.
Iverson began an indefinite leave of absence on Nov. 7 to deal with a personal issue after playing only three games with the Grizzlies, all in California.
"Because of personal matters that forced him to leave the team on November 7, Allen will step away from the game at this time, allowing him to focus on those matters," general manager Chris Wallace said in a statement. "As a result, we will be ending our contractual agreement with Allen, which will allow both parties to move forward. We wish Allen the best."
The Grizzlies will waive Iverson but the team had not done that as of Monday night.
Iverson's agent, Leon Rose, did not immediately return a message left by The Associated Press on his cell phone. Iverson, who announced he was headed to Memphis on his Twitter account, hasn't posted any updates there since Nov. 2 when he played his first game with the Grizzlies.
Memphis owner Michael Heisley told the AP last week he would be happy to trade Iverson to another team if a better deal came along.
Few NBA teams had shown interest in the 34-year-old guard before Memphis signed him to a one-year, incentive-laden contract on Sept. 10. Memphis fans greeted the biggest star ever to play for the Grizzlies with a big crowd for his introductory news conference and eagerly bought up his No. 3 jersey, though he wound up never playing a game on the team's home court.
Iverson didn't help himself much during his short stint with his fourth NBA team. He missed the preseason with a partially torn left hamstring and didn't debut with the Grizzlies until Nov. 2 at Sacramento.
Immediately, Iverson began talking about his distaste for coming off the bench and being on a rebuilding team filled with youth from Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo to recent draft picks Hasheem Thabeet and DeMarre Carroll.
The four-time NBA scoring champ became the 16th player in league history to score 24,000 points in his career in his second game against the Golden State Warriors. He played against the Lakers in Los Angeles, where he also met with Heisley before being given permission to take an indefinite leave.
But the Grizzlies got tired of waiting for Iverson to decide what to do next.
They signed point guard Jamaal Tinsley on Saturday for some much-needed help with the Grizzlies struggling at 2-8 this season.
Information from ESPN.com's Chris Sheridan and The Associated Press was used in this report.


Allen Iverson, Memphis Grizzlies agree to terminate contract - ESPN