Top 10 Philly Sports Moments of 2009, #8 Allen Iverson Returns
A 6 foot guard, from Georgetown…
And with that announcement by Sixers PA announcer Matt
Chord, Allen Iverson officially made his return to Philadelphia. It was hard to find a relevant moment for the
Sixers in a year filled with irrelevancy, but the return of Allen Iverson to
Philadelphia deserves a spot on this list.
On a Monday in December, the Sixers got 20,600 fans to show
up to the Wachovia Center. That number
is only slightly less than the amount of people who showed during the NBA Finals
in 2001. All because of AI.
Let’s face it, the Sixers weren’t winning anything with or
without AI this year, so why not? Why
not make the trade that puts people in the seats? Why not let Allen wax poetic about the fans?
Plus, the comedic equation of that night cannot be
overshadowed. Everyone showed up to
cheer Iverson and essentially trash the rest of the team. One of my favorite moments was when Willie
Green entered the game to a chorus of boos.
Not so much for his play, but more because he was replacing
Iverson. One fan screamed obscenities
about sexual acts that I didn’t know existed, towards Green.
I witnessed the following
conversation between two guys:
Guy 1: I didn’t know Rodney Carney was back with the team
Guy 2: I never knew he left.
For the record, Rodney Carney left the team on July 9th,
2008.
Sixers basketball.
Run with us.
Donovan McNabb was at the game, he was met with 50% boos as
his smirking face was shown on the screen. Here is a guy who, other than some Phillies,
has done more for Philadelphia sports in the last 10 years than anybody else
has…yet Allen Iverson is introduced to a
standing ovation while McNabb is booed. Telling. The re-signing of AI certainly belongs on this list.
