August 13, 2004 4:07 pm
Iverson embraces Olympic challenge
ATHENS, Greece - Allen Iverson absorbed the volley of questions, delivered in a symphony of foreign accents, without dancing away Friday afternoon.
Except for the occasional impossible-to-understand query, nothing flustered the still-precocious 29-year-old guard, oddly cast in the role as the United States Olympic basketball team's elder statesman, during a press gathering.
In fact, he even seemed to enjoy the banter.
Sitting a few feet away in a crowded auditorium, Larry Brown, his Olympic coach now and his Philadelphia 76ers boss from 1997-2003, glanced toward Iverson approvingly.
Iverson missed the final eight games of the 2003-04 season with a knee injury. But here he was, willingly and enthusiastically, while many of his fellow NBA stars had decided it was either too much work, too dangerous or simply inconvenient to come to the Summer Olympics.
``More people should take notice of that,'' suggested Brown, whose sometimes-strained relationship with Iverson couldn't preclude frequent expressions of admiration. ``He had a difficult year. It speaks volumes about him that he got it taken care of and is here.''
Mobbed by the international media, Iverson didn't shirk what he said he felt was his duty.
``It's an honor to be here,'' said Iverson, the U.S team's captain. ``It's a tribute to my family and friends, and all the teammates and coaches I've had who have helped me get to this point. This is something I'll always remember.''
The U.S. team arrived here Thursday night and checked into its lodging, which, for security reasons, happens to be on the luxurious Queen Mary 2 cruise ship docked on Athens' Gulf of Saronikos coast instead of the Athletes' Village.
They practiced early Friday afternoon, fought traffic-choked streets to reach the Main Press Center for their news conference and then planned to march in Friday night's Opening Ceremonies, a prospect that delighted Iverson.
Olympic preliminary-round play begins Sunday with a game against Puerto Rico.
The U.S. has gone 24-0 in Olympic competition since NBA players were made eligible for the 1992 Games. But the rest of the world has closed the gap, and the absence of much of the NBA's premier talent has closed it further.
``A lot of people doubt us,'' Iverson said.
A recent loss to Olympic non-qualifier Italy and a narrow win over Germany, courtesy of Iverson's last-second 3-pointer, contributed to the skepticism.
But the U.S. has followed those with more decisive wins over Serbia and Montenegro and Turkey.
``We've struggled to figure out how to play together,'' Iverson said. ``But we've gotten a lot better. That loss was good for us because it showed what can happen when we don't approach a game the way we should.''
To get even better, Iverson said, he and his teammates must overcome their natural inclination to freelance, which plays well in the NBA but doesn't always work in international competition.
``They play the game the way it's supposed be played,'' Iverson said, referring to the best among the Americans' Olympic opponents. ``They think out basketball, they play with their minds. That's where we have to do a better job. If we understand we have to play together, we'll be all right.``The thing that's tough about international ball is they can all shoot, even the 7-footers. I've never seen teams that shoot the ball as well as these teams.''
Brown, a member of the 1964 U.S. gold-medal team, has urged Iverson to look around and enjoy the Olympic experience, which he intends to do. He hopes to attend boxing and track and field events as a spectator and smiled broadly Friday when asked about Philadelphian Dawn Staley of the women's basketball team carrying the Stars and Stripes in the Opening Ceremonies.
Otherwise, Iverson is all business as he seeks the first major championship of his basketball career. His ambition isn't based on the United States' history of basketball dominance or the need to preserve or regain it after a stunning sixth-place finish at the 2002 World Championships, in which he did not compete.
``We don't look at it as something to prove,'' he said. ``It's a goal to accomplish. We want to get our names in the record books, too. We want it for ourselves, not for anybody else.''
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