Allen Iverson May Be Taking His Talents to Turkey (Istanbul Specifically)
30 NBA teams might not have interest in Allen Iverson, but at least a team in Turkey does. Yahoo! Sports reported Monday that Turkish team Besiktas has interest in signing Iverson to a deal. They apparently have sent him a contract and are waiting on the former MVP to sign the deal.
The best part of the story, if true, is that one of the sticking points is Iverson’s refusal to allow Besiktas to fine him more than 1% of his salary. I guess Allen knows he might run into some trouble if he refuses to practice with the club and he’s trying to protect himself. The other interesting part of the story is that former Maryland Terrapin Lonny Baxter apparently has filed a lawsuit against the club for failure to pay his salary and agent fees.
At 35 years old, Iverson probably wouldn’t offer much to an NBA team. He’s probably still good enough to be on a roster at this point, but he only has himself to blame for the lack of interest from general managers. Iverson couldn’t accept his role as a bench player in Detroit or Memphis and he became the antithesis of a team player. If he does sign the contract, I wouldn’t be surprised if he lasts less than a full season in Turkey once they get a sense of his me-first attitude.
