A far cry from his “practice” tirade,

Allen Iverson channeled his inner Katharine Hepburn in his return to the Philadelphia 76ers presser:

Not on board with the Hepburn reference? CLICK HERE

It’s not that I find his performance insincere. You can’t fake that kind of emotion. But what’s going to happen when Eddie Jordan decides his team is best served by A.I. takin’ a seat? What kind of press conference are we going to hear then? Which A.I. will surface at that point?

I don’t think this is a bad move for anybody. At 5-13 at the time of the deal (now 5-14), there’s little harm (present or potential) that could come of this for Philadelphia. Iverson will immediately put fans in the seats and still has enough ability to contribute to that team, a team with a need for service in the role he fills (Lou Williams out for two months with a jaw). As for the ultimate malcontent himself, he gets to make a million plus to play the game he loves and rehabilitate his image at the same time. Not a bad deal at all.

So while I admire the apparent change in Iverson, I’m hesitant to believe it’s anything other than, at best inconsistent…at worst temporary. Let’s just say I’m keeping this audio close. A.I. may need to be reminded of it in the days to come.