Iguodala disappoints

Philadelphia, PA (The Phanatic Magazine) - Early returns are not necessarily a harbinger of the future.

If they were John Kerry would be running for reelection as we speak and John
McCain would have cried uncle two months ago.

But, we are still gonna go through the motions tomorrow and see what happens.

"It ain't over til it's over," isn't just a rallying cry. Ask the Hawks who
stormed back from a 23-point deficit to stun the Sixers in Atlanta on
Saturday.

Which brings me to Andre Iguodala. A.I. version 2.0 had his coming out party
last season, his first free of the "selfish" Allen Iverson.

And give Iggy credit, he looked a lot more comfortable being the guy and never
shied away from a big shot in a big situation.

The Sixers surprised everyone by finishing 40-42, making the playoffs and
taking the mighty Detroit Pistons to six games in the Eastern Conference
quarterfinals.

Of course at the end of the day 40-42 is what it is...mediocrity.

Sixers basketball chief Ed Stefanski knew Iguodala was best suited as a
complimentary piece, a player that should pattern his game after Scottie
Pippen...Stuff the stat sheet and help your team win a different way every
night.

Stefanski got his primary piece in Elton Brand and the former Duke product has
been as advertised early in the season, leading the Sixers in scoring through
three games at 18.3 points per contest and leading the entire NBA in
rebounding with 14.3 a night.

The problem has been Iguodala, who can't seem to accept his reduced role, at
least if the early returns can be trusted.

When Iverson was in Philly, everyone was quick to write off Iguodala's faults.

After all, Iverson needed the ball and ignored his teammates. So, when
Iguodala went in his funks, the Sixers conveniently blamed it on a player they
wanted to go.

What's the excuse know?

Brand is the most unselfish superstar in the NBA this side of Kevin Garnett.

Iguodala gets plenty of touches but seems to sulk on the floor.

Through three games, the former Arizona star is shooting a woeful 37.8 percent
from the floor and averaging just 12.7 points a game -- fourth on the team.
He's also turning the ball over at an alarming rate for a team that leads the
NBA in steals to turnover ratio.

Maybe we will look back in June of next year and see that the early returns
were off base.

Maybe Iguodala will accept his role and flourish.

And maybe Barack Obama finds a way to lose the presidency tomorrow...But I doubt it.