Enough already

By Steven Lienert

"Get busy livin' or get busy dyin'" - Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding, Morgan Freeman's character in the Shawshank Redemption

If Billy King was in the Shawshank Redemption, Red would beat him to death himself.

Quit dragging your feet, Billy, because this whole Allen Iverson thing has gotten old.

It seems just like yesterday when, after Iverson didn't show up for last season's Fan Appreciation Day, he was as good as gone. That seemed to be the straw that finally, finally broke the camel's back.

A whole summer of 'Where's Allen Going' ensued. It was kinda, sorta riveting, but only because the Phillies were the only game in town. It helped bridge the gap between the end of hoops and hockey to the start of Eagles training camp.

But a funny thing happened on the way to a new era: Billy never pulled the trigger.

And what happened? Iverson became a problem. Again. Surprise.

So, here we are once again, waiting with abated breath for Mr. King to make a deal.

Fire away! Get it over with. Rip the band-aid off. Let the healing begin.

Enough of 'It's gonna happen in the next 48 hours' or 'It might happen as soon as today' malarky. Didn't Philadelphia fans go through enough last fall with the T.O. fiasco?

Frankly, does it really matter who King decides to bring in for A.I.? How much longer will he really be the GM of the Sixers? Two years? Or, gulp, three?

The Wachovia Center is already cavernous during 76ers home games. Trust me, the players can hear the fans' heckles.

The Sixers are closer to acquiring the No. 1 overall draft choice than they are to being a playoff-caliber team. And that's playoff-caliber. Not championship caliber.

The clock is ticking on your tenure Billy King.

The Sixers are going to stink for quite some time. They'll be playing in front of 15 or 20 of their closest friends.

Iverson wasn't the only problem.

This fish stinks from the GM on down.