From The Tube: AI vs Marbury circa '97

I actually got this game on DVD in the mail last week.

March ’97: Sixers at Wolves. Iverson at Marbury. It was a match-up of one team playing well below expectations (Philly) against a team exceeding them (Minny). It was also a match-up of two youngin’s, both locked in a tight battle for the Rookie of the Year Award. AI had the glitzier stats – and besides, even then he was flat-out the better player - whereas Marbury had good numbers (surprisingly a more team-oriented PG – yes, you read that correctly), but had made a positive difference to his team, as the T-Wolves were on the cusp of their inaugural playoff appearance.

Anyway, the Sixers – led by AI, Stack, DC and Spoon (yeah, a team with this much talent won just 22 games!) – jumped out to a huge lead, with AI leading the way. Marbury bought the Wolves back, fouling out Iverson in the process, and finishing with 24 points in a 104-100 win.

This was their first pro meeting, and a number of things stood out: 1) Just how hard those guys were going at each other, it was nice to remember a time where there was a place for one-on-one rivalry within a game; 2) Iverson was donning the cornrows for I think the fifth time ever in his career IIRC (he used to go with the mini-fro mostly that year); 3) AI controlled the first three quarters, while Marbury took over late, leading a Minnesota charge; 4) It still amazes me now that Philly had AI, Stack, DC and Spoon (respective career averages the day this game was played: 23, 19, 19, 17) and still couldn't at least break even over their 82 games - they lost a bunch, but boy were they fun to watch; 5) Even at age 19, KG was insanely competitive, crazy, huh?

Anyway, this is all I could find on YouTube, trust me, the full game is a cracker. Enjoy!