Dear Allen Iverson, Please Hang Up the Sneakers

I love professional sports. I love the action. I love the speed. I love the drama and I love the suspense. What I don't love are aging athletes that think they can still play at the speed and ability that they once did when they were 22 years old.

Yes, I know you're thinking about Brett Farve right now, but I'm thinking about another aging athlete in an entirely different sport.

That sport is the NBA and the athlete in question is Allen Iverson.

You remember him right? He's the guy that didn't like to talk about practice:



Now AI or "The Answer", as he was once called, is finding all closed doors in the NBA and is considering looking to play in China.

Yea, China.

Iverson, who's 35, played three games for Memphis Grizzlies last season and then returned for a second stint with the Philadelphia 76ers. He averaged 13.9 points for the Sixers before he took a leave of absence in March because of family issues, according to an ESPN report.

He needs to hang up the sneakers. There's no way he can compete in the NBA anymore. My guess tells me he's looking to play for retirement money, which is a shame because the guy was pulling in millions while he was playing.

Regardless of where he ends up this season, he was a great that is on the verge of hanging on too long and further tarnishing his NBA legacy.

Article first published as Sometimes Athletes Don't Know When to Hang 'Em Up on Technorati.