With the NBA in infinite quarantine, we continue our way to pass the time by playing another round of start one, bench one, cut one in the style of the Philadelphia 76ers. We rolled with the point guard version of this game on Friday and now we’re moving on to the shooting guard position.
Saturday’s contestants are Allen Iverson, Andrew Toney, and Doug Collins who are three of the best at the position in the franchise’s history. The rules are the same and quite simple. You have to just choose which one starts, which one gets benched, and which one gets the boot.
Start: Allen Iverson
This was a fairly easy choice. Iverson won four scoring titles in a Sixers uniform, he won an MVP in 2001 when he led the Sixers to the Finals, and he threw the entire franchise on his back on plenty of occasions. Also, as we all learned on plenty of occasions, you don’t just bench Iverson. He’s a certified closer and a guy who will take games over in the blink of an eye.
Bench: Andrew Toney
Toney was a 2-time All-Star in Philadelphia and was one of the big pieces of the Sixers run to the title in 1983. His defense was elite and he was the third scorer the Sixers needed next to Julius Erving and Moses Malone as they were the epitome of a team. Toney was the prototypical 2-way player and he could shoot it from deep in the few times he did let it fly as the league began adjusting to the 3-point shot.
Cut: Doug Collins
Collins was a good player as he was a career 17.9 points per game scorer and a 4-time All-Star with the Sixers. This is no slight at him as he was certainly a terrific player, but Iverson and Toney did a lot for the franchise and you just don’t cut those types of players.
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