Tough Love
The fans of Philadelphia professional sports are an enigma to many professional athletes. Philadelphia fans are passionate and intelligent. That combination gives cause to cheer louder at highlights, but immediately boo with lackadaisical play. That passion is described in this video clip of Allen Iverson talking with his fans:
Philadelphia is a city of tough love. It’s a city that rides the arse of a player who takes a casual approach to a game on each and every play. The city demands the utmost of efforts, because it offers the utmost of support for the players who manage to meet that level. The words of Allen Iverson bring this home in an article by Matt Mullin of PhillyVoice.com:
"“It’s a great feeling because these people right here get to walk around and say they’re Hall of Famers,” Iverson said, pointing to the fans walking around the Sixers Draft Party on Eakins Oval Thursday evening. These people — and my family, my girl, my kids — they get to stick their chest out and say they’re Hall of Famers, because, without them, it wouldn’t have happened. I honestly think it’s a tribute to all the people who helped that [dream] come true — and I would say the critics as well,” the 41-year-old said. “If I didn’t want to prove them wrong, it wouldn’t have been possible. Those 20,000 people in that arena, without them, Allen Iverson is not a Hall of Famer. So they should walk around with their chest out knowing that they’re a Hall of Famer because they helped create one.”"
It’s that quality of feeding off the energy of the fans that gives athletes a true appreciation for the city.
He followed up comments with a second interview with Mullin about words he shared with the number one pick Ben Simmons, but the words are true of any player who don the Philadelphia 76ers jersey, and immediately are swept into the pressure of producing for a team and a city that has known excellent basketball.
"Listen, you want that type of pressure,” Iverson said. “To know that these fans are so passionate — you want passionate fans. You want somebody to come and root for you and wish the best for you. All you’ve got to do is play every game like it’s your last. That’s all you can do is give effort. Shots aren’t going to go in every night. Some nights you might get in foul trouble. Those things are going to happen. “But Philly fans don’t give a damn about that. They just want to see maximum effort. And I’m pretty sure that’s what [Simmons] is going to come with. He’s been fighting all his life to get to this point; you thing he’s going to slow down now? No way.”"
It’s a tough love town, and the players who show up either feast on that love, or get swept away by it.
Next: Too Big To Fail