It takes a certain breed of player to be made a legend in Philadelphia. Bobby Abreu’s career stats are better than Jimmy Rollins’, but Abreu would be castigated if he ever stepped foot in Philly again, while Rollins will never pay for a meal in this town. Bill Bergey, an above average linebacker, is still adored here, while the greatest QB in Philly history, Donovan McNabb, is reviled by about half of the fan base. What gives? It is a cliche that Philly loves the scrapper, the fighter, the guy who makes the most of his God given talent and refuses to rest on his laurels, but it is undoubtedly true. Laid back athletes just don’t cut it here, even if they’re good. See Cole Hamels. Whereas the city forgave Brad Lidge repeatedly for his transgressions in 2009, they quickly became frustrated with Cole. Why? Because Brad looked like he was every bit as pissed off about blowing games as we were at him for blowing them, and Cole sometimes acted and looked like he really couldn’t give a damn.

And so Iverson returns to Philadelphia to a Hero’s Welcome. Despite the repeated scrapes with the law, despite “We Talkin’ ‘Bout Practice”, despite his failure to work well with others, all is forgiven in the eyes of the Philadelphia sports fan. Why? Because no one doubts that Iverson wants the Sixers to win this game tonight as badly as the guy who scrapped together $30 to buy a seat to the game wants them to win it. No one doubts that the smallest guy on the court will attack 7-foot behemoths standing between him and the basket. No one doubts that when the game is over, every fiber of Allen Iverson’s existence will have been utilized in an effort to propel the Sixers to victory. His methods can certainly be questioned, his fundamentals of the game can be questioned, and the success of his efforts can be questioned. But the one thing that cannot be doubted is that every time Iverson hits the mat, he will pull himself back up and hop jaw-first right back into the fight. In Philadelphia, that lion-hearted desire is so cherished that Philly sports fans are willing to look past things that would ordinarily have driven them into a blind rage (can you imagine what would happen if McNabb ever said “We Talkin’ Bout Practice”?). Whether this is the beauty or the absurdity of the Philadelphia sports fan is up to each individual to determine. But that is why, at 7 p.m. tonight, the citizens of Philadelphia will watch an NBA basketball game for the first time in years, because we want to see something that matters to us more than anything (other than a parade down Broad, of course). And that is a player who wants to win a game every bit as badly as we want him to win it.