During the summer, the Knicks showed no interest in Allen Iverson when he was a free agent. But after the Knicks’ franchise-worst 1-9 start, team president Donnie Walsh told The Post yesterday he will look into the possibility of signing Iverson and investigate why he divorced from Memphis.
In what was called a mutual agreement, the Grizzlies announced yesterday they have ended their one-year contract with the 10-time All-Star and former league MVP. Iverson complained about his playing time and a lack of a starting role before leaving the Grizzlies for personal reasons.
“Because of personal matters that forced him to leave the team on Nov. 7, Allen will step away from the game at this time, allowing him to focus on those matters,” Memphis GM Chris Wallace said in a statement.
Memphis, off to an 2-8 start, will waive Iverson, who would become a free agent after 48 hours.
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Walsh will do his due diligence and “check it out,” but it seems a long shot the Knicks will make a move on the volatile guard, who carries excess baggage. During the summer, Walsh also investigated signing point guards Jamaal Tinsley, Jason Williams and Ramon Sessions — and balked.
But with a roster lacking talent, it’s hard to blame Walsh for at least looking into an Iverson signing, especially because the guard’s agent is Leon Rose, who also represents LeBron James.
Though Iverson has been a headache at almost all his stops and is the type of personality Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni detests, he could be a major gate attraction for a team fast becoming irrelevant.
The Knicks are curious enough not to shut any doors. Over the summer, Iverson referred to the Knicks as a potential suitor, though Walsh had no interest then. But that was before Chris Duhon began the season in disastrous fashion.
Walsh told The Post on Sunday that he was unhappy with the way the Knicks were executing their fast-break offense, feeling the players weren’t running “full out.” Iverson could help in that department.
If Iverson doesn’t retire, he likely would be amenable to a one-year contract and would have no effect on the Knicks’ plans following this season, when they hope to land a big-name free agent.
The 34-year-old guard began an indefinite leave of absence to deal with a personal issue after playing only three games, all in California.
Few NBA teams had shown interest in Iverson before Memphis signed him to a one-year, incentive-laden contract on Sept. 10.
Iverson didn’t help himself much during his short stint with his fourth NBA team. He missed the preseason with a partially torn left hamstring and didn’t debut until Nov. 2 at Sacramento.
Immediately, Iverson began talking about his distaste for coming off the bench and being on a rebuilding team filled with youth, from Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo to recent draft picks Hasheem Thabeet and DeMarre Carroll.