Injury Plagued Sixers Focused to Take Game Five

How much pain can one man tolerate before he reaches his limit? There is no standard to thresholds of pain, but there are some things that the average man frankly cannot stand but for so long. Allen Iverson has yet again proved he is, by no means, an ordinary man.

This young warrior has again sustained an injury while playing hard basketball. Iverson took an inadvertent elbow to the mouth from Milwaukee's Ray Allen, late in the fourth quarter. Iverson immediately went down, and after picking himself off the floor, slowly ventured toward the Sixers bench. Sixers called a time-out so Iverson could gather himself, plus stop the bleeding from a gash Iverson had on his upper lip.

I contacted the Sixers organization in regards to Iverson's injury, however they declined to make a comment at this time. Nevertheless, I later discovered Iverson made a trip to the dentist and was fitted for a mouth guard.

Ray Allen too received courtside medical treatment as he had a gauze pad taped to his left elbow to stop bleeding from his wound.

The Bucks and Sixers have been rather physical in meetings all year. Take Game Three for example, when Sam Cassell inadvertently took a forearm to the back from Eric Snow. The same Sam Cassell who is playing with a flak jacket to protect his bruised ribs.

So it's no wonder that we see that physical play intensified ten-fold due to teams fighting to advance. However, my concern is for the overall safety of the players, and the progression of their careers.

As much as I would enjoy seeing Philadelphia in the NBA Finals, but I don't want that to come at the expense of any players' health. As a Philadelphian, I understand the loyalty fans have toward all Philly players. Philly fans believe in tough love, and we always want players to give us their best, because we defend our teams regardless of whether they are winning the division, or rebuilding at the bottom of the pile. However, there is a fine line between giving your team your all, giving the fans your all, and giving more than you have.

It's safe to say the Sixers have been plagued with more than their share of injuries this season, all in some way crippling to team performance. Fact of the matter is this team is still hurting. Dikembe Mutumbo suffered a fractured pinky in Game Seven of the Conference Semifinals. Aaron McKie continues to have his shoulder iced-down after every game. And Eric Snow, co-captain of the squad and the Sixers floor general, has been hampered by the injury to his right ankle. An injury that could sideline him for tonight's pivotal Game Five against the Bucks.

Snow first sustained an injury to the ankle on December 5th in a meeting with Lakers. After being thoroughly examined by team doctor Jack McPhilemy, Snow sore ankle turned out to be a stress fracture of his right ankle. With such demanding and physical play throughout the playoffs, Snow re-injured the ankle. However, this new mishap is unrelated to the stress fracture I'm told.

It's likely Snow will see little or no action tonight, which places more of the load on the battered and bruised shoulders of A.I. The Sixers, as a team, will need to assist Iverson every way possible tonight. Although Snow is not shooting isn't reminiscent of the first 18 games of the season, he was really making clutch shots this series, especially last game. Iverson could use another 14-point effort from Tyrone Hill. Second year man Jumaine Jones had a solid game Monday. He needs another like it tonight if the Sixers are to again emerge victorious.

This is no misprint; you have seen it before. Aaron McKie should play like Aaron McKie. I don't think players get any more consistent then him. I expect good things from Aaron.

And last but definitely not least, Dikembe Mutumbo has secured my vote for MVP of the Eastern Conference Finals. Mutumbo is averaging 15.5 point per game, 15.75 rebounds per game, and 2.25 blocks per game in the Conference Finals.

Prediction: Tonight is war! Sixers win if Iverson has help.