By Sam Amico

FABULOUS PHILLY

Well, it looks like it's time to start taking the Philadelphia 76ers seriously again.

It looks like the trade that brought Keith Van Horn to Philly is working out well -- mostly because Van Horn is off to his best start as a pro.

And it looks like Sixers star Allen Iverson is healthy and coach Larry Brown is happy. In other words, the Sixers are starting to look a lot like the team that reached the NBA Finals two seasons ago.

Actually, I say they're better than that, as Eric Snow and Aaron McKie have avoided injuries and returned to being the underrated contributors they've always been. Also, Todd MacCulloch has been very solid in the middle.

But when it comes to the Sixers, you have to start with Iverson. He's always been one of my favorites, a guy who I contested has one of pro basketball's biggest hearts.

Then came another meltdown with Brown. Then came the comments about not wanting to practice. Then came the first-round playoff exit in which Iverson played poorly and acted frustrated.

Still, something inside me believed Iverson would come back strong. Something told me he would be even more dedicated during the offseason, that he would focus on trusting his teammates and make more of an effort to get them involved.

It appears I was right.

Today, Iverson is shooting, running, hustling -- and this season, passing more than ever. As former Sixers coach Fred Carter said on NBA2Night, "If Shaquille O'Neal is Superman, then Allen Iverson is Mighty Mouse."

Iverson has also answered questions about whether he would get along with Van Horn, who was often apathetic (and sometimes, just pathetic) during his years in New Jersey. Well, not only do Iverson and Van Horn get along, but they thoroughly enjoy being teammates and are hitting it off on the court.

Best of all, the Sixers are no longer standing around and watching Iverson dribble away the shot clock before being forced to shoot. Instead, they start the offense inside before looking to take a perimeter shot -- a philosophy that will work even better once big man Derrick Coleman gets healthy.

You may be saying, "Yeah, so what. Philly will self-destruct soon enough."

But I don't think so. I think it's time to call the Sixers a real contender to reach the Finals, a team that should be taken more seriously than ever.

QUESTIONING THE ANSWER

I still hear way too much being reported on Iverson's "off-the-court issues," and every time I do, I ask, "What issues?"

Sure, Iverson made the comments about not wanting to practice, but I think those were made out of frustration, and nothing else. They were the words of a passionate man who had just lost and was looking for someone else to blame. Happens to all of us, and while it wasn't right, it sure didn't hurt anybody.

As for the incident involving Iverson during the summer ... well, there was no gun, no wife in the street, no charges. The only troubling thing to come out of it was the way it was reported. It's really too bad that everything must be spun to fit into a trash television and tabloid format.

Trust me when I say sports are much more enjoyable when you completely ignore the personal lives of the people you are cheering for. That's not meant as a knock against the athletes, it's just that we all have major flaws. I mean, I don't know about you, but I sure am glad MY every move and comment aren't televised for all the world to see.

SIXER TIDBITS

-- Brown admitted that he's excited about the return of offseason acquisition Monty Williams, who's been out with an injury. Williams is the type of player who places a high amount of value on team play and defense. In other words, Brown won't have to scream at him all the time.

-- Williams is also an active member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and very involved in youth programs. He once interned for the George Michael Sports Machine, my favorite show back in the 1980s.

-- Rookie swingman John Salmons has displayed some nice potential. He may not be a Sixer for life, but he'll be a solid NBA player. I'm even more excited to see what becomes of rookie Sam Clancy, who's been on the injured list with one of those manufactured ailments that NBA teams so often come up with, like, "sore left xvxgerettxctxt."

NUGGET NUGGETS, VOL. 232

-- Denver rookie forward Nikoloz Tskitishvili clearly has a long way to go. He's way too bashful on offense and absolutely clueless on defense. It's too early to call him The First Big European Bust, but it's hard to see any signs of basketball life right now. That, of course, is fine by me. The worse he is, the less I'll have to spell his name.

-- I love rookie guard Predrag Savovic, a product of Hawaii who wasn't drafted, but got a guaranteed contract anyway. If you want to see someone who shoots EVERY time he touches the ball, then Savovic is your guy.

-- What's become of second-year forward Rodney (Don't Call Me Randy) White? After sitting on the bench last season in Detroit, he came to Denver and promised to make the Pistons regret not playing him. Well, now he can't get off the bench in Denver. It looks like White and Cleveland's DeSagana Diop are the early frontrunners to become the two biggest busts of the 2001 draft.

-- Meanwhile, Marcus Camby is clearly the biggest bust of the 1996 lottery. This is one guy who's made a lotta money for doing a lotta nothin'. I want that job.

-- Finally, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm starting to be a real believer in Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik. The Nuggets have no experience and very little talent -- yet somehow, they're staying in games. It's obvious Bzdelik is a Pat Riley disciple, as the Nuggets play an ugly-but-effective brand of basketball. I also like how forward Juwan Howard has conducted himself like a pro's pro and played a willing role in younger players' development.

JAZZ MASTERS

-- No doubt, I'm as impressed as you are with the high-octane offenses run by Dallas and Sacramento, but I contend that Utah is the best passing team in the NBA. All they need now is a consistent finisher (other than Karl Malone) near the basket.

-- And didn't I say Matt Harpring would fit in very well with the Jazz? I think he's gone from being a journeyman to finding the place from where he'll retire. Every once in a while, I make a halfway decent call.

-- I am convinced the Jazz will make the playoffs and ruin someone else's season. If not, maybe they'll make the lottery and get LeBron James. Can you picture James in Utah? I don't think the NBA would allow it.

-- Malone to reporters after the Utah-Washington Old Guys Game (featuring Malone, John Stockton, Michael Jordan and Charles Oakley): "It was nice to see guys with a passion for the game. Nowadays, you don't know if guys want to play. There's something wrong with that picture, when it's the older guys who still have a passion to win or lose. Just look at the attendance. People want to see a passion for the game. If I'm gonna pay two or three hundred dollars a night, I sure as heck want to see guys who want to play. Not guys who want to be cool. And that's a problem, and that's sad."

BROADCAST NEWS

-- Congratulations to Cleveland radio play-by-play man Joe Tait, who called his 2,500th Cavaliers game Nov. 26. As a native of Akron, Ohio, I grew up listening to Tait, so he holds a special place in my heart and ears. As Cavs broadcast director Dave Dombrowski told the Cleveland Plain Dealer, "(Tait is) the best. I think every team thinks they have the best, but we do." As a guy who listens to games almost every night on the Internet, I agree. Tait is definitely in my top three, along with Atlanta's Steve Holman and Phoenix's Al McCoy.

-- Most of you told me to take my idea of having ESPN cut back on dunk highlights and stuff it. "What kind of NBA fan doesn't like dunking?" wrote Phil Sherman. Then there was Cory Mayes, who added, "You must not be able to dunk. Otherwise, you wouldn't find it so offensive." Actually, Cory, despite my height (5-foot-9) and age (old), I regularly dunk with ease. Then my wife makes me remove the Nerf hoop from the door and take out the garbage. At any rate, the readers have spoken, ESPN, and they want slams -- and lots of them.

MORE RANDOM STUFF

-- It's funny how Charles Barkley insists that Yao Ming doesn't have to "play against any real centers." I've been saying the same thing about Shaquille O'Neal for the past five years. Speaking of Yao, I never thought I'd see a 7-6 guy have to alter his shot, but that's exactly what Dallas' Shawn Bradley did in his first game against Houston. On more than one occasion, Bradley faded away from Ming and just heaved the ball toward the basket.

-- Some Clevelanders got upset with me for suggesting that LeBron James might not fit in with the Cavs. But with youngsters such as Darius Miles, Ricky Davis and Dajuan Wagner already in the lineup, I'm wondering if James would ever get to shoot -- or off the bench during his first three seasons. No matter, I understand that it would be a marketing disaster for any team to pass on James, especially Cleveland, which is about 30-minute drive from Akron.

-- Good friend Terry Pluto of the Akron Beacon Journal reported that, according to Cavs general manager Jim Paxson, there is "no truth whatsoever" to a rumored deal in which the Cavs would send Miles, Chris Mihm, and Bimbo Coles to Chicago for Eddie Robinson, Marcus Fizer and Jamal Crawford. The Bulls, however, do not deny that they're trying to move each of those three (especially Fizer).

-- For the Bulls, it looks as if signing Robinson to a big free agent contract before the start of last season was a mistake. Robinson is a nice guy and a good player, but he just doesn't fit in well -- especially now that Chicago has Donyell Marshall.

-- Michael Jordan should play as many minutes as he wants. Forget about the "home stretch." Forget about the playoffs, forget about the shoddy knees, forget about even coming off the bench. The reason Jordan came back was to play, right? So he should play until he can no longer do it. That's always been my theory about myself, and believe it or not, I was never as good as Michael Jordan.

-- The more I watch the Wizards, the more I think they should have re-signed Popeye Jones and not bothered picking up Charles Oakley. This is a team with NO inside game.

-- I know I write about him a lot, but it's only because Atlanta forward Glenn Robinson has become one of my favorite players. Robinson reminds me a lot of the players from the 1980s, as he's not going to dunk on anyone, or do a dance or pound his chest. Robinson's game is very unassuming, but thoroughly enjoyable to watch.

-- The NBA is a better place now that Reggie Miller is back from an injury. And speaking of Miller, does anyone else wonder if he's ever performed a bench press or squat? I bet he hasn't.

-- Don't be surprised if Jeff Van Gundy emerges as the next coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.

-- The more I watch Steve Nash, the more I'm convinced he is Dallas' best player. Nash makes everyone around him much better, and is unstoppable himself once he gets into the flow. He's a superb passer, wonderful penatrator, and underrated defender. No less than Michael Jordan once said, "I wish WE had somebody like Steve Nash."

READER E-MAILS

From Tom Goodall

The media in Northeast Ohio continues to pound on the theme that the Cavaliers will tank the season to get LeBron James in the draft. I'm sure Coach John Lucas has other ideas. And doesn't the worst team only have a one in four chance of winning the first pick? How many times has the worst team actually won the first pick?

(Tom. Good questions. I'll wait for someone to e-mail the correct answers and print them next week).

From Han Lee

Now that Latrell Sprewell is back, why don't the Knicks try a combination of Sprewell, Allan Houston and Lee Nailon? It's not the Dallas Trio, but what do the Knicks have to lose? At any rate, I think New York fans deserve a change, starting perhaps with Coach Don Chaney.

From Nick Andal

I was also wondering about Jason Jackson's disappearance as host of NBA2Night. I liked his contribution, and think that the show posts a lot fewer stats than last season. For many games, they just give you the final score with a bottom line containing the leaders of each team. They took away my three favorite parts of the show: Jason Jackson, lots of stats, and the Iron Unkind. Please let them know for me.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

From Steven Marshall

Q: When he first came into the NBA, you wrote that Seattle guard Joe Forte "reminds me a lot of Mark Macon -- a good college player who won't do much in the pros." Looks like you called that one.

A: It's always nice when my mom writes in and disguises herself as a real reader. Actually, Steven, thanks for pointing that out about Forte. I just think he's one guy who left college too early, and who may have figured that because he became a star at North Carolina, he could stop working on his game.

From Mike Cantrill

Q: Do you think Houston forward Glen Rice's career has been a disappointment?

A: Dear Mike, I always liked Glen Rice until he publicly ripped Phil Jackson for not getting enough minutes. That proved to me what I always suspected about Rice -- that he tends to value his own shots more than team victories.

From Danny Jackson

Q: Who do you think is the most underachieving player in the NBA?

A: Dear Danny, you can start with Rasheed Wallace and go right on down the list of Portland Trail Blazers. I love that team when it tries, though. Who wouldn't?

That's all until next time. Thanks for reading and e-mailing everybody, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

CONTACT ME

E-mail questions and comments to me at amicoreport@hotmail.com. I will try to answer questions in the newsletter, but you must include your full name.