Iverson close to deal with the Knicks

The New York Knicks' pursuit of free agent Allen Iverson has gone from longshot to even money in 48 hours, with several league sources indicating they believed Iverson would agree to a deal with the Knicks no later than the weekend -- and one source with knowledge of the negotiations indicating an agreement between the team and the nine-time All-Star was a near certainty.

The 34-year-old Iverson officially cleared waivers Thursday evening after agreeing to a termination of his contract with the Memphis Grizzlies after just three regular-season games. Iverson had requested a leave of absence from the Grizzlies on Nov. 10 after telling the team he had to deal with an urgent family matter. After several discussions between the team and Iverson's representatives -- including talks between owner Michael Heisley and Iverson's agent, Leon Rose -- the Grizzlies agreed to release him from his contract.

The Knicks immediately expressed a mild interest in signing Iverson, but that interest has heated up in the last two days. Sources indicated the team would likely not sign him until at least after this Saturday's game with the New Jersey Nets, but the team appears increasingly willing to take a chance that Iverson can provide some kind of offensive pop for a team that struggled at times to score during its 2-9 start.

However, sources indicate the Knicks are still weighing the relative pros and cons of bringing Iverson aboard, including the impact Iverson's arrival would have on the team.

The Knicks just got center Eddy Curry back on the floor Wednesday for the first time since he tore his calf early in training camp. Curry scored 10 points in 12 minutes against Indiana, and the team wants to see exactly what it has in Curry, who lost at least 40 pounds in the offseason after missing much of last season with weight and conditioning issues. Can Iverson and Curry play together? How would Iverson's presence impact Knicks second-year forward Danilo Gallinari? And having Iverson on the court would, of course, take minutes away from younger players like rookie point guard Toney Douglas, who has shown promising signs with more playing time.

But the Knicks have been horrible so far this season, to the point where general manager Donnie Walsh said earlier this week that it was his fault the team was doing so poorly, and not an indictment of coach Mike D'Antoni or his system. The Knicks, then, can't look down their nose at a proven scorer like Iverson, even though he averaged just 12.3 points in his brief stint with Memphis.

Iverson never meshed with his teammates or with coach Lionel Hollins in Memphis. Iverson expected to start for the Grizzlies, but after missing almost all of training camp with a hamstring injury, the Grizzlies went to third-year guard Mike Conley at the point and brought Iverson off the bench. That rankled Iverson, just as it had last season when the Detroit Pistons made the same decision after guard Rip Hamilton came back from injury.

But Heisley gave the move his blessing, saying that he had no hard feelings toward Iverson and hoped that another team would sign him soon, for the good of both Iverson and the league.

Iverson would almost certainly not sign a deal for longer than the rest of the season, for a prorated amount of the league's veteran minimum. The Knicks won't commit any money past this season in hopes of landing at least one marquee free agent next summer from the celebrated class of 2010 that includes LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson and other young stars.