Snow and Iverson to Hit the Century Mark

MOST WINS BY A BACKCOURT DUO IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS
1.	Allen	Cassell	149 Wins
2.	Iverson	Snow	146 Wins
3.	Barry	Payton	113 Wins
4.	Davis	Wesley	104 Wins
4.	Finley	Nash	104 Wins

The opening of the 2003-04 regular season against the Miami Heat will mark the 100th-consecutive game that point guard Eric Snow and shooting guard Allen Iverson have played in together. Their backcourt streak began with the opening game of the 2002 Playoffs against the Boston Celtics. The 100-game mark is the longest, active steak of any backcourt duo in the NBA. Snow and Iverson also have 146 wins together, which is the second-most win total for any NBA backcourt duo in the last four years.

The previous consecutive games played record was 131 games played by the Lakers' Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher, a streak that ended May 7, 2003, in a playoff game against San Antonio. This offseason, Snow and Iverson all but cemented the 100 mark by signing long-term contract extensions with the Sixers.

After Snow signed his extension, he talked about his desire to continue playing with Iverson, saying, “that is what we wanted. We love playing together, and we love playing here. Now we don’t have to worry about free agency, leaving or anything like that. We can just worry about playing together, getting better individually, helping this team get better and help this team win a championship.”

The duo came close to their championship dreams in the 2000-01 season, getting to the NBA Finals before finally losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in five games. Since getting that taste of postseason success, both players have been singularly focused on returning to the Finals and completing their goal.

Since beginning their partnership in 1998, when Snow came to the Sixers in a trade with the Seattle Sonics and Iverson was in his second year with the team, Snow has come to be regarded as one of the most dependable point guards in the NBA. Iverson has blossomed into a star, and is one of the most recognizable players in sports. Both have complemented each other perfectly, and are each key to the other's success.

“People ask me all the time how it is to play with him," said Snow. "He’s been a great friend to me, on the court and off the court. He doesn’t give me any problems or any issues. I know when he goes out there that he’s going to play hard. It’s like my weaknesses are his strengths and his weaknesses are my strengths.

"We lean on each other, depend on each other and we help each other. But we trust each other more than anything else."

Over the course of the Snow-Iverson relationship, Snow has repeatedly been asked if it is difficult for him to play with Iverson, someone who demands the ball on the majority of possessions. But Iverson's high scoring has usually translated into a high assist total for Snow, the consummate pass-first point guard.

The pairing turned out to be a major boost to both players' careers. Since Snow's first full season with the Sixers (he only played in 47 games in the 1997-98 season after the mid-season trade and started none), the team has steadily improved its winning percentage, and has not fallen below .524 since he has been a full-time starter. In Iverson's first two years without Snow as a starter, the team went .268 and .378 respectively.

“Eric (coming to Philadelpia) has been big for me because he enabled me to play my natural position at scoring guard," said Iverson. "He had to take on the burden a lot of times of guarding bigger guys, and he does a great job doing it.

"He helped me with a lot of things on and off the basketball court. We know each other so well, and we’ve been through so many wars together."

Although Snow was a member of winning teams with the Sonics, the trade allowed him to emerge from the considerable shadow of All-Star point guard Gary Payton. Playing behind the future Hall of Famer, though, was an experience that helped greatly in Snow's development.

Iverson and Snow highlight video: 56k | 300k

“(Payton) is one of the top point guards in the league, and right now he’s definitely a Hall of Famer," said Snow. "He taught me how to run a team, how to play hard every game, how to play confident and compete. So he was a gamely example of how to win and succeed in this league.”

Snow has not only emerged from Payton's shadow, but has made a name for himself and, along with Iverson, is part of what is now regarded as one of the best backcourts in the NBA. And considering Snow just turned 30-years-old this year and Iverson is only 28, the Sixers are likely to benefit from their partnership for years to come.

"I think it’s a perfect backcourt," said Iverson. "And to me the most effective backcourt in the league.”

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