Citing "those who claim to be in the know," freelance writer Sam Amico says the Orlando Magic and New Orleans Hornets "have expressed an interest in" working out free-agent guard Allen Iverson. In response, ESPN's Marc Stein debunks the Hornets portion of that rumor, but says there's "no word" about the Magic. However, a source with knowledge of the team's thinking told me that Orlando has no interest in the four-time scoring champion, citing the fact that the Magic already have three point guards under contract.
When starting point guard Jameer Nelson went down with a knee injury last November, Magic GM Otis Smith discussed the possibility of adding Iverson with the media, which Brian Schmitz recounts here. But with Nelson healthy, and with the team stocked with competent backups Chris Duhon and Jason Williams, the Magic don't really have a need for Iverson. The same holds true at shooting guard, where Vince Carter and J.J. Redick will see almost all the minutes.
The Magic had Williams in for a workout last summer, and signed him shortly the next day.
Iverson owns a career average of 26.7 points per game, but has seen his career derailed over the last two seasons as he fell out of favor with the Detroit Pistons and Memphis Grizzlies. His return to the Philadelphia 76ers, for whom he played the first 11-plus seasons of his career, did not work out as well as he had hoped. He played in just 25 games and averaged 13.9 points before leaving the team to tend to his ill daughter.