Most Valuable Player? Allen Iverson might not even be the slam-dunk answer in the Most Valuable Sixer sweepstakes.

	Love him or hate him, Iverson has game.

Coach of the Year? Larry Brown definitely needed a boost before thrusting little Allen into prime position for a transformation.

In both of those hardware quests, Matt Geiger has to figure in somewhere. Can't talk about Iverson and Brown, can't dissect how they brought love and brotherhood to Philadelphia, without bringing up Geiger. No joke, folks: Geiger counts as an instrumental third party in the Iverson/Brown dynamic, injuries and suspensions aside, just for what he did prior to this breakthrough season.

Geiger, remember, refused to waive the $1.2 million annual trade kicker for the final four seasons of his six-year, $47 million contact.

And that stance was high among the sparks that imploded one of the most complex swaps in NBA history -- a four-teamer discussed in July and August that would have landed Geiger and Iverson in Detroit, weeks in advance of the fall's first Larry lecture.

We'd like to think that Brown and boss Pat Croce would have ultimately scuttled the deal no matter what, with or without the Geiger factor. That they were simply trying to scare Iverson into the compliance he has unexpectedly maintained all season, just as with those rumors of a banishment to the Clippers.

	Who knew how important Matt Geiger would be?

Except that this was a very real deal. In its most well-known incarnation: Eddie Jones, Glen Rice, Jerome Williams and Dale Ellis were Philly-bound; Iverson and Geiger headed to Detroit; Jerry Stackhouse, Christian Laettner and Travis Knight routed to Charlotte; and Anthony Mason, Toni Kukoc and Todd Fuller dispatched to the LA Lakers.

As Croce himself told ESPN The Magazine's Tom Friend: "It came close, brother, it came close."

As close, you might say, as the shaved scalp Geiger sports. Which makes No. 52 a Pretty Valuable Sixer, if not quite the MVS, for his role in helping to prevent Iverson's departure.

Max Still Mad
No less a Larry detractor than Vernon Maxwell thinks The Relationship can work. Maxwell believes his good buddy Iverson can co-exist with Coach Brown all the way to the NBA Finals.

	Maxwell

The Iverson-Brown marriage?

"It's a lot better than it was," Maxwell says. "They can get along just enough to do their jobs. They'll be fine."

Maxwell made those assertions Saturday, after debuting for his new team in Dallas. Made them even though Mad Max freely admits that being waived by Brown just before Christmas continues to steam him, three months later. Iverson remains bothered by it, too according to Max.

"He was upset because we grew to be real good friends," Maxwell said. "And he felt they should have come to him first, because he's supposed to be the franchise player, but they didn't.

"We had our agreement -- keep your nose clean and you'll play," Max continued. "I still got stiffed. When I got released it made me look like, 'What did he do now?' I haven't done anything."

Persevering Pierce
The Sixers will almost certainly open the playoffs against either Indiana or Boston, and you can guess who they're privately rooting for. The Pacers have eliminated Philadelphia the past two springs. The Celtics, meanwhile, are a two-man team for whom simply reaching the first round would be the achievement.

	Pierce

Or, rather, the season's second most significant accomplishment. Foremost on the praiseworthy list is Paul Pierce, who has amazingly ranked among the league's top 10 scoring leaders all season, even after nearly losing his life in that stabbing incident a week before training camp.

Adding to the bravery is the revelation from interim Celtics coach Jim O'Brien, on a recent swing through Dallas, that Pierce has maintained his scoring standards without a single upper-body workout. Which is why O'Brien is so excited about next season, assuming that he still has the job, when Pierce can resume sculpting the physique he worked so hard on last summer.

"He has not been able to lift because of the scar tissue," O'Brien said. "What he's doing right now, I think, is remarkable. When he comes back, he'll be a more physical Paul Pierce, one of the superstars of this league."

Said Pierce, simply: "I think it's past me."

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