could miss three weeks after an MRI revealed a partial tear in his left
hamstring.
The Grizzlies made the announcement before Wednesday
night's exhibition game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. If the timetable is
correct, Iverson would miss all of preseason, and his status for the season
opener at home against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 28 would be in jeopardy.
"The way I see it, I'm glad it's happening right now
rather than in the season," Iverson said in a pregame press conference. "That's
the only positive thing I can take out of the whole thing."
Iverson, declaring himself a quick healer, said he
expects to be back in time for the opener. He was hurt during the Grizzlies'
training camp in Birmingham, Ala. last week and said he was just starting to get
into shape after not playing basketball for five months waiting to see where he
was going to land for this season.
"My legs were starting to feel a lot better than they had
the first three or four days," Iverson said. "Then, just like that, I hurt the
hamstring."
Entering his 14th season, the four-time NBA scoring champ
signed with the Grizzlies last month, the biggest name ever to join the
franchise. Iverson said he has never dealt with hamstring problems in his career
and wants to make sure he is completely healed before returning to the court.
"My whole thing is to work as hard as I can to try and
get back to 100 percent," Iverson said. "I don't want to try and come back too
early and have this thing lingering on throughout the whole season."