Last Saturday, Philadelphia basketball fans brimmed with excitement as the 76ers hosted the Wizards. Their enthusiasm was not for the game itself, but because Allen “AI” Iverson had his jersey retired at halftime. Iverson was never the biggest or strongest player on the basketball court, but his rugged passion and fearlessness strongly resonated with both Philadelphia fans and young players around the globe.
Iverson was generously listed at six feet, 160 pounds, but his small stature never interfered with his undeniable skill. Iverson could score 40 points if needed, and had a well-rounded offensive game. As a result, he has won four scoring titles, made 11 All-Star appearances, and is often referred to as the greatest pound-for-pound scorer ever. Iverson also used his remarkable quickness to play stellar defense and get tons of steals. Nevertheless, Iverson’s greatest asset was his killer crossover dribble. He regularly crossed over helpless defenders, and had millions of kids trying to copy his moves. His hard work paid off in 2001 when the 76ers reached the NBA Finals, largely due to Iverson’s clutch performances in Game seven wins over Toronto and Milwaukee. Iverson won the MVP that year after recording 31 points and 2.5 steals per game. While Iverson never won a championship, his career stats are insane. He averaged 26.7 points, 2.2 steals, 6.2 assists and 41.1 minutes per game over 14 seasons.
Nevertheless, Iverson was most famous for playing with reckless abandon and total determination in every game.
Despite these accolades, Iverson gained just as much notoriety for poor behavior and disciplinary issues. Iverson grew up with a single, teenage mother in Hampton, Va. At 17-years-old, Iverson and his friends got into a major fight and he allegedly struck a woman with a chair. He served five months in jail of a five-year sentence before being acquitted on insufficient evidence, but the incident nearly cost Iverson a chance to play college basketball. During his NBA career, Iverson was caught with marijuana and a concealed gun, went to trial on accusations of abusing his wife, and urinated in a trash can in Atlantic City. Moreover, many veterans disliked Iverson for his trashtalking, complaints about practice and occasional showboating. For all these reasons, many dismissed Iverson as a thug.
Despite all these shortcomings, Iverson signed a major endorsement deal with Reebok and was idolized by many kids. On Saturday, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dikembe Mutumbo and Julius Irving all offered support for Iverson, yet All-Star guard John Wall may have summed it up best. “He was my role model and I looked up to him…being a small guard, that’s where I took a lot of my game from. He always gave his best effort. I always wanted to grow braids like him.”
Allen Iverson never won a championship, but his ability to captivate millions of fans for 14 memorable years might be an even greater victory.
— Dominic Kearns
