"MISUNDERSTOOD"
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NBA superstar Allen Iverson went through hard times in life. The experiences Iverson went through are enough to give up, but being strong and staying out of trouble has made a difference. ' As people get older, they realize hanging with the wrong people isn't the answer in life.
People make mistakes, and that made Iverson strong. Iverson realized his family was important, and he needed to succeed.
Iverson grew up hard, not having enough money to feed his family and being consider poor. Living in Hampton, Virginia where violence was life.
' Iverson played sports to better his life, and without it Iverson wouldn't be successful.
The hard work paid off, because Iverson is living his dream. Poor living can make a person strong, because it helped Iverson. Leaving the streets and focusing on a better life, makes a difference.
Iverson went through legal troubles, but he learned from them. Nobody should criticize Iverson, because making mistakes has changed his life.
There were problems on the court that made people think different about Iverson. Not getting his teammates involved, and not going to practice. Those problems changed his career; Iverson made big differences on how basketball is played.
Iverson is a great role model, and leaving the streets alone has changed his life. ' This message is for children; follow your dreams and don't give up. The most important is keep God first. - Introduction
On February 14, 1993, Allen Iverson and several friends were involved in an altercation. It took place at a Hampton, Virginia bowling alley, with several white teenagers. Iverson and his friends weren't acting correctly, and were asked to quiet down. Their disrespectful acts continued, and a fight broke out. Iverson was accused of throwing a chair, which hit a woman in her head. Iverson and his friends were arrested. He was 17 years old, and was convicted of "maiming-by-mob." Iverson's friends and family maintain his innocence, and stated he left the bowling alley when the fights began.
After spending four months in jail, Iverson had help. Former Governor of Virginia Douglas Wilder, was convinced Iverson was treated wrong. Iverson was released from his sentence, and the conviction was overturned.
In 1994, former Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson visited Iverson at Hampton's Bethel High School. Thompson told Iverson he will offer him a scholarship, and he'll have the opportunity to play basketball for Georgetown.
Iverson majored in Arts, it was something he loved ever since he was a child.
His career at Georgetown was great; he was able to bring success. Iverson won two Big East Defensive Player of The Year awards and a gold medal for his win at the World University Games in Japan in 1995. Iverson lead the USA in assists with 6.1 apg, and points 16.7 ppg. He also was Georgetown's all-time leading scorer.
Spending two years at Georgetown, Iverson entered the NBA draft. His poor living condition was the reason. He becomes the second player under Thompson to leave early for the NBA draft. Iverson was the first pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. His style of play gave himself a name during his rookie season; many 76ers fans found Iverson entertaining to watch. Iverson was named 1996 Rookie of The Year, and was a member of the NBA All Rookie First Team.
Iverson didn't handle the media well and never found them interesting. He was criticized by players and coaches, because of his lack of respect for NBA greats. Iverson was called selfish, and never got his teammates involved. The league office wasn't happy as well, because of Iversons tattoos and cornrows.
In 1997, Iverson and several friends were stopped by a policeman. He was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon and possession of marijuana. Iverson pleaded no contest and was sentenced to community service.
The 1998-1999 season, Iverson and the 76ers went to the playoffs. He started all playoff games, and was averaging 44.4 minutes per game. Iverson lead the 76ers to an upset over the Orlando Magic, but they lost to the Indiana Pacers. He averaged 26.8 points per game, and received his first scoring title.
In 2000, Iverson recorded a rap single called 40 Bars. Being criticized for his hardcore lyrics, he wasn't able to release his rap album.
Next season, Iverson averaged 28.4 points and lead the 76ers to the playoffs. In the playoffs, he averaged 26.2 points. Iverson scored 40 points in the first round opener in Charlotte on April 22. Deep into the playoffs the 76ers were beaten by the Indiana Pacers.
The 2000-2001 season, Iverson played great. He lead the 76ers to a 10-0 record to start the season, and Iverson won the All-Star MVP. The 76ers were 56-26, which was the best record in the Eastern Conference that season.
In the playoffs, Iverson lead his 76ers over the Indiana Pacers, and the Toronto Raptors. The 76ers were able to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, and went to the 2001 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Iverson scored a game high 48 points in game 1 to get the win. Former Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal, and guard Kobe Bryant lead the Lakers to win the next four games.
Iverson and former head coach Larry Brown had a love-hate relationship. Iverson praised Coach Brown for his achievements, and was thankful. Brown and Iverson had some though times as well. Brown criticized Iverson for not showing up to practice, and it started controversy. “If Coach tells you that I missed practice, then that's that. I may have missed one practice this year but if somebody says he missed one practice of all the practices this year, then that's enough to get a whole lot started. I told Coach Brown that you don't have to give the people of Philadelphia a reason to think about trading me or anything like that. If you trade somebody, you trade them to make the team better...simple as that. I'm cool with that. I'm all about that. The people in Philadelphia deserve to have a winner. It's simple as that. It goes further than that ... If I can't practice, I can't practice. It is as simple as that. It isn’t about that at all. It's easy to sum it up if you're just talking about practice. We're sitting here, and I'm supposed to be the franchise player, and we're talking about practice. I mean listen, we're sitting here talking about practice, not a game, not a game, not a game, but we're talking about practice. Not the game that I go out there and die for and play every game like it's my last, but we're talking about practice man. How silly is that? ... Now I know that I'm supposed to lead by example and all that but I'm not shoving that aside like it don't mean anything. I know it's important, I honestly do but we're talking about practice. We're talking about practice man. We're talking about practice. We're talking about practice. We're not talking about the game. We're talking about practice. When you come to the arena, and you see me play, you've seen me play right, you've seen me give everything I've got, but we're talking about practice right now. ... Hey I hear you, it's funny to me too, hey it's strange to me too but we're talking about practice man, we're not even talking about the game, when it actually matters, we're talking about practice ... How the hell can I make my teammates better by practicing?" said Iverson.
Coach Brown left the 76ers in 2003, but Iverson always considered Brown as a father figure.
In 2002, Iverson's personal life was news. He allegedly threw his wife Tawanna Iverson out the house during a fight. The next night, Iverson went looking for her at his cousin’s house. His cousin didn't let him in, but according to police reports, Iverson threatened to kill his cousin Charles Jones, while showing them a gun. Later on, all charges were dropped after conflicting testimonies from witnesses.
In the late 2003-2004 season, Iverson and former 76ers head coach Chris Ford weren't happy with each other. Iverson was suspended and fine, because of missing practice. He refused to play in games, because of Fords misunderstanding of his injuries.
On December 8, 2006 report Iverson demanded a trade from the 76ers. After missing practice prior to a game against the Washington Wizards, Iverson was told not to play with the 76ers anymore.
On December 19, the 76ers traded Iverson and Ivan McFarlin to the Denver Nuggets for Andre Miller, Joe Smith, and two first round draft picks.
