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PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia 76ers
have said goodbye to A.I.
Allen Iverson's (FSY) second stint with the team he once led to the NBA
Finals ended with a whimper Tuesday when the Sixers announced he would
not return for the rest of the season.
Iverson has mostly been absent from the team for a
month, returning to Atlanta to be with his family as they deal with an
undisclosed illness of his 4-year-old daughter, Messiah.
Iverson, who returned to the 76ers as a free
agent in December, has not played since Feb. 20.
"After discussing the situation with Allen, we
have come to the conclusion that he will not return to the Sixers for
the remainder of the season, as he no longer wishes to be a distraction
to the organization and teammates that he loves very deeply," team
president Ed Stefanski said. "It has been very difficult for Allen and
the team to maintain any consistency as he tries to balance his career
with his personal life."
The former NBA MVP and four-time scoring champion
averaged 13.8 points in 28 games this season. He started the season
with Memphis but only played three games before he announced a
short-lived retirement.
Coach Eddie Jordan said at
practice it was best for Iverson to move on and put his focus on his
family.
"I think it was the right thing to do at the
right time," Jordan said. "His body of work has proven to be a terrific
body of work in the history of the NBA."
Iverson's agent, Leon Rose, did not immediately return
messages seeking comment. Other attempts to reach Iverson were
unsuccessful.
Iverson, 34, made a tearful return to
Philadelphia eager to prove he wasn't finished after disastrous stints
in Detroit and Memphis. He returned to a sold-out crowd dotted with No. 3
jerseys, but he only showed flashes of his former playmaking self when
he ruled the NBA as one of the best guards around. He scored at least 20
points six times — including a 23-point effort in a game against the Lakers that turned into a
throwback 1-on-1 duel vs. Kobe Bryant (FSY).
"Before it was like, give him the ball, everybody
spread out and let him do his thing," Sixers center Samuel Dalembert (FSY) said. "Now, he's like, you have to run this, you
have to get him involved. He was still learning the offense. There were a
couple of games where it was a struggle offensively, but other games he
got the feel for it. You got the flash of A.I."
Iverson said at a Feb. 15 practice that it was
emotionally draining to leave his family to play basketball.
"It was tough to leave her and my wife and kids,"
Iverson said. "But I do have a commitment and an obligation to be with
my team and to do my job. But it is rough. I think this is the only
thing I do in life where for a couple hours during the game I don't
think about nothing but (basketball)."
Iverson was hobbled by an arthritic left knee and
constantly needed it drained. He usually walked gingerly around the
locker room after games. His dwindling production didn't bother his fans
— Iverson was voted a starter for the East All-Stars, though he did not
play.
Dalembert, who played with Iverson in both his
Philly stints, said A.I. was not the same player who once terrorized the
opposition. But Dalembert also noticed a more reserved, humbled Iverson
who just wanted to fit in instead of dominating the ball or making
splashy headlines with controversial or selfish actions.
"He was focused, he was being a leader,"
Dalembert said. "It was a completely different Iverson. The role we
needed him to play, he was doing it. He understood what he needed to do
for the team and he came in and did it."
The Sixers have been awful with or without
Iverson. They are 22-37 after a 126-105 loss to Orlando on Monday night.
They were on a nine-game losing streak when Iverson made his debut on
Dec. 7.
Andre Iguodala (FSY), another Sixer who saw both ends of Iverson's time
in Philly, said he'll miss No. 3.
"He did a good job bringing his personality to
us," Iguodala said. "On the plane, on the bus, just having a chance to
laugh. He brought a huge positive side. Guys enjoyed being around him."
Iverson was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1996
draft and spent 10 seasons in Philadelphia before he was traded to
Denver in December 2006. He won the MVP in 2001 when he led the Sixers
to the Finals.
Now, the global superstar who popularized
"talking about practice," might be talking about retirement. This time,
to stay.