The Right Answer - Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers

Basketball Digest, Summer, 2001 by John Jr. Smallwood

After achieving instant individual success but leaving the Sixers with little to show for it, Allen Iverson's unselfish play is just what the team has asked for

IT WAS THE 70TH GAME OF THE season, and the Philadelphia 76ers were reeling. A team that hadn't lost three straight games all year suddenly was stuck in a five-game losing streak. The Milwaukee Bucks were challenging the Sixers for the best record in the Eastern Conference, and after missing four games with a small tear in his left hip muscle, Allen Iverson decided he would play his first game in nearly two weeks.

Iverson played 43 minutes, scored 36 points on 15-for-35 shooting, and had a season-high six steals. The Sixers beat the Bucks, 90-78; the ship was righted.

Over the next seven games, the Sixers would clinch their first Atlantic Division title in a decade and secure home-court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Yes, Philadelphia won games without Iverson in the lineup, but no single player was more crucial to the regular-season success of his team than Iverson--which is why he is the 2000-01 BASKETBALL DIGEST Player of the Year. Without Iverson, the Sixers would have fallen from an NBA Finals-caliber team to one that would have struggled simply to qualify for the playoffs.

"Nothing he does surprises me," Sixers teammate Eric Snow says. "He's a special kid, a special player. That's why he's the best player in the league."

In some NBA seasons, the debate over who should be named Player of the Year has come down to choosing either the best player in the league or the player who means the most to his team. This season there was no such debate, because Iverson was both.

Without question, each player comprising our All-NBA First Team [see our story beginning on page 32] could have made a case as our Player of the Year. But when it came down to it, the player known as "The Answer" was clearly the only answer.

"It's just been a very special season," says Iverson, who's grown from an undisciplined player who was nearly traded during the offseason to a rock-steady leader who guided the Sixers to a 56-26 record, their best since the 1984-85 season. "God has blessed me with a lot of ability and talent, and I just wanted to make sure I took advantage of that. Everything I've accomplished this year is a tribute to my teammates and coaches, because I couldn't do anything without them."

Indeed, it's been a remarkable season for Iverson, the 6'0", 165-pound scoring machine who dominated the league like few little men ever have. In a year when the Sixers achieved outstanding team success, Iverson gained respect around the league as not only a great player but a great teammate and winner. Heads were turned from coast to coast because of his newfound maturity and leadership.

"I always told Allen that if you play winning basketball, all of the other stuff will come," says Sixers coach Larry Brown, who butted heads with Iverson for three seasons before clicking with him this year. "Allen has had great numbers before, but this year he is a legitimate MVP. The best player on one of the best teams should be considered for that. Allen is one of those guys, and that's nice for everyone in this organization."

To be sure, Iverson has statistics that measure up with anyone's. If the goal in basketball is to score points, then no player in the NBA is as proficient as Iverson. During the lockout-shortened 1999 season, Iverson became the shortest scoring champion in league history by averaging 26.8 points per game. And he's gotten better since then.

Not only did Iverson win his second scoring title this season, but his 31.1 ppg made him the first player to average more than 30 points since Michael Jordan averaged 30.4 points in the 1995-96 season, when "His Airness" was BASKETBALL DIGEST'S Player of the Year.

Despite being a little man in a big man's game, Iverson's uncanny quickness and amazing ball-handling skills make him one of the few unguardable players in the league. Double- and triple-teams rarely slow him down.

"Believe it or not, we tried doubling him," former Cleveland coach Randy Wittman said after Iverson dropped a career-high 54 on the Cavs on January 6. "But he got the ball so far out and was shooting before the double-team got there. What could we really do, anyway?"

Many a coach has had the same feeling when trying to figure out a way to contain Iverson. With a stunning hesitation dribble, Iverson blows by defenders and leaves them flat-footed. And being fearless, he doesn't let his size stop him from driving to the basket. He ranked fourth in the league in free throw attempts (719) this season in part because the only way to stop Iverson's drives to the basket was to foul him. In short, Iverson was an unstoppable scoring machine.

And while Iverson certainly took a lot of shots--he finished second in the NBA in field goal attempts with 1,813--he actually became a much better team player. The offense revolved around Iverson, who provided nearly a third of Philadelphia's points but didn't hog the ball the way he used to. He learned to trust his teammates. Iverson's assists total (325) was his highest since his second season, when he was still a point guard.