Allen Iverson faced hardship on the court during the late 2000-01 NBA regular season. While that stretch of individual performance certainly weighed on him, there was nevertheless a silver lining for A.I.
Specifically, when he wasn't performing at his best, his Philadelphia 76ers teammates proved capable of stepping up, occasionally bailing out their star player.
"I've been struggling, but that's what's making me feel good about the team. Even with me struggling, we're still winning games," Allen said , per SLAM Magazine.
A.I. was learning to trust his team
Despite being one of the league's premier players at that time, Iverson occasionally faced struggles. However, instead of handling that adversity the 'right' way, he admitted to not always doing so.
Reflecting on his reaction to past failures on the court, A.I. said, "I would get frustrated and not play the way I wanted to."
The Hall of Famer evidently was getting accustomed to one important realization: namely that the individual performance of one player alone should not determine the outcome of the game. It's a team effort, with every guy on the Sixers roster having to play their part, especially when their best player wasn't performing up to par. When that happened, the 6'0" guard had to put trust in others to come through.
Related: Michael Jordan on playing point guard for the Dream Team: "I told the players before the game I'm not Magic Johnson"
The 76ers supporting cast was key
The newfound mindset of Iverson, an 11-time All-Star during his storied career, was influenced by a few of his 76ers teammates that year.
Special contributors included the reliable vet center Dikembe Mutombo, who had been acquired mid-season. Next was Aaron McKie, named Sixth Man of The Year for his big contributions off the bench. Additionally, there was the team's second-leading scorer, Theo Ratliff (12.4 points), along with key hustlers like Tyrone Hill. Showing their skills, they gradually convinced 'The Answer' to delegate certain tasks while remaining the top dog.
"Now it's OK to struggle and keep fighting to make something happen. If I struggle 47 minutes, I think I can break the struggle in the last minute. If I keep that approach, I'll be alright," he said.
Being 'alright' was certainly an understatement as Allen—for the most part—excelled that year. Earning the 2001 MVP award, he averaged outstanding stats of 31.1 points, 4.6 assists, and 2.5 steals per game. Undoubtedly, 'The Answer' more than made up for those rare occasions when his teammates had to bail him out.
Impressively, the Philadelphia team finished the regular season with a 56-26 record, securing first place in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, they made it all the way to the 2001 NBA finals but eventually fell short against the stacked Los Angeles Lakers.
Related: "It was a big-ass f**king deal" - Allen Iverson clears air on his infamous feud with Michael Jordan during his rookie season
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