Allen Iverson has a rich legacy as one of the best players in the Philadelphia 76ers history books. He is possibly the best pound-for-pound player the NBA has ever had, as he was a 6’0” guard who dominated the league as its best scorer.
Some people outside of Philadelphia may not understand why A.I. is an icon, but he is a certified Philly legend due to his unwavering love for the 76ers organization and the city, even amid trade rumors following the 2000 Playoffs.
“All summer long, I woke up scared every morning not knowing if I was on another team or not,” Iverson said in a 2000 interview after losing in the Playoffs. “I want to be right here where I’m at where people love me and I love these people.”
Iverson wanted to win a championship in Philly
In hindsight, The Answer did not win a title in Philadelphia, but he always did his best to spearhead the team for a chance at a championship. The best example of this was during the 2000/01 season. It was the year that A.I. won the regular season MVP and then led the 76ers to the Finals.
That happened a few months after he was involved in trade talks away from Philly . He cemented his place in the 76ers pantheon as the leader and figurehead of the team amidst his rollercoaster relationship with head coach Larry Brown .
“This situation, I kinda knew what was gonna happen. I think that was a part of me just growing up. The things they told me I had to take care of to make that thing work, I knew it was things that I could control and could get a grip on,” Iverson continued.
The shifty guard and Brown concluded in the 2000 offseason that running it back would be the best decision. It also needed more contributions from Allen, hence why he was named team captain. He delivered on his promise to lead Philly because he was the regular-season MVP as the 76ers got a 56-26 record built on Iverson’s solo-carry job.
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It did not work out for Allen and Philly
Unfortunately, Iverson did not win a championship in his career. He tried his best with Philly, but they could not beat the Los Angeles Lakers in 2001, arguably the most dominant team in NBA postseason history.
However, A.I. still had a legendary performance in Game 1 of the Finals , scoring 48 points to give L.A. their only loss in that Playoff run. Iverson's persona and on the court play were a perfect match for City of Brotherly love so it is no surprise that the connection stayed to this day.
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