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Philadelphia 76ers: Allen Iverson Should Get Hall Call In 2016

By Phil Watson

Mar 1, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; A banner with the jersey number of Philadelphia 76ers former guard Allen Iverson is raised to the rafters during a ceremony at halftime of game between the 76ers and Washington Wizards at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 1, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; A banner with the jersey number of Philadelphia 76ers former guard Allen Iverson is raised to the rafters during a ceremony at halftime of game between the 76ers and Washington Wizards at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports /
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Former Philadelphia 76ers star Allen Iverson could be enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as soon as 2016, according to a report.

NBA.com’s Scott Howard-Cooper reported Friday that Iverson’s 10-game stint with Besiktas in Turkey in 2010-11 will not be considered, thus rendering Iverson eligible to go on the ballot for the Class of 2016.

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Iverson played his final NBA game with the 76ers on Feb. 20, 2010, scoring 13 points in 29 minutes of a 122-90 loss to the Chicago Bulls at the United Center.

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He’s got to be considered close to a lock to be a first-ballot entry into the Hall, with the only other new entry on the ballot with at least 50 career Win Shares being Michael Finley.

Others who have already been on the ballot and should get consideration next year include Chris Webber and Anfernee Hardaway.

Iverson has always been a polarizing figure.

Some see a tough-as-nails player who battled through his 6-foot, 165-pound stature to dominate games with his driving and scoring. Others see a ball hog that never did enough to make his teams better.

Iverson was the NBA MVP in 2000-01, when he led the 76ers into an NBA Finals mismatch against the Los Angeles Lakers. He was Rookie of the Year in 1996-97 after being selected first overall by the Sixers out of Georgetown in the NBA Draft, and he was a two-time All-Star Game MVP.

What critics sometimes want to ignore is the impact Iverson had off the floor.

Playing in an era where most star athletes cultivate a carefully controlled public image, Iverson was as real as they came—for better or worse.

His lack of a filter was either refreshing or repulsive, depending on one’s point of view.

“I took an ass-kicking for me being me in my career, for me looking the way I looked and dressing the way I dressed,” Iverson said at his 2013 retirement press conference in Philadelphia, per The Atlantic. “My whole thing was just being me. Now you look around the NBA and all of them have tattoos, guys wearing cornrows. You used to think the suspect was the guy with the cornrows, now you see the police officers with the cornrows.”

I’ll admit to coming full circle on Iverson over the course of his career. I was not a huge fan of his game early in his career, but there was one factor which swung me around.

That was the reverence with which he was held by his peers. It was the sort of reverence players reserve for the true legends of the court.

Iverson held a special place within the hierarchy of NBA players, much higher than was depicted by the media.

But there may not have been a better player, inch-for-inch, pound-for-pound, in the history of the league than Allen Iverson and that has to mean something to the Hall of Fame voters.

Or at least it should.

Decry his style, his attitude, his culture if you must, but at least recognize what was there—a player who put it all out there, every night, throwing his body around without regard for tomorrow.

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    • His style of play had to be a factor in the steep decline his career arc embarked upon, that and his proclivity for enjoying the life of a rich man who came from less than nothing.

    Make no mistake, when Iverson’s career was over, he was the last to realize it, as he was unable or unwilling to sublimate his game into a supporting role.

    There was criticism over this, as well, Iverson’s inability to make the transition from alpha dog to role player.

    But some players aren’t destined to be glue guys. Some are destined to burn bright as hell for a relatively short time, burning out in the stratosphere as they descend.

    And that might be the best way to describe the life and career of Allen Iverson, the biggest little badass who ever donned an NBA uniform.

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