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Come Fan with UsTuesday, June 23, 2026

Iverson’s Desire To Stay The Same Led To His Demise

Kelly Dwyer of Ball Don’t Lie writes that what made Allen Iverson great, also led to his downfall from the NBA:

Every step of the way, Iverson stayed true to himself. And, in a game and a culture that had grown up around him, that steadfast refusal to do anything but stay true to himself resulted in this early, unnecessary retirement.

[…]

It was that personality that won him those awards, that personality that inspired Larry Brown to build a team around a shoot-first 5-foot-11 guard, and that personality that made him so, so popular. He should have been popular. The man had the heart of a giant.

And in the end, it did him in. Iverson never adapted. His game never grew, it hardly changed, and everybody knew. He could still get his — A.I. was still averaging over 26 points and seven assists for the Nuggets two seasons ago — but at what cost?

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