In a game that was more highly anticipated than any season opener, playoff game, or post season clincher in recent Sixers memory, Allen Iverson returned to the place where he was most responsible for revitalizing a dormant fan base.
In 1996, when the Sixers won the NBA lottery and thus the rights to the first overall pick, then owner, Pat Croce knew who he was taking.
The hard-luck, star-crossed superstar freshman from Georgetown that dazzled the NCAA had to be his.
He played with reckless abandon, and without any regard for his body. He played with a tenacity not often seen.
But most of all, he played with a will to win unlike any player Croce had ever seen before.
24,000 points, 13 years, four teams, and one unforgettable run to the NBA Finals later, and Iverson had undoubtedly left his mark on the game of basketball forever.
Five years after single-handedly carrying the 76ers to within three wins of immortality, Iverson talked his way out of the only city he'd ever called home in the NBA.
The ten year, indelible relationship with the fans of the 76ers was abruptly over. There would be no more " ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Tom Polaski
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