I’m not sure what to believe with all the stories I’ve heard about Allen Iverson this year.
He plays 3 games with Memphis, then leaves the team for personal reasons.
Iverson and the Grizzlies part ways.
He retires
Iverson signs with the Sixers.
He leaves the Sixers for personal reasons to care for a sick child.
His wife files for divorce.
An article comes out saying he is hopelessly addicted to alcohol and gambling.
OK, I can believe he got all moody with Memphis knowing he was going to be a bench player and Memphis wasn’t looking like a playoff team. I can believe the Sixers brought him back to help sell tickets for a team that was horrible.
Since then, I’m not sure what is going on. Did he really leave the Sixers or did they boot him out and covered up with the ‘personal reasons.’ I think the story about his sick child is true, but then why would his wife file for divorce? Did she file for divorce so she could get some money from the settlement before he gambles it all away? Is Iverson really banned in casinos in Detroit and Atlantic City? Was he gambling all night long in casinos while he was with Detroit last year?
One of the strangest stories I’ve heard in a while.
All I know is, I’m glad he’s not with the 76ers any more. I usually root for cities I have some connection with, and I went to school in Philadelphia, but I just absolutely cannot root for any team with Iverson on it. He’s a glory-hog that puts his own performance ahead of his team’s.
Well, I don’t know about the details of the situation…I’m not psychic or anything…but having read the article, this doesn’t sound at all strange to me. Actually, it sounds like a somewhat milder version of what happened to Mike Tyson (and probably John Daly before too long).
Rough upbringing. Talent recognized early on. Lack of self-control also discovered, to the point where he’ll ALWAYS need to have someone watching over him. Talent nutured and developed by capable hands, eventually turning into a lucrative professional career. Too much, too soon (which affects all kinds of superstars, not just those with bad upbringings), skewed sense of perspective, good adult habits not developed, parasitic hangers-on drawn like flies, extravagant lifestyle, etc. Good influences die/move away/give up on him. Then the great fall, when his career ends and his expensive habits don’t. Oh, and along the way he’s gotten married and now has several children, yet another drain on his rapidly-dwindling assets. (In Daly’s case, substitute “alimonies” for “children”.)
Mix lack of wisdom, tons of easy cash, and destructive habits, and it does not end well.