Allen Ezail Iverson (born June 7, 1975, in Hampton, Virginia)

nicknamed "A.I." and "The Answer", is an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association. His career scoring average of 27.8 points per game is third all-time behind only Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain.

As a junior, Iverson quarterbacked Bethel High School's football team to the state championship, which they won.

Iverson was later involved in a highly publicized incident on Valentine's Day that almost jeopardized his college career. On February 14, 1993, Iverson and several of his friends became involved in an altercation with a group of white teenagers at a Hampton, Virginia bowling alley named Spare Times. Allen's crowd was raucous and had to be asked to quiet down several times, and eventually something of a shouting duel began with another group of youths (all white). Then shortly thereafter, a huge fight erupted, pitting the white crowd against the blacks. During the fight, Iverson allegedly struck a woman in the head with a chair. He, along with three of his friends who are also African-American, were the only people arrested. Iverson, who was 17 at the time, was convicted as an adult of the felony charge of "maiming-by-mob". Iverson and his supporters maintain his innocence, claiming that he had left the alley as soon as the trouble began. "For me to be in a bowling alley where everybody in the whole place know who I am and be crackin' people upside the head with chairs and think nothin' gonna happen?" asks Iverson. "That's crazy! And what kind of a man would I be to hit a girl in the head with a damn chair? I wish at least they'd said I hit some damn man."

This incident was profiled on the television news magazine 60 Minutes due to claims of racial bias in the adjudication of the case. Douglas Wilder, at the time Governor of Virginia, became convinced that Iverson had been treated unfairly and controversially granted Iverson clemency, releasing him from his sentence. Iverson's conviction was later overturned on appeal.

In spring 1994, Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson visited Iverson at Hampton's Bethel High School. Thompson told the prolific guard that he would offer him a scholarship, but he would not hesitate to send him back to Hampton with his "tail between his legs" if he failed to comply with the legendary coach, or strict honor code of Georgetown.

At Georgetown, Iverson was an Arts major, his first love as a child. He is still known for caricatures that depict teammates and celebrities.

As a Hoya, Iverson won two Big East Defensive Player of the Year awards, a Rookie Tournament 1st Team, and a gold medal for his win at the World University Games in Japan in 1995. Iverson led all USA players in scoring and assists, averaging 16.7 ppg. and 6.1 apg. He was also the Hoyas All-Time leading scorer.

As his family situation worsened, Iverson needed to turn pro early, which meant leaving school before graduating. Iverson was the first of just two basketball players (Victor Page being the other) to leave Georgetown early for the NBA under Thompson.

76ers years from 1996-2006

After two seasons at Georgetown, Allen Iverson was selected first overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1996 NBA Draft. Iverson quickly established himself as one of the premier point guards in the NBA. He also gained a reputation as fun to watch and promptly filled the Sixers arena. He was named 1996 Rookie of the Year and was a member of the NBA All-Rookie First Team.

Despite his play on the court, Iverson often experienced difficulty handling the media and pressure of his new celebrity status. He was criticized by players, coaches, and the press alike, who often accused Iverson of a lack of respect for great NBA players, selfishness with the ball, and failure, despite his individual achievements, to lead Sixers to a better record. He also endured scrutiny from the league office, who didn't like his hip-hop based persona, which included cornrows and a growing number of tattoos on his body. Even though his scoring dropped from 23.5 in the 1996-97 season to 22 in 1997-98, Iverson became more of a team player.

In the 1998-1999 season, Iverson had his first trip to the playoffs. He started all ten playoff games and averaged 44.4 minutes per game despite being hampered by a number of nagging injuries. Iverson led the Sixers to an upset over the higher seeded Orlando Magic, before losing to a veteran laden Indiana Pacers squad. That year, he averaged 26.8 points earning his first scoring title.

The next year, Iverson averaged 28.4 points and once again led the 76ers into the playoffs. In the playoffs, Iverson averaged 26.2 points, 4.8 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.30 steals per game, with a high of 40 points in the first round opener at Charlotte on April 22. That season, he was the only player other than Shaquille O'Neal to get a NBA Most Valuable Player vote. However, the Sixers were once again eliminated by the Indiana Pacers.

2000-2001 MVP season

Iverson arguably had his best season in 2001 — he led his team to win their first ten games, he started and won All-Star MVP honors at the All Star Game. The Sixers also posted a 56-26 record, which was best in the Eastern Conference that season. He also averaged a then-career high 31.1 points, winning his second NBA scoring title in the process. Iverson won the NBA steals title at 2.5 a game. Iverson was named NBA Most Valuable Player for his accomplishments.

In the playoffs, Iverson and the Sixers defeated the Indiana Pacers in the first round, before meeting Vince Carter-led Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Semifinals. The series went the full seven games. In the next round, the Sixers defeated the Milwaukee Bucks, also in seven games, to advance to the 2001 NBA Finals against the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. Iverson scored a playoff high 48 in Game 1, which the Sixers won, and which would prove to be the only game the Lakers lost during the playoffs. However, the Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant led Lakers would win the next 4 games and the title. It was the high point of Iverson's tenure in Philadelphia.

Mid career

After the defeat in the 2001 Finals, Iverson's Sixers would never again see the success he had in the 2000-01 season. In the next season Iverson again won the scoring title averaging 31.4 points, but the Sixers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the first time in Iverson's career.

2006 trade to Denver

On April 18, 2006 Iverson and Chris Webber arrived late to the Sixers' fan appreciation night and home game finale. Players are expected to report 90 minutes before game time, but both Iverson and Webber arrived around tipoff. Coach Maurice Cheeks notified the media that neither would be playing and general manager Billy King announced that Iverson and Webber would be fined.During the 2006 off-season, trade rumors had Iverson going to Denver, Atlanta, or Boston. None of the deals were completed. Iverson had made it clear that he would like to stay a Sixer.

On November 29, 2006 following a conflict at practice, Iverson stormed out of the gymnasium. That same evening, Iverson missed a corporate sponsor night at Lucky Strike Lanes in Philadelphia. All the 76ers besides Iverson attended this mandatory event. Iverson was fined an undisclosed amount by the 76ers. Iverson claimed he overslept after taking medication for pain related to having two abscessed teeth pulled but it was reported that Iverson told teammates earlier in the day he planned to blow off the event and was simply going to take the fine.

On December 8 Iverson reportedly demanded a trade from the Sixers. As a result of the demand and missing practice prior to a matchup against the Washington Wizards, Iverson was told not to play nor attend any further games. During that game, which was televised nationally on ESPN, Sixers Chairman Ed Snider confirmed the trade rumors by stating "We're going to trade him. At a certain point, you have to come to grips with the fact that it's not working. He wants out and we're ready to accommodate him."

On December 19, the Philadelphia 76ers sent Iverson and forward Ivan McFarlin to the Denver Nuggets for Andre Miller, Joe Smith, and two first-round picks in the 2007 NBA Draft.

Bio courtesy of Wikipedia.com