http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4690266However, ESPN 980 in Washington D.C. reports Iverson's college coach at Georgetown, John Thompson, says Iverson is not retiring.
Iverson has agreed to meet with Thompson, after speaking with him on Wednesday night, according to the report. Thompson, who hosts a talk show on ESPN 980, is opposed to Iverson ending his 14-year career.
Is Iverson Having a Change of Heart?
SportingNews
Allen Iverson announced that he’s retiring from the NBA. But is that really the last we’ve seen from him?
Iverson sent a statement to Stephen A. Smith of FOX Sports Radio on Wednesday about his retirement. But, according to Smith, sources close to Iverson are saying he’s already having a change of heart after seeing some of the reaction around the league.
"I think he just wants to feel wanted again," one of the sources said.
A couple of the notable reactions from around the league included the Heat’s Dwyane Wade and the Nuggets’ Carmelo Anthony.
"I’m No. 3. He made No. 3 cool,” Wade told NBA.com “He made crossovers cool. He did so much for the game as a pioneer. It’s sad to see him think about retirement."
"It’s tough — just a messed-up way to go out like that,” Anthony told The Denver Post. “Especially knowing you can still play, knowing you still got it.”
Iverson played just three games in Memphis this season, leaving the team after complaining about his lack of playing time. In his retirement announcement, he said, “I still have tremendous love for the game, the desire to play, and a whole lot left in my tank. I feel strongly that I can still compete at the highest level.”
Thank Christ this motherf'er never rang.
here comes the tnt interview from thompson.
I told you he woud pull a Brett Favre
'Little' Iverson earns praise from NBA peers for influence
By Art Garcia, NBA.com
Allen Iverson announced his intention to retire Wednesday, closing the door, for now, on a career marked by incredible personal highs and headline-grabbing controversies.
Iverson clearly believes he can still compete at a high level and contribute in a league where he spent 13 full seasons. The former MVP and 10-time All-Star played three games for Memphis this season, his first with the Grizzlies, before leaving the team amid questions of playing time and eventually being released.
Iverson fell into career limbo as several teams debated whether to sign perhaps the most talented "little" man in league history. Rumors in New York and Boston and elsewhere never materialized into substance, and A.I. delivered his goodbye via an open letter on Stephen A. Smith's Web site.
Iverson thanked his many fans, players that inspired him, former coaches and teammates, and the Grizzlies and Sixers, his first NBA team. But there was also a sense of remorse right off the top of the statement:
"I always thought that when I left the game, it would be because I couldn't help my team the way that I was accustomed to. However, that is not the case."
Iverson isn't required to file retirement paperwork with the league office as a free agent. Since he's not under contract, Iverson isn't forfeiting any money by retiring. He remains free to sign with any team this season or in the future.
News of Iverson's retirement sent shock waves across the league. Players were quick to praise the contributions of the four-time scoring champ, who many credit for helping introduce a hip-hop element to the NBA.
"His legacy would be huge," said Cavaliers star LeBron James, a teammate of Iverson on the 2004 USA Olympic team. "He's one of the best guys, when you're talking guys 6-foot and under, to play the game of basketball. What he's done individually -- he played injured, he played hard every single night -- I don't think it should end this way if he's done.
"But at the same time if he does, he's left some great games behind. His name will live forever in the game of basketball."
Even without a le.
"It's not even the ring situation because lots of greats -- Charles Barkley doesn't have a ring, Patrick Ewing -- there's a lot of great NBA players who never got a ring," James continued. "But the way he's going out, I don't think it should be like that for him."
There's a strong belief Iverson can still play. Teams wanting him became the roadblock.
"It's sad, man, especially coming from a guy that's close to me, a friend," Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony said. "To see him go out the way he's going out right now is not how he'd want to go out. It's almost like he's being forced to retire. It's a bad situation right now for him."
Heat guard and former Olympic teammate Dwyane Wade: "I'm No. 3. He made No. 3 cool. He made crossovers cool. He did so much for the game as a pioneer. It's sad to see him think about retirement."
Mavericks guard Jason Kidd was glad Iverson made the decision on his terms.
"He has the right to do what he wants and if it's time for him to step aside, then that's his choice," Kidd said. "Everybody's gonna have their opinion these days and as long as he's happy, that's the most important thing."
Nuggets coach George Karl was shocked by the retirement announcement. Iverson was traded to Denver in 2006 and moved to Detroit last year.
"Yeah, I am surprised," Karl said. "I think he has something left to give some team out there, but if that's his decision he'll go down in history as the best little guard ever to play the game of basketball. I was happy to have him for a couple of years. Hopefully, our paths will cross."
Anthony said, "He got dealt a bad hand from when he went to Detroit up until right now. Everything's just been kind of spiraling downhill. I don't ever want to see anybody go through something like that, especially a guy with his talent. And somebody who can still go out there and be productive."
Spurs backup center Theo Ratliff played with Iverson in Philadelphia from 1997-01.
"While we were all there we basically grew up together with that team," Ratliff said. "We were at the bottom of the league, but by that third or fourth year we were at the top. It was just a growing up process. He was a young guy who had his issues, but he was a very giving and very understanding guy of his family, which was his teammates and his immediate family.
"It was no secret that he was a guy who had his entourage, his people that he grew up with and he felt that he needed to take care of them. He was at the top of the league at the time. He was the No. 1 star, the face of the league. Of course you're going to have everyone with their hand out ready and willing to ask for anything. And he was a guy who most of the time gave. That was the kind of guy he was."
Whatever issues he had off the court, Iverson was almost universally respected by his peers on the hardwood.
"I hope he doesn't retire because I know there's still a lot of basketball left," Bobcats guard Stephen Jackson said. "I know he really wants to play the game and still has love for the game, but if he does much love and respect to him always.
"He's always been a big brother. He showed me that I can be myself in this league regardless of what people say as long as I go out there and respect the game. That's the type of person that he was. He laid the foundation for a lot of guys like me. I have nothing but respect for him and wish him the best."
Warriors guard Corey Maggette said: "He's been one the faces of the NBA. Everybody respects A.I. A lot of people in the league started getting braids because of him. He's influenced the league so much. That's just the real talk."
Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki said: "He's been so much fun to watch. At the size that he is and the way he performed over so many years, he'll definitely be missed in the league if he retires."
Iverson's competiveness and toughness are legendary.
"Everybody talked about competing pound-for-pound," said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, an assistant on the 2004 USA Olympic team. "He was just one of a compe or. I don't care what he weighed or how tall he was, he sacrificed his body a lot and took a pounding and played hurt a lot."
Ratliff said: "That [retirement] has to be rough for him, because I know the type of compe or he is. I wished it wouldn't have gone the way it went toward the end of his career. You can never predict how you end your career. I just hope he has his life in order and keeps on moving forward."
He can come out of retirement all he wants. No contending team in their right mind will take a flyer on him.
Not that it matters. He wants a starting job and wants to remain the focal point of the offense. Name a contending team that will give him that?
Even the pathetic Knicks decided against him.
"It's sad, man, especially coming from a guy that's close to me, a friend," Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony said. "To see him go out the way he's going out right now is not how he'd want to go out. It's almost like he's being forced to retire. It's a bad situation right now for him."one pouty little punk to another.
All the Grizzleys did is give Iverson 20 minutes a game platform which he could have surely parlayed into a midseason trade if he really did want to play for a contender.
The "i be viktimized" line by so many....
What a couple of punks!
Brett Iverson ? or Allen Farve?
GD rights.
He's probably the best point guard the Lakers could get their paws on, and everyone knows Derek Fisher and Jordan Farmer won't win them a le.
Surprise, surprise. You really think he's going down like that? The man knows he can still play and put up big numbers. He'll be back, if not this season, then next season.
Agreed on Farmar, but, Jameer Nelson has a story to tell you about the crown of his head, last June & Fisher.
For the last time people, forget about his size and stature. Iverson IS NOT a point guard.
Swallow your EGO AI and you'll be in the NBA for at least 3 more years.
the cross over was popularized first by Tim Hardaway, yeah, BUT!
Hardaway copied another NBA player he watched, who would do that a lot. I forgot the name of the player right now though
Charlie Scott, the true inventor of the crossover dribble
Fish has 4 though. his clutch 3s were the daggers to Houston and if I remember correctly, Denver.
oh and his steals against D12 as well.
Not a Farve, Brett was honestly having trouble figuring out if he wanted to retire. Iverson is just ing until he gets on a team he likes.
I hear now that Bobcats coach, Larry Brown and former Georgetown HC, John Thompson will be talking to Iverson in an attempt to convince him NOT to retire. Huh? You've got to be kidding me! What is AI? A blue-chip high-school recruit? It doesn't matter what the opinions are of those two guys, if no team is calling for his services, then perhaps he has no other alternative but to retire.
Seriously, both these coaches need to stay out of it. The decision on whether AI plays or not is not up to them. Dude can't play if no team is calling.
If they want to talk to him about anything, they should talk about how his selfishness, his state of denial about his abilities, and his lockerroom lawyering and negative behavior have combined to force him into this "early" retirement.
Enough with the sucking of AI's kneecaps. Iverson did this to himself. Therefore, if he's "not feeling the love" or "doesn't feel wanted" because the phone is not ringing, he's only got himself to blame. Perhaps some time away and some self-reflection is what this guy needs to get his head on straight.
If I were a Bobcats GM, I'd be pissed that my head coach was taking more of an interest in a retiring basketball player that isn't a part of very team he coaches.
Larry Brown: Allen Iverson shouldn’t retire
By Mike Cranston
Larry Brown has a message for Allen Iverson: don’t give up.
Iverson’s former coach said Friday he thinks the 10-time All-Star “still has a passion to play” and shouldn’t retire. An online report this week indicated Iverson had decided to end his career after receiving little interest from NBA teams.
Brown, who coached Iverson in Philadelphia when he was voted league MVP in 2001 while leading the 76ers to the NBA finals, said he’s been trying to get in touch with him.
“Anybody that knows him understands how much he loves to play,” said Brown, now coaching the Charlotte Bobcats.
Commentator Stephen A. Smith published a statement on his Web site Wednesday attributed to the 34-year-old Iverson that said he planned to retire. It comes after the Memphis Grizzlies waived Iverson on Nov. 17 amid a dispute over Iverson’s role with the team. There was also friction between Iverson and the Detroit Pistons last year because he didn’t want to come off the bench.
The New York Knicks briefly discussed signing the 6-foot Iverson, but decided against it. Brown said he wouldn’t be a good fit in Charlotte because of the team’s abundance of guards.
Brown believes Iverson is “a little embarrassed” and the retirement talk may come from frustration.
“Think about it: You’re an MVP in the All-Star game and an MVP in the league, scored over 20,000 points,” Brown said. “You still know you can play, and to not have everybody jump up, it’s a pretty humbling thing. But he can play.”
Brown says Iverson could get opportunities later in the season. He pointed to Jan. 10, the date contracts are no longer guaranteed for the season, and the trade deadline a month later when several teams may reshape their rosters.
“Some teams might think they aren’t as good as they thought,” Brown said.
Brown has maintained a close relationship with Iverson despite their famous disputes in Philadelphia, including Iverson’s “We’re talking about practice!” rant after the 76ers’ exit from the 2002 playoffs.
That's hilarious. Favre was drama queening for the last few years about retiring. It had nothing to do with trouble figuring it out. It was all about the drama.
Pete Maravich?
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