Original subtitles

[announcer] Seems like exchanging handshakes down there.

[interviewer] The [indistinct] isn't that bad, huh?

Yeah, man. Hell, yeah.

I'm the rookie, and they treat me like it.

It's all right, though, I get some respect.

[interviewer] How does that make you feel when you bring your game up another notch?

With me, it kind of gets exciting,

because I know if I can improve from one year to the next,

I can't wait for the opportunity to be 25 or 26

and really understand the game and know how to go be strong as I'm gonna be,

to be able to compete then. I just wonder how good I can be.

[interviewer] Would you say that's one of your goals,

to figure out how good you can be?

Definitely.

[interviewer] Would you say that for me?

Would you say that for me? For the camera?

Oh, one of my goals, is, um...

I'm not sure I wanna put it.

[reporter 1] He's what I call a thug-light lifestyle...

[reporter 2] He refuses to show up for work and practice...

[reporter 3] It's a constant authority type of thing.

[reporter 4] The bad boy image.

[reporter 5] You score 40? So what?

[reporter 6] A troubling role model.

I've been hearing, "I wanna change and do better" for four years.

Why should we believe you that you're really gonna get along with this guy?

In fact, you two guys, I'd like to see you go one-on-one, actually.

[Larry] You know, somewhere along the line you've got to say,

"Hey, I've gotta be responsible enough or care about the team enough."

It came to a boiling point.

Obviously, it got out of control.

I said, "We'll meet tomorrow.

We'll meet at the training facility."

[Larry] No meeting with Allen was ever appropriate or beneficial

unless it was Allen and I,

because he would always be respectful of whatever I said.

[Pat] Went into this boardroom, and it was ugly.

Larry didn't wanna be called to the same level as his player.

I didn't care.

You're not getting traded, and you're not getting fired.

I've never told either one of you what to do.

I'm telling you right now.

You're both staying.

[Allen] I might say, "Him or me."

I might say some shit like that.

I said to Allen, put yourself in the coach's shoes.

He takes you off the court, and you motherfuck him.

Everyone in the stands knows it, the television cameras catch it,

how would you feel?

He kind of looks, and the coach is sitting up straight,

and I said, "Larry, how about you?

You're his head coach.

Allen has told me that when you take him off the court, you say, 'Sit down.'

It's no different than the white jailer saying, 'Sit down, N-word.'"

And Larry Brown went, "Whoa."

That right there, I get a chill still to this day.

Allen had sat up, put his arms on the table.

I said, "Both of you have the same love of basketball.

Both of you have the intention and desire to win.

So you're both looking in the mirror. Drop it!"

[Allen] I had him all wrong. He had the blueprint already.

He knew what he wanted to do.

[Pat] Allen got up, walked around the table,

Larry stood up, and he hugged and hugged

for what seemed like eternity.

[Allen] I remember the effects of it even more.

You could actually feel it on the basketball court.

I could feel it in my game. A big-time weight lifted off of me.

He was able to make everyone else better by making me better.

["Notorious Thugs" by Notorious B.I.G. plays]

[excited sports announcing]

[reporter] Iverson's move this season from point to off guard

made him even more dangerous.

[announcer] Iverson behind the back.

[Allen] So many advantages playing the two. Two guard gotta kill.

And that was right up my alley.

[announcer] Putting on a show in every way.

[Aaron] You know, it looked like he just rolled the balls out there

and went out and played is how he played.

But he was calculated in everything that he did

and made it look easy.

[announcer] Behind his back. [shouting]

[Larry] We'd have a play in, and Allen would break the play.

And all of a sudden, I would look at our staff, and I'd say,

"That's better than what we drew up."

I can't tell you how many times that happened.

[announcer] Good play call by Larry Brown.

[Allen] He just was a masterful coach.

Billy King and Pat, they put them guys around me

that were willing to let me dominate.

[announcer] Cranks his ankles, and he's got it!

[Aaron] He was a giant amongst giants.

The little guy that the big guys back then would dominate.

[announcer] Oh! What a shot by Iverson.

[Aaron] He'd be like, "Get me that motherfucker right there.

I got this motherfucker."

[Allen] It was... [chuckles]

It was basically, "You kill like you kill..."

[announcer] Yes! Oh, yes!

"and your deficiencies and things that you can't do,

we gonna do all of those things."

[announcer] Here's Allen for the tie... Yes!

[David] Congratulations, 2001 NBA MVP

Allen Iverson.

[crowd cheering]

[Allen] Right now, whenever people say

I'm the best player in the world,

that's crazy. I was only 25.

[Brandy] Seeing him hold that trophy up, it was like me holding it up.

The life that we knew once before that, it was gone.

[Ann] I brag on him because I never seen nobody like him.

I've never seen nobody get down like him, you know what I'm saying?

And I get so overwhelmed, because it just was a beautiful thing

to watch the crowd embrace him.

Every time I come in the gym, in this arena,

I hear my favorite song in y'all's voices,

so, it's time for y'all to play that song.

Let's make this noise and get this party jumping.

[Tawanna] 2001, it was the most exciting time.

[man] Allen and Stephon, slide back just a little bit, if you could.

- There we go. Thank you. - Take my foot off my mark.

[man] You're perfect. You're perfect.

[Tawanna] Thinking back, it's like, like you remember that feeling.

You remember the feeling of being at an Allen Iverson game,

seeing him play, like, you can't dismiss that.

When you looked at Allen Iverson, he was a culture changer.

People that weren't interested in basketball wanted to see this brother.

I'm Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers.

[trills tongue]

[Stephen] It wasn't Michael Jordan,

it wasn't The Beatles,

but it was pretty close.

[reporter] When it comes to selling shoes, Allen Iverson

has proven to be "The Answer" for Reebok.

[Que] We did not have to do anything to make Allen cool.

Like, Allen was gonna come make us cool.

[reporter] The Iversen brand is expected to rake in

up to $150 million for Reebok just this year.

[Que] Because he was number-one pick,

a point guard that had the ball in his hand,

because he could score, had the heart of a warrior.

[commentator] Allen, congratulations. The MVP of the 2001 All-Star game.

[Que] We knew men wanted to be like him,

women wanted to be with him,

the kids wanted to be him at some point.

[Todd] There was nothing like this.

Everybody trying to meet him, every rapper trying to meet him,

every celebrity trying to meet him.

Please welcome The Answer, Allen Iverson!

[Que] When I was moving with him at the time at the height of hip hop,

you talk about the Biggies, the Jay-Zs, and all those guys as they're on the rise,

they were all looking up to him.

Jay-Z, Pharrell, and 50 Cent signed with Reebok,

not because it's Reebok,

they signed with Reebok because of what we were doing with Allen Iverson.

[Pharrell] A lot of things going on in your life

and you answer the question, you become The Answer.

Allen Iverson.

You think you get a bad rap just because you got cornrows?

It's unfair, it's unfair, but it's true.

People look at the way I dress, who I hang around,

the jewelry and everything...

I mean, people try to make me 34 years old,

and I'm only 24 years old. I'm growing every day.

[Ann] My son dressed the way he dressed from where he from.

Now he can get the fitted hats.

Now he can get the jewelry that he wanna get.

[Allen] In my life, how you look is how you play.

I look like a superhero.

A skinny one, but a superhero.

Gotta have some style with you.

[Stephen] Covering him was a separate beat in and of itself.

There was the Sixers beat, and then there was the Allen Iverson beat.

Because this brother's a nightcrawler.

And everyone knew where he would be.

[Eric] It was almost the same as Jay-Z walking in the club,

or Tupac walking in the club. Allen Iverson was just as big.

[Todd] But what that led to was a hard, hard journey together.

He used to say back in the day, "It's hard working with Al, huh?"

These people... Man, don't be making me laugh.

[Que] He was going out to LA for one of these award shows,

and Allen wanted the whole crew to be fresh.

I remember Allen buys all this jewelry, whips out a checkbook,

and writes a check for like 900 grand. Something crazy like that.

[Stephen] Allen Iverson going home on time,

and getting a good night's sleep is when he was in a slump.

It was when he was hanging out until three or four in the morning

that he dropped 58 on Steve Francis in Houston.

[announcer] Yes! And a career high!

That's just how his motor worked.

You got a record company, right?

I mean, I'm getting ready to start one right now.

[Que] Allen got into the music thing.

His friends were the ones that were really compelling him

to start ABK Music Group.

[Allen] That was something my homeboys wanted to do.

I want to see them come from nothing to something like I did.

[Que] I went on that journey with him,

I was in the studio with him,

I tried to make sure he wasn't spending too much money.

[Kendrick] Yeah, "Forty Bars." There you go.

It all represent the culture, it just gave me

a little bit more connection with AI. Already loved him on the court.

But now there's a person that I can relate to further than basketball.

If you're a hardcore hip-hop fan, this album is for you.

[show host] Basketball star Allen Iverson,

his attempt to become a rap star is drawing fire for some offensive lyrics.

Allen Iverson, turning into a human can of mace for sponsors

and for this league.

John Thompson better call Allen.

I think he needs to speak to the brother.

[Todd] That was one of the only things I think we felt

would be a problem, but he was learning.

You can't satisfy everybody, man.

There's gonna be a billion fans out here that love Allen Iverson,

there's gonna be a billion that hate him.

[reporter] The rap songs that he's out with,

some of the lyrics to those songs,

I mean, this isn't a very good ambassadorship that you've got going here.

Too hard to come out for real? I would say yeah, because...

Stern be the face of the league.

[Allen] I walked in, and David Stern was reading the lyrics.

I was trying not to laugh, because I knew how serious it was.

It was a moment that I'll never forget.

We would like our players to be perfect.

We would like them to exhibit no human characteristics, I suppose,

so that they never get in trouble,

but it's not going to happen.

We must pay the price for failing to meet people's expectations,

and we are.

[Sherri] I remember Chuck and Rahsaan, I think they had signed a deal

with Universal Records and then...

they ain't get to put it out. It was a bunch of BS behind it.

Rahsaan was really hurt behind it.

[Que] One of my conversations with him, he said,

"I play basketball, because I'm passionate about basketball.

I'm not playing basketball because I wanna be an athlete.

I'm not playing basketball because I wanna be a rapper.

I'm playing basketball, because I love to play the game of basketball."

If you don't care about hardcore gangsta rap,

just don't buy it.

That's a character. That ain't me. That ain't who I am.

I'm embarrassed by that.

[interviewer] Where do you wanna be in five years?

I wanna have a couple rings on my finger,

hopefully be all-star.

[interviewer] When this is all over,

what do you want them to say about Allen Iverson, the ball player?

That he played every game like it was his last.

[Charlie Rose] The NBA playoffs are in full swing

with the Finals set to begin next Wednesday in Los Angeles.

The Lakers have swept their way through the postseason

with the unstoppable duo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal.

[reporter] No city has been hotter over the last month.

The Lakers have dominated three 50-win teams

during their march to the Finals.

[Shaq] We're tired of being compared to all of the other Laker teams.

Let's just set a standard right now of being the best Laker team ever.

Only way we can do that is to go undefeated.

So going into the Finals, we were undefeated.

[announcer] Bryant to Shaq!

Do you believe that the 76ers will meet the Lakers in the Finals?

Well, not yet, I don't. I really don't.

They're so banged up, Charlie.

[man] The Sixers have been playing the role of underdog for a while now.

The Vegas oddsmakers have all got them to bury...

[commentator 1] Indiana knocked Philly out of the playoffs the last two years.

[commentator 2] The Pacers seem to be a bit of a thorn in Philly's side.

[commentator 3] It's all Philadelphia early.

[announcer] Travis Best alone with a shot. He's got 16 points.

The Pacers have their first lead of the game.

Reggie for three.

Miller, a break!

Bang! Miller gives the Pacers a lead!

[Allen] It was bad. We lost that first game.

We never could get past that team.

[Reggie] I love this type of atmosphere.

This is what makes the great players great.

And knowing that you've got a bullseye on your back,

and everyone's gunning for 31,

and to come out and still do what we did,

it shows a lot of character for this young team.

[Allen] You know, everybody was down in the locker room.

Forget what just happened.

Let's just go from here on out.

[Allen] But we still had to concentrate on the agenda at hand,

and that was winning the series.

[Larry] In order for him to be as great as he could become,

he had to make everybody around him better.

[announcer] Allen saying, "I have come to learn that I can't do this by myself."

[Larry] Because all the eyes were focused on him,

and we all followed his lead,

we would just add in pieces that maybe people wouldn't look at

and think that they were super extraordinary,

but they were in their own right because they allowed Allen to be Allen.

[Allen] We won the next game, we got our confidence back,

we went in there and we won two more games.

[announcer] It is all over!

The Philadelphia 76ers, in a very tough ball game,

have defeated the Indiana Pacers!

[Allen] Beating that team helped us,

because we felt like, if we can beat Indiana,

we can get to the Finals. We felt like we could beat anybody.

I love you with so much heart, I pass it on to you babies.

You did all right.

[Larry] There was nobody bigger or more important than Allen Iverson.

You look at Duncan and Barkley and Shaq and all those guys,

people recognize they're big, they're strong, they're athletic.

You look at Allen, he's like one of us.

He was a hero for everybody.

[announcer] Iverson off a series of moves!

[commentator] If the little guy can do it, hey, I can do it.

[announcer] Iverson!

Carter again for three. Man, he can't miss!

It's all Vince Carter!

And Carter with the shot! Carter with the tip!

The Toronto Raptors,

after stunning the New York Knicks Friday night at Madison Square Garden,

defeat the Philadelphia 76ers in Game One.

[reporter] He was taking you to town and you guys couldn't stop him.

Right. You saw the game just like everybody else.

You right, I mean... ask a question.

You saw that, I saw that...

[interviewer] Is there a way to stop him?

No, man. If there was, we would've did it.

I can tell when somebody is scared of me. Their eyes never lie.

You can't teach this.

Before the tip-off, I would look at my opponent.

And as soon as he turned his head, got his ass.

[Allen] That's what killers do. That's what killers do.

[announcer] Iverson against Williams again! Yes!

[Allen] I just knew anybody guarding me was at my mercy.

[announcer] The crowd is yelling MVP.

Iverson now with 20.

[Allen] I wasn't scared of nobody out there.

I'm going by you all day.

[announcer] Allen for the record! Yes!

Fifty-two points for Iverson!

A record for a 76er in a playoff game!

[Allen] Seems like every time I don't play the way I wanna play,

there's always a name that somebody throw out

of this guy that can guard you.

The only person that can stop me is myself.

[Vince] He brought the best out of me.

I figured, if I put up 40, then he puts up 54,

I gotta respond.

[Stephen Smith] It was one after another, one after another,

it was like they were taking turns.

[announcer] Seemed like a bad shot to me.

But Vince is there... Oh, my... Holy mackerel!

With his eighth three-pointer in a row!

Man, if you can't get going in this type of game, there's a problem, man.

[Pat] I think Allen's taught Larry a lot about how to relate to people,

and Larry Brown has taught Allen about responsibility

and how to make your teammates better.

[announcer] Curry did not wanna handle the ball and that cost!

Sixers by one, but the Raptors with the ball, two seconds to go.

Carter trying to get free.

Carter at the buzzer! No go!

And the Sixers hold on and advance to the conference finals!

[reporter] What does it say about this team

that they've been able to come back like this and win this series?

That we're a team! You know, we're a team, as simple as that.

You know, it don't get no better than this, you know?

In the locker room, outside of the locker room, we always a team.

We always look out for each other,

we always do a lot of things with each other,

we're a team! For the first time in my life, I'm on a team.

The Answer's in the building.

- Who the hell is The Answer? - I don't know.

[Pat] After Toronto, the team is beat up, but excited.

[Allen] You know, you can try to bang me around.

I get back up, you still gotta deal with me.

[Pat] He had a quarterback mentality. Knock him down, get up.

Knock him down, get up. He was like a Japanese proverb.

Fall down seven times, get up eight.

[commentator] And Iverson comes crashing to the floor.

And then...

[commentator] Allen Iverson, as Healy mentioned,

you gotta wonder about his health,

as he scores only 16 points on five of 26 from the field.

Pain is inevitable. It was amazing the courage it took for him to get up.

Day after day, game in, game out.

You can talk about him scoring 50,

but who else is getting confidence out there?

[Allen] I can heal up tomorrow,

but today, my dogs need me.

[Sal] A badly bruised tailbone, a sprained hip, a tooth knocked out,

with blood spewing on the floor.

Through it all, Allen Iverson, at 160 pounds, may have proven that

pound for pound, he's the toughest guy in professional sports.

[announcer] The Sixers have found life here in the fourth quarter.

[announcer] Iverson unloads. [shouting] Touchdown!

[announcer] When you come to L.A.... Iverson!

[Ann] He played every day like his last.

[Larry Brown] God gave him an unbelievable heart

and unbelievable threshold for pain.

[Michael] He's trippin', "Dad, I'm hurting like I don't know what."

I said, "Well, man, sit down."

He's like, "I can't. We won't win."

We won't win.

That "fall and get back up" shit,

man, that's been big from School Garden, man.

[commentator] The smallest guy on the court has played the biggest of games.

And that's what the MVP is all about.

What a player.

And for the first time in 18 years,

the Sixers are going back to the NBA Finals!

Hey, yo, man. Y'all boy's ain't no joke!

I love y'all, man!

Yo, yo, yo, yo!

Let's go, first time, man.

Let's make it a good one.

[overlapping chatter]

One, two, three.

Playoffs! [cheering]

[commentator] The Sixers are 20-to-1 underdogs, longshots to win the title.

It's the largest spread ever in an NBA Finals

and one of the biggest in the history of the four major sports.

[Pat?] It was a David versus Goliath, but the whole city's hanging Sixers...

They weren't even basketball fans, some Philadelphia people,

but they had Sixers stuff.

[butcher] All our customers, that's all they talk about is Iverson.

When they talk Sixers, it's A.I., and that's it.

Whenever our energy was low, he always had that.

When he came in that locker room,

when he stepped out on that floor,

everybody just followed.

[reporter] Larry Brown finds his team in these Finals

with a shuffled starting lineup, a dangerous lack of depth,

and just one legitimate scoring threat.

You know, a lot of people felt like I couldn't reach this point.

They would talk about my size...

my game.

That I was selfish...

and I couldn't make it here with the guys

that I'm playing with.

[Allen] And now that we're here, we're gonna get swept.

It just, you know, makes the story that much better at the end.

[commentator] It's a perfect series, because you...

It's David and Goliath in part,

but you also have Allen Iverson, and he's showing more heart...

I mean, I don't care how rich you are, how successful you are,

you need to look at this young man and say,

"This is what it is to have a warrior's heart.

This is what it is to care about winning in the most positive way."

All I care about is a championship trophy. I just want it so bad,

for myself, for my teammates, for my family, my friends, my coach.

-My coach is... -Are you gonna dethrone

the Los Angeles Lakers?

Hopefully. That's the way I draw it up in my dreams.

- Yeah, you're supposed to do that. - [commentator] I like your dream.

- That's where I draw it up. - [commentator] O'Neal?

But you know what, my dream

- is the same thing, so. - Yeah.

[Allen] Regardless if it's a pick-up game,

pre-season game, if it's regular season, if it's playoffs, if it's Finals,

you know, I play the same way.

[player chatter]

[Allen] I just felt like I was Goliath.

I never felt David. I never felt that.

- Oh, yeah. - [crew person] Sound speed, we good?

I ain't looking at the camera, I'm looking at Shaq.

You're stupid. [snickers]

We wanted to go undefeated.

We knew you were gonna get 30, never knew you were gonna get 48.

["Grindin'" by Clipse plays]

[Ann] The best I ever seem 'em play as a team,

when they played against the Lakers.

They came to fucking play.

When I say the Sixers were eating their ass up,

they were eating their ass up.

[Aaron] Allen was making a name for himself.

[announcer] Here's Iverson. Lue defender.

Stays right with him. Allen wants to go. Watch the baseline.

[announcer 2] He fires two ball... He got it again! He's way too good!

He stumps around Lue! That drilled it!

[announcer] 76ers on their way to pulling off a stump!

[Shaq] The way I figured, they beat us,

said, okay, man, just told us to be quiet.

We could hear y'all jumping up and down happy.

"Ah, yeah! We got Game One."

Now we knew we just had to get refocused.

I ain't let them overreact. I ain't let anybody overreact.

-I know, I mean, but... -[Allen] I ain't let it...

- There was some noise when I walked in. - [Shaq] Yes.

And that shit calmed down once I got in there.

We didn't do nothing yet. We got a long way to go.

We got a long way to go.

They can put their brooms up though.

Ain't gonna be none of that.

That's us, man. We came too far, man.

That's us, baby.

[Allen] 'Cause it ain't... we're playin' against a juggernaut, man.

We ain't win nothing, man. We've got a long ways to go.

These dudes did not lose one fucking game in the playoffs, bruh.

[Shaq] You know, we are not gonna go make excuses for this loss.

Allen Iverson is a great player. You know, he had a great game.

I don't care. I really don't.

You know, I'm... we're here, we're the world champions,

and no matter how inspired your team may be,

the championship has to come through the city of Los Angeles.

After Game One, our secret weapons were

we were pissed off. It's time for you to die.

[announcer] He is a force.

[Shaq] For us to be one of the greatest Laker teams

doesn't sit well with me.

I knew we were gonna win. We just needed to take care of business.

[announcer] Nice shot by Kobe Bryant!

[commentator] Look at Iverson and Kobe talking to each other right now.

[Allen] What killed us was that three

that Derek Fisher hit on me in Game Two.

[announcer] Fisher for three!

[Larry] Calm down, guys. Ball at the wrong man.

They're supposed to win.

We ain't even supposed to be here!

I think if we won Game Two, then we got a better shot.

As great as Kobe was,

one man beat us.

We was trying to play you head up, and that ain't it.

When you played against Shaq, you needed 18 fouls.

And we had Dikembe,

we would've had Geiger, but he wasn't himself,

and we didn't have the 18 fouls.

[announcer] Time has run out on the 76ers.

[announcer 2] Back-to-back titles for the Los Angeles Lakers.

[Allen] It's over, and then when you reminisce,

it's like, the ultimate goal

wasn't achieved.

I been in that position, too. Trust me.

That shit was heartbreaking. You ain't shit.

[Larry] That 2001 team will go down in history as the most beloved team

in Philadelphia history.

They didn't win the championship,

but this city was so in love with Iverson,

and so in love with the other players,

that it almost didn't matter.

[Shaq] So as a player,

he's one of the greatest players to ever play the game.

When it comes to a championship, you have to be on a great team.

No disrespect to the Philadelphia 76ers team,

Allen Iverson was by hisself.

So when it comes to status and recognition,

there's a lot of champions that we don't even know who they are.

But I guarantee you know who Allen Iverson is.

Iverson is one of the greatest players to ever play the game.

- He's in the top five. - Ever?

Ever. He's in the top five.

And the reason why I say that is because he's probably the only guy

that takes a beating like I do.

[Allen] 2001. It was a wild summer.

It was a great summer.

This my place, man. This, this where I can breathe at.

Get away from the fake superstar life, man. Come on back home.

Around the people, man. Start feeling like Allen Iverson, man.

You know, the real Allen Iverson.

We actually were engaged for two, three years.

[Allen] That's my girl, for life.

[Tawanna] So the proposal was pretty simple.

He asked me in the kitchen.

[interviewer] Did he get down on his knee?

No. [laughs]

No!

I mean, it wasn't... You know what?

You're gonna make me go back and make him do it. [laughs]

[Brandy] He always said from high school,

he wanted to take care of her for the rest of his life.

[Allen] God talking to me, love that I got for her.

A'ight, man, it's time.

[Sherri] Rahsaan was in the wedding.

It was on the dance floor dancing and having their moments.

[Antwuan] I know he was just happy, you know, just happy

to go ahead and get married

in a goddamn beautiful wedding.

[Tawanna] Yeah, we had a great time. [laughs]

[Allen] One of the happiest moments of my life.

[Sherri] We went to the Grand Cayman Island.

It was me, Chuck, Rahsaan, Tawanna, Que, and Que wife.

You cannot get Allen to move out of his comfort zone.

So I felt like, if we take other couples

on our honeymoon, he'd be more open to do things that he's never done.

I was right. It was things he didn't want to do,

like, um, scuba diving.

Then I had Que and Ra there to say,

"Come on, Chuck, let's do it."

I got him to do some things. [laughs]

[Allen] When I come home, I can get my head right.

I can relax and see the people that, you know, I grew up with and everything.

Makes me feel good.

CT, baby, right here.

- CT. How you doing... - Ra, listen, baby. Ra, listen, baby...

[overlapping chatter]

Allen Iverson will be lacing them up with Reebok for the rest of his life.

It's a privilege to give you a gift that we had created for you.

We had it made, and as you can see,

"MVP 2000, 2001."

[Que] There had been some conversations amongst the media,

where they talk about Black athletes going broke.

Having conversations with Paul Fireman,

in order for us to protect him from himself,

we should find ways to help defer some of that money.

I said, maybe we should set up a trust.

I kind of didn't expect it, but I was hoping for it to go this way.

You know, I'm just... I'm satisfied.

All these kids that feel like if things not going right for 'em,

not to give up.

Just keep going. Whatever happens, you just keep fighting, man.

Only the strong survive.

[gunshots]

[Sherri] The last time he got in a car was with me,

and I dropped him off at a bar over town on 28th Street.

[Allen] We were supposed to go to a... I think it was Hampton University

against Norfolk State, for some reason, I didn't go.

[Sherri] And my little sister answered the phone.

I was like, "Where Mama at?" And she was like, "She left."

I said, "What happened? What's wrong?"

She was like, "I think Ra got killed."

And I threw a basketball against the wall, and I just started crying.

[Jabar] I was staying with my coach, and my mom called me.

It was like three in the morning.

She said...

She said, "Your brother gone."

So like I said, automatically I thought, did he kill somebody and get locked up?

Or did something happen to him?

And then...

[Tawanna] I will never forget that morning.

Like, his manager at the time called me...

and, um... told me...

"Tell Chuck Ra's dead."

And I...

I said, "I'm not telling him no shit like that."

I just handed him the phone, you know,

I just... I just handed him the phone,

because I couldn't bring myself to just... to let him know,

to... I couldn't say it.

[Allen] That was a wake-up call for me.

It was...

if not the worst pain that I've been through

in my life losing somebody, it was right up there at the top.

Allen's heart was hurt

by the loss of Ra. Uh...

[sighs]

He...

Like at his funeral, like he lost...

his... [sighs]

Like he, um...

Like, his legs went out from under him, like you know...

he had to be held up.

[Allen] I mean, that was my buddy, you know?

I mean, we slept on the same floor together.

He was my man. He meant so much,

and then for that to happen, I counted Sherri's life

a little bit more.

Like, I concentrated on things that I didn't concentrate on as much.

Just valuing anything that's mine, you know? Anything that I loved.

I remember when all people could talk about

is my friend and how they were bringing me down.

And now, I just wish he could be around for people to talk about him,

and talk about him bringing me down, you know?

But he never did, you know? Somebody brought him down.

My man Ra Boogie Fresh, rest in peace, baby.

[Allen] Myself and everybody that loved him,

we're scarred for life.

[reporter] Allen Iverson won his second straight scoring title,

his third in four seasons.

He averaged 31.4 points a game.

Iverson's just the 7th player in NBA history

to win the scoring title three times in his career.

- [whistle blows] - [cheering]

[Allen] The next season, my family and I had been going through

a whole bunch of shit about me being traded.

I wanna be right here where I'm at,

where people love me, and I love these people.

[Tawanna] I think he felt offended, like, "This is what I do for you,

and now, you wanna get rid of me."

[Allen] So, Coach and General Manager called me.

[Larry Brown] I met Allen, you know, at the practice facility,

and all he wanted to talk to me about was,

"Please make sure you keep me here. I wanna be here,

I wanna play in Philly, I love Philly, I don't wanna play anywhere else."

My conversation with him is,

"You know, Allen, you gotta change."

If you could just spend more time working on your craft,

you could help us maybe take it to the next level.

[Allen] We discussed the fact that I wasn't gonna get traded,

so I was happy I was able to go tell my kids, tell my wife,

tell my friends, tell my fans, that it wasn't gonna happen.

Got to the press conference,

thought that was all it was gonna be about, was announcing it.

And they got talking about practice, and the legendary shit happened.

[reporter] So you and Coach Brown settled the issue

that he brought up on Saturday about practice?

If I can't practice, I can't practice, man.

If I'm hurt, I'm hurt.

I mean, simple as that.

It ain't about that.

It isn't...

It's not about that at all, you know what I'm saying?

I mean...

But it's easy to talk about, it's easy to sum it up

when you just talk about practice.

We sitting here, I'm supposed to be the franchise player,

and we in here talking about practice.

I mean, listen, we talking about practice.

Not a game, not a game, not a game,

we talking about practice.

I felt sadness for him, like how the world was making him out to be.

I knew it was so much more going on.

I lost my best friend.

I lost him, and I lost this year.

Everything's going downhill for me, as far as just that, you know?

As far as my life.

And then I'm dealing with this right here.

[Stephen] He was sickened, but you still got a job to do.

To Allen Iverson, the job was the games.

The job didn't always entail practice,

it didn't entail some of the minutia

that comes along with your professional responsibilities.

I can't win 'em all. I'm human.

I'm just like y'all, man. I'm just like you.

[Jabar] My brother was the glue.

So now, it was like unorganized,

like, you know what I mean? Nobody's setting the tone no more.

Something was about to start for him.

So, you know, he used to hanging out with my brother.

So probably all that was hitting him.

You bleed, just like I bleed. You cry just like I cry.

You hurt just like I hurt. I ain't no different than you.

[Stephen] Ra was a special brother, man.

When he passed away, he wasn't himself. You could see that a part of him had died.

The ferve, the enthusiasm,

that you have towards life

is compromised.

[Larry] In 2003, right after Jordan retired,

the ratings tanked, and the league was going through changes.

A new anti-hero generation was inheriting the league.

[David] As a group, they're a pretty good group of guys.

They may not conform to the notion that we all have

of the heroes of yesteryear,

but to that extent, sports becomes a harbinger of things to come.

[reporter] Are you "The Answer," or at least one of the answers

to the question, "Who's gonna carry the NBA torch?"

[Allen] I want to be.

I want that. I want to take on that responsibility.

[J.A.] I think the NBA feared that Allen Iverson represented

something that they didn't want the league to be.

[reporter] Do you feel the NBA has lost ground and popularity to other sports

because it has become too synonymous with hip-hop ostentation?

The reality is that sports, fashion, music, they're global trends.

And we go with the flow

and do not have a particularly hip-hop agenda.

People started dressing like me, 'cause they wanted to feel confident.

Well, shit, he can do it. Why can't I?

Then, everybody started doing it.

Everybody came with the chains, everybody came with the earrings,

everybody was wearing baggy clothes.

[J.A.] It was this fear that Iverson would alienate the customer base,

when, meanwhile, what he was doing was enthralling young people

who looked up to him,

and so, it gave the NBA cachet.

[Larry] And it was a process to get this corporate behemoth, the NBA,

to realize that they had marketing gold on their hands.

[reporter 1] The NBA has announced it's changing its dress code for players.

- [reporter 2] Off-court dress code to... - [reporter 3] Pro athletes associate

themselves with the thug life...

[Matt] Think it was getting a little too hip hop

for David Stern's liking.

This is nothing less than having a $3 billion business.

And each additional dollar, the players get 57 cents of.

And we are doing here what our teams want us to do.

[Allen] I was like, oh, my God, man, that's a shot at me.

'Cause I started this.

If I put on a suit, I'm gonna be the same person.

When you think of mobsters and gangsters and Al Capone and all these people,

they wore suits. John Gotti wore $2,000 suits.

[Larry Platt] The NBA airbrushed out his tats and his earring.

[Allen] Broke my heart. Like, my tattoos mean something.

My family, my babies, my girl.

You should've fucking blurred my face.

[Larry] And it turns out, they were ready to embrace Allen Iverson,

because he played his ass off.

They didn't care that he was tatted up or wore his hair in cornrows.

[Allen] I listened to Charles Barkley say,

you know, he's not a role model or whatever,

and I understood what he was saying.

It's not his job to raise your kids.

But the responsibility is there,

'cause there's a lot of little dudes and little women

that look up to Allen Iverson.

You know, you signed up for this.

[Larry] It's a more authentic cultural presence

that Allen's at the forefront of.

At first, no. No hip hop. No rappers.

Now, who doing all the promos?

- What? - Who doing all the promos?

- Rappers. - You did that.

[Larry] And actually, when they were cheering for Allen Iverson,

they were actually cheering the American Dream.

I ain't know I was doing it. I did it, but I didn't know I was doing it.

I didn't know I was securing a way for these guys today

to be themselves.

I didn't know I was doing it, 'cause I was stuck on,

"I ain't doing nothing wrong. I'm being myself."

This many years later,

taking an ass-whooping for it is a blessing,

because now you see you can do your shit.

But Chuck took that ass-whooping for it.

I just thought it was unfair,

and the best part about my God,

I just knew I was gonna get through it all without folding.

Because I had some nights where I cried.

I had some nights where I couldn't believe it.

But you do wonder, like,

why did he want me to go through this pain?

[reporter] Allen Iverson is facing legal battles

about the right to his nickname, "The Answer."

Them wolves coming.

[Que] And that was one of the first early indications for us, too.

They're not coming looking as wolves.

[Que] We really gotta make sure we find ways to try to protect him.

They're coming as sheep.

[reporter] 76ers star Allen Iverson

is at the center of a Philadelphia police investigation.

Apparently, he had a fight with his wife.

Sources say he came looking for her at his cousin's apartment.

[reporter 2] If convicted, he could spend up to 61 years in jail.

[Allen] The biggest problem was, everybody got involved with it.

- Excuse me? - [reporter] Do ups and downs include

throwing your wife out...

Girl, get out of my face with that crazy stuff.

- That's only hearsay. - That's some rumors.

Where you get that from?

- That's hearsay, that's not true. - 'Cause somebody told it to you?

Did Tawanna tell you that?

[Gregory] I'm the driver. I'm his uncle.

I drove him around looking for my niece, which is his wife,

and my nephew, which is his cousin.

The building we went to, Allen paid the rent on that for his cousin.

We ain't kicking no doors. We ain't waving no .44s.

[Allen] If you've ever been in a relationship, you have fights, man.

To make a big deal... The big deal is 'cause it's Allen Iverson.

[Gregory] You think I'm gonna let my nephew run around with heat?

The king dog of the family,

where he take care of everybody? With a weapon?

I gotta have a weapon, 'cause he's Allen Iverson.

To protect us, just in case somebody run up on us.

[reporter] A Philadelphia judge dropped 12 of the 14 charges against Iverson.

I think it's time to get somebody else in here,

maybe give a fresh look.

[reporter 1] It was Brown's decision

to step down as Sixers' coach.

[reporter 2] The Sixers and Allen Iverson have reached an agreement

that'll keep A.I. in Philadelphia through the 2008-2009 season.

[announcer] Allen for the win! Yes!

Do you love this game?

[Allen] Me being in Philadelphia, me being myself,

it's hard for me to maneuver the way I want to.

[reporter] The shooting at Iverson and a group of his friends

earlier this month.

[man] He fired two shots.

[Allen] As soon as I looked up at him...

Pow, pow. I mean, I saw the fire come from the gun.

I don't know how he missed me.

And then, you know, I just took off running.

[reporter] Iverson was not injured, but his longtime friend Larry Robinson

was struck once in the leg.

[Larry Robinson] I was hit.

Allen wasn't that type, so they tried to make it

like it was more than what it was.

[reporter 1] After the Sixers fired Randy Ayers in February...

[reporter 2] But now on his third coach in less than one year...

[reporter 1] ...because he wasn't consulted beforehand.

[reporter 2]...difficulties are never too far from the surface...

[reporter 3]...told A.I. he would come off the bench...

[reporter 2] And is it too hard to imagine Iverson someplace else?

[reporter 4] A humiliating loss...

I was a failure.

[reporter 5] ...first team to beat a US squad since 1992.

Philly with no A.I. is like Philly with no City Hall!

[Allen] I wanna win a championship right here in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia not having cheese steaks

- and soft pretzels. - [man 1] Philly with no crack in the bell!

[reporter 6] Iverson, traded to the Denver Nuggets.

[reporter 7] We say goodbye to A.I.

[reporter 8] Does A.I. make Denver a legitimate contender in the west?

I did not want to go.

Tiaura and Deuce were in school.

[reporter 9] Denver becomes the first 50-win team in NBA history

to get swept.

[reporter 10] A.I. traded back to the east to the Pistons.

[reporter 11] The first time as an NBA player

be coming off the bench.

[sighs] It's a bigger deal than just...

packing up and moving from one team to the next.

[reporter 12] Hey, it happens to all of us. We get older sometimes.

It's hard when the kids are involved,

and just, um...

I'm turning into a journeyman. [laughs]

[commentator] He's probably at home thinking about my future

and how it's gonna affect me for Detroit, but also long-term.

[Allen] When you get traded, obviously,

the team that traded for you, they want you.

When he got traded to Memphis, we did not go to Memphis.

[Allen] They wanna welcome you to their city.

[reporter] The Sixers lost starting point guard Lou Williams for eight weeks

with a fractured jaw.

That is what prompted talks with A.I.

[Allen] You know, when I had the opportunity...

When I had the opportunity to come back here,

you know, it was something...

I couldn't turn it down.

And I'm just...

I'm just... I'm just happy.

[interviewer] When you first decided to retire, what led up to that decision?

You know, I just wanted to be wanted.

You know, want somebody that really wants you. For you.

And what you can bring.

You know, once that started to fade, it was like okay, it's time to go.

Everybody know why we're here.

I'm formally announcing my retirement from basketball.

And I think ultimately, the icing on the cake

was when my daughter got sick.

I'm happy with my decision.

And I feel great. I'm in a great mindset.

When I'm on the dance floor, all I think about is what's going on out there.

I remember somebody was shooting a free throw,

and I was thinking about her.

And that's when I knew. That's when I knew it was over.

[reporter] You said you don't know what you're going to do.

You don't have a plan for...

I mean, I have ideas, you know?

I wanna do a lot of things, you know what I mean? But right now...

You know, I just wanna fish and enjoy my family.

You know what I mean? Spending time that I never had.

You know, because of ripping and running, you know, being in the NBA,

and just, just enjoy the rest of my life.

And assure myself that basketball is not my whole life.

You know, there's another chapter.

- Hey. - Good to see you.

Good to see you, yep, yep, yep. What's up, man?

Good to see you. Yep, yep, yep

- There's gonna be three questions. - Yep.

[Que] One of the things I quickly noticed,

Allen wasn't gonna be the type of athlete

that was gonna run out of money because of bad investments.

He was gonna run out of money because his heart was so big.

My man.

[Que] I remember there was a night at the Iversons'

with his friends and family.

And we started having an argument.

One side of the group felt like

you couldn't spend $100 million in a lifetime.

And there was another side of the group, like me,

that was like, you're buggin'.

Like, not only can you spend $100 million in a lifetime,

you can spend that shit in a day.

[reporter] Stephen A. Smith says that Iverson has serious

alcohol and gambling issues.

The problem is so severe, that Iverson will drink himself into oblivion

or gamble his life away.

[Brandy] When things hurt him,

the first thing he might do is go have a drink.

- [commentator 1] Look at Allen Iverson. - [commentator 2] He's broke.

[reporter] A.I. has been banned already from casinos in both Detroit

and Atlantic City.

[commentator 2] He's got no money. Allen Iverson has no money.

The hardest part of managing money...

not having the word "no" in your vocabulary.

Thinking you can take care of everybody.

And that's something you can't do.

[reporter] According to TMZ, Tawanna Iverson filed for divorce

back in March of 2010.

The couple then attempted to reconcile,

she dropped the divorce petition,

but then filed again last June.

[Tawanna] We got divorced, um...

I don't even know where to start with it. Um...

So, maybe around 2010...

um, I think, was like the beginning of like... [clears throat]

the hard... the hardest part of our marriage.

And it was more of... um...

he didn't have, like, routine.

[Allen] If you ain't doing your part in a relationship, then...

obviously, it's gonna break, you know what I mean?

And I was fucking up to the highest level.

Fucking up fast and picking up speed.

And she was sick of it.

I did try to, like, step away,

hoping that he would, "Oh, she...

she left, look, let me get my shit together."

It didn't happen the way I would have liked for it to happen,

but yeah, we ended up, um...

[Stephen] I would hear about drinking. I would hear about gambling.

I would hear about money issues.

And while everybody was just talking about this, chronicling it,

I was saying, "Where's Tawanna?"

We ended up getting a divorce, uh...

It was finalized 2013.

[Allen] The worst thing that I ever went through.

One of the worst nightmares that I ever been through

in my life, going through that divorce.

[Stephen] It is not an exaggeration.

[Brandy] He said he just wanted the pain to go away.

[Stephen] He is nothing...

[Brandy] "The next day, when I woke up, it was still there."

[Stephen] ...without heart.

[Allen] I was losing what God gave me.

- I threw it away. - [static]

[Allen] I used to clam out there.

You walk out there at low tide, and you just do the shit with your feet.

I was getting them big-ass clams, and then Mommy used to steam them bitches,

put that Texas Pete on the motherfuckers.

It was paradise to me.

Man, the devil's always in second place.

That motherfucker's in second place all the time.

And, he... it's a tight race.

But, the way I look at it, he always in second.

Either you gonna fall, or you gonna stand up.

I'd rather stand up.

Hi!

[Brandy] He fired the management team that he had before.

He's at point where he's ready to be more in tune

taking responsibility for his personal life

as well as his business life.

[Allen] I look at it like... I'm getting the respect that I earned.

[Michael] People want to know more about him just 'cause it's him.

The push is just 'cause of who he is.

[reporter] Reebok just announced that Shaq and A.I.

will serve as President and Vice President of basketball.

[Shaq] It's easy for me to talk to a big man.

Can't talk to a guard, but he can.

And the President and Vice President working together, so,

it's just a challenge for us to just try to get back in the game.

- Later, ya'll! See you. - All right. God bless ya'll.

[Tawanna] The way we got back together was like...

what was the point in getting a divorce?

Our relationship... just...

withstands... any and everything

that has presented itself because...

there's just a love that... I... I ca... we can't explain it.

[Allen] I ain't been the greatest... partner.

So, for somebody to stick with me...

for this long...

is a blessing that it happened the way it happened.

[Tawanna] Allen is definitely more of a family man now.

[Allen] My... my time...

is where I wanted to be.

My two older kids, they never really had...

a father that was there, I was always rippin' and runnin'

through their childhood.

Now I'm there, I'm there, I'm... I'm in their life.

I'm talking to them when they don't understand things.

When things are hard for them, like, I'm there, I'm their voice.

I think he's more accepting of...

"My family loves me,

my household loves me, and...

my friends are over there."

Thirty-two years, I wanna go 32 more,

and beyond it, you know what I mean?

That's my... that's my partner.

I just have a respect for him because I can, um...

I know who he is.

I've seen where he comes from.

Who he's grown into.

[reporter] Newport News is naming a street after Hampton Roads' native

Allen Iverson today.

The city will add Allen Iverson Way to 16th Street.

[Allen] So many things in life, you're trying so hard

to do the right thing...

but trying to do the right thing leads you into doing the wrong thing.

But at the same time, there's a lot of things that I wish

I could've changed, but I wouldn't be me.

You know what I mean? And that's like the beauty of my life.

Coming from where I've come from,

people like that don't make it this far.

[Stephen] What if his definition of being rich and wealthy

is being free to be who he was?

[Allen] Be happy, man. Laugh!

Hug your friends. Hug your friends, man. Love your friends.

Enjoy the time that you with them.

[Brandy] The most important thing Bub did for me,

he always had my back.

There's never been a time in 45 years that he wasn't there.

[Stephen] He was truly unapologetic about who he was.

And spearheaded a cultural movement

that has been undeniably favorable to the Black athlete.

- [man 1] Biggest influence. - [man 2] Cultural...

- [man 3] So relatable... - [man 4] An icon...

- [man 5] A legend. - [man 6] Pantheon.

[Kevin] A.I. was your favorite basketball player's favorite basketball player.

[Tawanna] To see big-name players act like little kids

when they see him, like, that's amazing to me.

I started playing basketball because of him.

[Kevin] We all was long crossing, double-crossing...

One of those guys that I emulated every time I went outside

to play with my friends.

[Dwyane] You inspired a generation to believe that coming from nothing

was not a limitation,

but motivation.

[Kobe] A.I. is a competitor.

He drove me to be more obsessive about the game.

I had a bet with my cousin how many times you gonna hit the floor tonight.

- That was only one. That's it. - That's the first time.

I said, "Man, you don't realize how much you push me."

[Stephen] He's been subjected to a level of scrutiny

in ways that most athletes couldn't even fathom.

- [woman] He was him all the time. - [Stephen] He did it his way.

He never conformed.

[man 1] The utmost confidence in his fashion and swag.

- [woman] Durag... - [man 2] Cornrows...

[woman] He was Iverson.

[man 4] I always called him Tupac of basketball.

[Stephen Curry] He represented culture on the basketball court and off,

even when the rules were set up for him to fail.

[Stephen] There is no way, in my mind, I would be sitting here today

if it wasn't for Allen Iverson.

Man, you are the forefather of allowing people to be themselves.

♪ And you can try to change but that's just the top layer ♪

♪ Man, you was who you was 'fore you got here... ♪

No question!

♪ Either love me or leave me alone ♪

[Allen] Yes, man, I want some more money. I ain't got enough.

I want more accomplishments. I want more in life.

Not in a selfish way. I wanna be happy.

I want my family to be happy.

I want my friends to be happy.

[Stephen] He's been to hell and back. And he's still standing.

So that, in and of itself, at the end of the day,

is a source of inspiration.

[announcer] And finally, a six-foot guard from Georgetown...

♪ Allow me to reintroduce myself, my name is ♪

[announcer] Allen Iverson!

♪ I got a hustler's spirit, nigga, period ♪

♪ Check out my hat, yo, peep the way I wear it... ♪

[Adam] You define the city of Philadelphia more than any other athlete.

You left everything on the court every single night.

On behalf of every NBA fan, thank you.

[announcer] Ladies and gentlemen, Allen Iverson!

[Allen] I'm 48. That ain't gonna change up.

I ain't gonna turn into nobody else.

Swear to God, I hope I get smarter tomorrow.

And I did a good job, 'cause there's a lot of motherfuckers that love me.

The man of the hour, Allen Iverson.

[cheering and applause]

[Allen] This is who I am. I'm the people's champ.

My God, my God be showing off, man.

I know...

I know...

My man...

[voice quavering] I know my man, Ra, is up there,

and he... and he looking down on me

and I know everything I go through in my life...

I know he help me with it.

The ones that stuck by me throughout my journey,

I love y'all, and I love the fact that now y'all can walk around

and stick y'all chest out and say y'all are Hall of Famers.

I just love representing Virginia.

I love who I am. If I died, you know, today,

and was able to come back tomorrow, I would wanna come back Chuck.

[cheering and applause]

My mom told me when I was eight years old,

that I could be anything I wanted to be.

And I actually believed her, you know what I mean?

'Cause she... she told me that I could be who I am today.

People were placed in his life

the whole way through, to get him to where he is.

And they've all served a purpose.

And he's served a purpose in our lives as well.

[Allen] I'm so lucky, I'm so blessed,

to have my family, my friends around me that support me

or encourage me to do better.

Do everything to help me live this dream life.

And it's hard, but I do it the Allen Iverson way.

You know what I mean?

And I thank y'all,

and I love y'all for coming out and supporting me.

Please keep supporting me. Thank you. Love you all.

The people that love me

is what matter to me.

The people that love Allen Iverson that knew him before all this shit.

If I was to ask myself, "What am I here for?"

Just continue to take care of my family.

Take care of my daughter, my mom, my sisters, my aunts, my uncles.

That word, "family," is one of the biggest words

you can let come out your mouth,

and that means a lot to me, where I'm from.

You know, family's supposed to stick together no matter what.

I'd go broke for my family. I'd die for my family.

[dramatic music playing]

Bet.

Man, thank you, dawg.

[groaning]

[cheers, applause, and whooping]

Oh, shit!

Yo, do you hear them bitches pop like that, man?

Yo, man.

[closing theme playing]