Ex-NBA star Allen Iverson is reportedly ready to announce his retirement from basketball. The former Philadelphia 76ers All-Star is expected to make his announcement this week, SLAMOnline.com reports.
Iverson's last appearance in an NBA game was in 2010 for the Sixers. He played in 2011 in Turkey, where he last played professionally. Despite his desire to remain in the NBA, Iverson never found a suitor after the 2010 season.
When Iverson spoke with SLAM in March, the 38-year-old sounded content to move on from basketball.
"My No. 1 goal is trying to accomplish to be the best dad that I can," he told SLAM. "And if basketball is in my near future, then God will make that happen. But if not, I had a great ride and I've done a lot of special things that a lot of guys have not been able to accomplish and people thought I couldn't accomplish.
"... (Basketball) enabled me - and it has enabled me - to take care of my family. It brought me so many fans and people that love me. I met so many great people. And it made me, whether I like it or not, a role model. It built me up, it knocked me down, it taught me how to get back up. It did a lot for me."
Philadelphia selected Iverson as the first overall pick of the 1996 NBA draft. He won the 1997 Rookie of the Year award and the 2001 NBA MVP award. In addition to 11 NBA All-Star appearances from 2000 through 2010, Iverson led the NBA in scoring four times. He averaged 26.7 points and 6.2 assists per game.
"He might be the greatest athlete I've ever seen," Larry Brown, Iverson's coach from 1997-2003, told SLAM on Wednesday. "I don't think there'll be another one like him."
