| | PHILADELPHIA -- Allen Iverson served his suspension, even if he didn't learn a lesson.
One after after sitting out the 76ers' loss to the Miami Heat on
Thursday night after missing the morning shootaround, Iverson
returned to the lineup and had 24 points and nine assists to lead
the Sixers to a 99-97 victory over the Utah Jazz on Friday night.
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| Iverson |
Iverson, who reacted angrily to the suspension and said he felt
"betrayed" Thursday night, wasn't entirely remorseful after
Friday's game.
"Maybe I'll do it again, maybe I won't," said Iverson, who was
booed upon his introduction Friday. "If I'm sick, I'll call in to
say I can't make it. I'm gonna do what's best for Allen Iverson's
health and I'll definitely think of my teammates when I make the
decision."
Iverson maintained that a headache is a good enough excuse to
miss practice. He reportedly hosted a party at a South Beach
nightspot the night before the Miami game.
"If I don't feel well, I don't feel well," he said. "Maybe my
headaches are different than yours. I felt it could've been handled
another way."
Sixers coach Larry Brown said he hopes the matter has been
resolved.
"We hope there's closure to it and it's over," Brown said.
Iverson has had several problems with the Sixers during his
four-year career, and this suspension was a culmination of a series
of missed practices. Iverson has missed practices this season for
reasons ranging from a snowstorm to his daughter's illness.
"The suspension wasn't just about one practice," Brown said.
"I should have handled it sooner. You can't have rules for one guy
and rules for the rest of the team. You have to care enough about
each player to be on time, to get to practice and be responsible."
Iverson said he called the team trainer, took two ibuprofen and
went back to sleep on Thursday morning instead of attending
practice.
General manager Billy King said he called Iverson's room shortly
thereafter, but there was no answer.
"If you don't talk about the other incidents, people will look
at you like you're crazy," Iverson said. "If you just go on this
one incident, you look bad. You have to throw the other part into
it."
Iverson, 24, was suspended for a game once before when he missed
a practice in New York three years ago.
In December, Iverson lashed out at Brown after being benched for
the final 20 minutes of a loss at Detroit. Iverson said then he
should be traded if Brown was unhappy with him.
Team president Pat Croce said the latest incident is over.
"Allen is smart enough to learn from these episodes," Croce
said. "Every family has squabbles."
Croce said he was "stunned" to hear Iverson say he felt
betrayed by the suspension.
"I asked him, 'What do you mean betrayed by the franchise? I am
the franchise,"' Croce said. "He said 'I didn't mean you.' I
think that was Allen just being defensive."'
Brown said Iverson is the only player he has suspended in his 28
years of coaching. Brown, 59, appeared fed up with the entire
situation.
"I have a team to worry about, not just one guy to cater to,"
Brown said. "I just want to coach, not worry about guys being
responsible."
Iverson's teammates said the incident is behind them.
"I don't think he means anything by his mistakes," Matt Geiger
said. "A mistake is only a mistake if you do it twice."
Eric Snow, who has been critical of Iverson in the past, said,
"I hope we're mature and professional enough to let these things
pass us by." | |
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 Allen Iverson answers questions regarding his suspension.
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Larry Brown suspends Allen Iverson.
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