Dossier · 2000s
Allen Iverson
Six feet tall, 165 pounds, and the MVP of a league built to stop him.
1996-2010 · 76ers, Nuggets, Pistons, Grizzlies
- MVP
- 2001
- Scoring titles
- 4
- Career scoring
- 26.7 per game
- Best season
- 33.0 per game, 2005-06
- 2001 Finals Game 1
- 48 points in Los Angeles
- Listed size
- 6 feet, 165 pounds
The numbers
Iverson won the 2001 MVP at 6 feet tall and a listed 165 pounds. He averaged 31.1 points that season and led Philadelphia to the best record in the East.
He won 4 scoring titles, in 1999, 2001, 2002 and 2005. His career average is 26.7 points, and his best season is 33.0 in 2005-06 at 30 years old.
In Game 1 of the 2001 Finals he scored 48 points in Los Angeles and Philadelphia won in overtime. The Lakers went 15-1 in that postseason, and that was the 1.
He also stepped over Tyronn Lue on the way back up the floor, which is the single most reproduced photograph of his career.
The context
The 2001 league was the hardest scoring environment in 40 years. Teams averaged 94.8 points a game, hand-checking was legal, and the defensive rules that opened driving lanes did not arrive until 2004.
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