Allen Iverson’s feud with practice is a well-known story in the NBA. In case you don’t know, the Philadelphia 76ers legend really hated practicing, which ruined his relationship with the team in the 2000s.
This started even before he started his NBA career, as scouts pointed out that Iverson wasn’t a fan of practice ahead of the 1996 draft.
The Answer is probably the most talented player in NBA history, but his unwillingness to practice was bigger than him sometimes. AI was so against practicing that he credited that as the reason why he would never become a coach. In a 2014 interview with Filipino reporters, Iverson made this big yet unexpected claim.
“No, I would never want to coach. We would never practice.”
This comes as no surprise, knowing how much he disliked practicing. During his days with the Sixers, AI had a lengthy rant about practice, his commitment to the team, and personal struggles.
“We sitting in 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. Not a game. Not the game that I go out there and die for and play every game like it’s my last. Not the game. We talking about practice, man.”
Iverson was really something else on and off the court. After his 2001 MVP-winning season, the player kept showing his talents, trying to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to the NBA Finals again.
He recorded a terrific 2004-05 season, winning the scoring championship after an incredible race. Iverson was so dangerous that one player claimed thanked him for ‘giving’ him a $5 million contract.
Contrary to what Kobe Bryant did, Iverson was more focused on having fun after games. He knew he was that good and didn’t need to do much to keep his level. It would’ve been interesting to see how high he would’ve gone if he actually liked practicing.
In the end, that didn’t matter. AI is one of the best players that ever set foot on an NBA court, and nobody can’t change that.
