by hanway
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["We talkin' 'bout Practice"]
"We talkin' 'bout practice. We're not even talkin' 'bout
the actual game, when it matters. We talkin' 'bout practice."
"How the hell am I supposed to make my teammates better about
practicing? They're supposed to used to play with me anyway.
That was my teammates. So, so my game's goin' to deteriorate
if I don't practice with those guys?"
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SAS: When you were saying that, you know everybody was in
summertime. Ya'll just lost playoffs or what have you. What
was going through your mind right when you were saying all
that stuff for the world to see because you know everybody
in the world's listening?
AI: It was about, honestly--being in Philadelphia, I go through
it, man. I really, really go through it.
SAS: Go through what? Go through what exactly?
AI: Hell. When everybody saw Allen Iverson, it's hands-on
Allen Iverson. That's all the time, not just when he's playing
basketball; when I am feeding my daughter, signing, or when I
am with my wife, anything. I go through it. It's tough; it's
hard. And I fight for that place to represent that place the
way I am doing it right now. I fight to represent Philadelphia.
I'm not from Philadelphia. I'm from Newport News, Virginia. I
fight for Philadelphia. That's how I became a household name to
people. And then, when I gotta hear trade rumors or stuff like
that about getting me outta there every single after every
season, you know i gotta hear talks about this, that, and third,
I didn't like where it was coming from, the people it was
coming from, I didn't like some of the things that were getting
out, that people were finding out, that was in house, in family.
You know, family conversations. And I was upset. I just came
from a meeting with those people, with Billy and Coach. It was
a bad time.
SAS: It was immediately following the meeting with Billy King
and Larry Brown?
AI: Immediately. It was bad advice given to me, and it was a
stupid decision that I made by getting out there. All I wanted
to do was to tell my fans that I wasn't going anywhere. Coz I just
had that meeting. But the meeting was called, and everything
was based on the practice situation, that I don't practice.
Like I said before, there's no way that I'd accomplish the
things I'd accomplished in my life, if I don't practice. If
any kid out there thinks that I don't practice, then that's
crazy. And I'm not looking at it like a kid, but maturer. I
don't make all the right decisions. I don't do everything the
right way. I don't know how to play basketball the right way
like Larry Brown said. Not every game. Sometimes, I'd go
explore my game. I'm gonna do something, try something. I don't
know what playing the right way is. I don't know what he means
literally, playing the game the right way, playing it
unselfishly. He's the greatest coach to ever coach this game,
to me, in my heart. He's the greatest. I mean, the way he gets
everything out of his players. He's the best coach I've ever
been around.
SAS: It's interesting that you bring up Larry Brown because
would you like to hear what he had to say about you?
AI: Absolutely.
SAS: Play the tape.
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[tape] LB on AI
LB: When he goes out to play, he gives everything he can to
possibly win. He might sometimes be misguided, but he competes
every single night. He'll never let his teammates down in terms
of giving effort and trying to win. And I love him for that.
I wish that he realize when kids watch that, they're not seeing
the real side of him. You know, he could have the greatest
effect on kids, of any atheletes I've ever been associated with.
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SAS: I see tears welling in your eyes, my man. Why?
AI: Nah, I just got a lot of respect for him. I love him. He
taught me a lot. I learned a lot. I learned that you ain't
always right, and just because somebody disciplines you, that
doesn't mean they don't love you. They're trying to get you
get right. They're trying to get you to the point you are right
now. [sobbing]
SAS: Were there times in your career that, regardless of your
respect for him...did you ever feel...it almost came across as
if sometimes you felt victimized by him, in the process of him
trying to teach you. He'd always said that you felt victimized
by him, and he didn't look at himself as a coach to you, but
also like a father figure to you. What's your response to that?
AI: I didn't know. I didn't know nothing, man. I am blessed
with what God gave me. He gave me a talent. When I came into
this league, with the talent He gave me, people wanted me to be
35 years old right then. Like "this guy with all these talent,
this guy with all these effects on all the people in the world,
we want him to be this way." Well I didn't want to be that.
SAS: What did you want to be?
AI: Me.
SAS: And who is you?
AI: A human, man.
SAS: Who are you?
AI: Somebody that bleeds; somebody that cries, that makes
mistakes. I'm real, just like everybody else. A human, man.
I'm not perfect. I'm not even 50% perfect. I'm human. I made
mistakes along the way. I've been to jail three times, and,
not saying I did what they said I did, but, in those situations,
it called for me to go to jail. In those situations, from my
actions on my part, I deserved to be exactly where I was at,
everytime I went. And I accept that.
SAS: But you even say that with the bowling alley brawl that
took place in high school when you were incarcerated for four
months?
AI: I was there, I was there.
SAS: But you were declared clemency by the governor on his
last day in office. If that was not an exoneration, what else
is it? I mean, he basically said you didn't deserve to be there
by granting you clemency. You still feel like you deserve to
be there?
AI: Man, I went through what I went throuhg because God said,
"Go through it." That's why I went through it. And I overcame
it. I overcame all of it. And that's my whole thing. I'm doing
a charity thing in Maryland, a celebrity football game.
SAS: Yeah, you got celebrity football game. You got celebrity
softball game, where, by the way, I embarrassed myself a few
years ago, but we won't tell the audience about that. You know
what I'm saying? And you are a lot of things back in your home,
Newport News.
AI: Absolutely. I think the one I'm doing is my greatest project.
SAS: Why is that?
AI: Because...I'm having a celebrity flag football game. I'm
having all my celebrity friends over. I'll quarterback the game.
And I'm getting police officers from DC area, Newport News,
Hampton, Virginia, and Philadelphia, and we'll play against them.
Basically it's like the inmates against the officers, but we're
gonna be the officers. But we're gonna be the officers, and
they're gonna be the inmates. But it's gonna be called "the good
vs. good".
SAS: Yeah, but what is the reason for that?
AI: The reason is, to donate money for guys that don't have
money to take care of their legal fees, for canteen, in jail.
Because everybody that goes into jail is not a bad guy. People
make mistakes. We ain't put it all together yet. We trying to
make sure that we look out for them, like sending 500 pairs of
sneakers to them, to give to those guys that're going through
a hard time. But at the same time, looking out for those
officers and donate money to those people because they got the
hardest job in the world. You get killed just for being in
uniform. Don't have nothing to do with the guy that ran out of
the bank with all the money. He can just see you, and you can
get killed like that. So I know how real it is. Anything happened
with me, yeah, with my house, I'm gonna call the police. I know
how hard their job can be. I know why they had to act in a
certain way. I deal with it. I've been around it. It's my
environment. So I want to give to the inmates and the officers.
And try to make it big. Try to fill up the stadium, like what
we did in the baseball event, but it's for a good cause.
SAS: Still think he's a little kid, ladies and gentlemen? Allen
Iverson in the house.
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※ 編輯: JustCold 來自: 61.222.182.154 (12/09 10:52)