The details of this story may be lost to history, but Iverson’s career is littered with referee-related episodes that helped to limit his time in the NBA. One of the most notorious may have been the happenstance of Iverson’s NBA record-setting 27,003th point. Iverson sunk the record-breaking basket with 1:49 left in a game against the Portland Trailblazers. For the next two minutes, Iverson did nothing but stand and watch the scoreboard. To this day, Iverson claims that officials were keeping track of his points and that he was told that he would be fined if he did not score.
Allen Iverson’s history with referees dates back to the early 2000s. In the 2001 playoffs, he pushed referee Jake O’Donnell, and was suspended for the following game. In the 2003 playoffs, Iverson and O’Donnell had a confrontation and he was suspended again. In 2005, Iverson was suspended four games for his actions after a game against the Detroit Pistons, and was fined $25,000.
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Allen Iverson has always been a performer with a flair for the dramatic. Iverson’s character constantly made ripples in the media, on the court, and with officials, whether he was paying for the Philadelphia 76ers or the Denver Nuggets.
Iverson would be properly penalized for his numerous on-court antics the bulk of the time. However, the 6-foot superstar was unjustly penalized $25,000 in one case.
Allen Iverson was fined $25,000 in 2007 for his comments against NBA referee Steve Javie.
Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images/Allen Iverson
Iverson battled to obtain foul calls from NBA referee Steve Javie during a Nuggets game in January 2007. Iverson, being the outspoken person that he is, became enraged and started verbally attacking Javie.
With 1:44 left in the game, Javie gave Iverson his second technical foul, and the Nuggets guard was dismissed. Iverson had some harsh words for the official after the game:
Iverson stated, “I felt I was fouled on that play, and I said I thought he was making the game personal, and he kicked me out.” “I should have known I wouldn’t be able to say anything since his fuse is so short. Since I joined the league, we’ve had a personal relationship. This was the ideal opportunity for him to make me seem bad.”
ESPN’s Allen Iverson
Iverson was eventually fined $25,000 for his remarks. However, following further investigation, it seems that Iverson was right in expressing his dissatisfaction.
A.I. was a subject of Javie’s “longstanding hate.”
Allen Iverson scored 15 points in the fourth quarter in the greatest comeback in NBA All-Star game history 19 years ago today.
The 2001 game is widely considered to be one of the greatest All-Star games ever played.
February 11, 2020 — Ballislife.com (@Ballislife)
Key facts regarding Javie’s connection with Iverson were revealed after he retired in 2011.
First, Javie said that “something personal has been going on between myself and him [Iverson] since I came into the league.” The former referee made little effort to conceal his hatred for Iverson, which is always troubling conduct from an official who is meant to be impartial.
It’s unclear where this “personal something” came from. Even so, it’s fair to infer that it led in Iverson receiving less-than-favorable treatment whenever Javie officiated his games.
Second, in his book Personal Foul: A First-Person Account of the NBA Scandal, another former NBA referee, Tony Donaghy, backed up Javie’s claim that he despises Iverson.
Not only did Donaghy back up Javie’s allegation that he had a personal vendetta against Iverson, but he also said that following Iverson’s post-game remarks in 2007, officials joined together and started totally disregarding foul calls in his favor.
Not exactly fair treatment for a guy who was already being unfairly targeted.
Allen Iverson’s Hall of Fame career was not hampered by referees’ mistreatment.
Although Javie isn’t the only NBA official who hated Iverson, the guard’s bad treatment didn’t stop him from becoming a Hall of Famer.
Iverson averaged 26.7 points per game throughout his career and earned many accolades, including the league MVP in 2001. Despite referee misconduct, Iverson was able to establish himself as an all-time great.
Iverson, on the other hand, never received the $25,000 from the league. Given some of the facts revealed about Javie after his retirement, he’s probably not happy about it.
Basketball Reference provided all stats.
Max Kellerman claims Allen Iverson would have been a better player than Michael Jordan if it weren’t for one major factor.
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