Iverson Decries Detroit’s Lies

Allen Iverson: “They told me, straight up, 'Allen, we would never disrespect you or your career like that,' by making me come off the bench. That's what they told me to my face. And after that, I never thought about it again. I just went back to playing. Then, they came to me saying that they felt it would be in the 'best interest of the team' if I came off of the bench behind Rip [Richard Hamilton].”

“After that, they told me that if I didn't come off the bench, the team was going to lie down on me. ... When he told me that, that's when I felt that this was the worst career move I'd ever made and it was the worst year of my career. If you are a head coach and you feel strongly about this, what would make you think that I want to be around these guys? Especially if you are telling me that they don't want to be around me like that?”

“I'd never been on a team where a coach told me the guys gave up on me. You know what I mean? And I kept this under wraps the whole time ... because I didn't want to bad-mouth any of those guys. I don't have bad to say about the organization, especially Joe [Dumars]. I never had a problem with Joe. He's a stand-up person that I have love for and respect. He was not part of any of the problems I had in Detroit. But for [the coach] to tell me these things and for him to go back on his word like that, it was the hardest and the roughest season I've ever had.”