Is the Allen Iverson Era Over?

If you're an NBA fan, you know it's quite possible we may have seen the last of Allen Iverson this season. He's been a journeyman the last few years, spending time with four different teams since the '07–'08 season. He's most recently played with the team that originally drafted him, the Philadelphia 76ers, but he's had probably his worst season ever.

And now, he's left the team indefinitely to be with his 4-year-old daughter, Messiah, who has an undisclosed illness. According to Phil Jasner and Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia News, the "indefinitely" could mean the rest of the season. Iverson may be one of the more enigmatic players to have played in the NBA the past couple of decades, but he also has his priorities straight. Not only when it comes to his kids, but in the community. Since 2000, Iverson has had a charity, the Crossover Foundation, with a mission "to improve and address the health, educational and social needs of underprivileged children residing in the inner cities."

Regarding his daughter, Iverson said last week, "I have five kids. None of them have ever been this sick. It's a first-time thing for me. I like to look at myself as a strong person, especially dealing with everything in my life. But this is a totally different situation; you find out you're not as tough as you thought you were when it's one of your kids."

And make no mistake, "AI" is as tough as they come. Years before the 6-foot-4, 220-pound Dwyane Wade was driving into the paint with reckless abandon, the 6-foot, 165-pound Iverson was throwing his body all over the place and somehow, some way, still getting up. As ESPN.com's Bill Simmons opined in 2006, "He's an athletic freak." Pure and simple, the guy can play the game.

Iverson turns 35 in June and he's taken a pounding over the years, so combine that with the current uncertainty surrounding his daughter's health and the future becomes more uncertain. And while he may have unwittingly torpedoed the near future of my favorite team, the Detroit Pistons, he's one of the most incredible talents the game has seen and, as Simmons noted, he's on the short list of players "who will never be seen again for genetic or physical reasons."

We hope it isn't the last we've seen of him on the court, but if it is, we'll miss him, as will the NBA. His combination of pure talent, brashness and fire has been amazing to watch and made him one of the greatest ever. We hope his daughter gets better soon and that, no matter what his NBA future holds, the work he does with the Crossover Foundation continues.

Photo by Keith Allison via Flickr.