Gary Moore

His closest confidant asked the basketball world to pray for Allen Iverson, as if no one has all these years while seeing this train wreck coming. He acted as if the former 76ers star hadn't needed a significant dose of prayer, luck, and divine intervention until now. And as the rest of us are forced to bear witness to a disintegration, the rapid decline of a career clearly lacking nurturing, the time has arrived for Iverson's inner circle to stand up and be counted, to provide some semblance of tough love - by any means necessary.

Once upon a time it was hard to decipher what was more difficult to stomach: the foolish, detrimental behavior of a professional athlete or the apologists disguised as their inner circle, eager to excuse the inexcusable. And then there came Allen Iverson, who didn't make it difficult at all. We can sit around and pretend that Iverson was victimized last week. That somehow he was outed and his personal business was thrown out into the street. But the truth is, from missed practices to excessive tardiness to a flagrant disdain for authority in any venue he's frequented in the past decade, nothing new about Iverson's habits was revealed in the last few days.

Northampton pro Gary Hardin teamed with Mike Thompson of Mac's Golf Center to shoot 7-under par 65 and earned a share of first place in the F.E.S. Winter Tour's modified better-ball tournament yesterday at Wyncote Golf Club. Gary Moore and Dave Correll of Fox Run also posted a 65 to tie for first place in a field of 50 two-man teams. The format called for each player to hit a drive, and then each played his own ball from the position of the best tee shot.

Allen Iverson needs surgery to have a lesion removed from his right leg, but the former 76ers star does not plan to retire, his longtime business manager said. Iverson, 35, is playing his first season for Besiktas in Turkey. His business manager, Gary Moore, told the Associated Press that Iverson planned to undergo surgery in the United States and hoped to rejoin his Turkish team in time for the playoffs. There is no timetable for the surgery, but Moore said it would be soon.

Allen Iverson has been sued for not showing up, this time to speak to his fans. The lawsuit filed in Douglas County District Court in Omaha, Neb., says the Denver star didn't come to a weekend of booked appearances in Omaha in early August, leaving fans at a youth rally and two clubs without their main attraction. Kermit Brashear, the lawyer for the promotion company that booked Iverson, said the company was told Iverson had a family emergency. The lawsuit says a $10,000 deposit was paid to Iverson's manager Gary Moore to secure Iverson's appearance.

Any time his mother is involved, it is serious. That's what Allen Iverson said about his beloved mom, Ann, before the 76ers played the Milwaukee Bucks last night. Iverson missed the Sixers' practice on Monday and their walk-through here yesterday morning, he and the team said, to be with his ailing mother. Ann is "fine," Iverson said, although he characterized her as "sick. " "My mom didn't want me to know," Iverson said, explaining that his sister called sometime after the Sixers' game Saturday against the Miami Heat to let him know their mother was ill. The Sixers said that Iverson went to Connecticut, where his mother has a home, on Monday morning, although Iverson said last night that Ann was in Virginia as of yesterday.

Unwanted by the NBA, Allen Iverson is considering playing in China. With NBA training camps set to open in less than two weeks, Gary Moore , Iverson's personal manager, said Iverson has not been contacted by any team. Moore said there is "legitimate interest" between Iverson and a team in China. Moore did not know the team's name and was vague on details. "We're very astonished, to say the least, that not one team has contacted us with any interest," Moore said. "I just don't understand it. " Iverson played three games for Memphis last season before he returned for a second stint with the 76ers.

Allen Iverson is moving closer to an agreement with Turkish team Besiktas on a one-year contract that could pay him as much as $2 million with bonuses, sources told Yahoo! Sports. "We are in very serious negotiations with Besiktas," Iverson's business manager Gary Moore said. "Istanbul is beautiful from everything we've learned. It's not that far from the U.S., and the competition is good. Allen wants to play basketball. " Besiktas sent a contract to Iverson on Monday and hopes he'll sign it by week's end. One stumbling block was Iverson's reluctance to let Besiktas fine him beyond 1 percent of his $1.5 million base salary, a source said.

He has worked a lifetime to get to the Eastern Conference finals, becoming his team's leader along the way. But now, with a bruised tailbone that feels as if it has been beaten with a sledgehammer, can Allen Iverson go? "Doubt it," Iverson said in a statement yesterday while aboard the 76ers' charter headed for Milwaukee for Game 3 today against the Bucks. The doubt will not be erased until 5:30 p.m., when the Sixers and Bucks tip off at the Bradley Center. Iverson said he "hurt," but that his tailbone felt better than it did after the Sixers' 92-78 loss in Game 2 on Thursday.

He wants love. Hidden behind the tough exterior, the 21 tattoos, the carats of diamonds and the signature cornrows, Allen Iverson needs, like all of us, to be embraced, accepted, and adored. In the exhilarating frenzy after the 76ers' win over Milwaukee last weekend, Larry Brown planted a kiss on Iverson. He was stunned. "Why do you think he kissed me?" Iverson asked his confidant, Gary Moore, on the plane home to Philadelphia. "Because he loves you, man," Moore answered.

Allen Iverson needs surgery to have a lesion removed from his right leg, but the former 76ers star does not plan to retire, his longtime business manager said. Iverson, 35, is playing his first season for Besiktas in Turkey. His business manager, Gary Moore, told the Associated Press that Iverson planned to undergo surgery in the United States and hoped to rejoin his Turkish team in time for the playoffs. There is no timetable for the surgery, but Moore said it would be soon.

Allen Iverson is moving closer to an agreement with Turkish team Besiktas on a one-year contract that could pay him as much as $2 million with bonuses, sources told Yahoo! Sports. "We are in very serious negotiations with Besiktas," Iverson's business manager Gary Moore said. "Istanbul is beautiful from everything we've learned. It's not that far from the U.S., and the competition is good. Allen wants to play basketball. " Besiktas sent a contract to Iverson on Monday and hopes he'll sign it by week's end. One stumbling block was Iverson's reluctance to let Besiktas fine him beyond 1 percent of his $1.5 million base salary, a source said.

Unwanted by the NBA, Allen Iverson is considering playing in China. With NBA training camps set to open in less than two weeks, Gary Moore , Iverson's personal manager, said Iverson has not been contacted by any team. Moore said there is "legitimate interest" between Iverson and a team in China. Moore did not know the team's name and was vague on details. "We're very astonished, to say the least, that not one team has contacted us with any interest," Moore said. "I just don't understand it. " Iverson played three games for Memphis last season before he returned for a second stint with the 76ers.

Once upon a time it was hard to decipher what was more difficult to stomach: the foolish, detrimental behavior of a professional athlete or the apologists disguised as their inner circle, eager to excuse the inexcusable. And then there came Allen Iverson, who didn't make it difficult at all. We can sit around and pretend that Iverson was victimized last week. That somehow he was outed and his personal business was thrown out into the street. But the truth is, from missed practices to excessive tardiness to a flagrant disdain for authority in any venue he's frequented in the past decade, nothing new about Iverson's habits was revealed in the last few days.

His closest confidant asked the basketball world to pray for Allen Iverson, as if no one has all these years while seeing this train wreck coming. He acted as if the former 76ers star hadn't needed a significant dose of prayer, luck, and divine intervention until now. And as the rest of us are forced to bear witness to a disintegration, the rapid decline of a career clearly lacking nurturing, the time has arrived for Iverson's inner circle to stand up and be counted, to provide some semblance of tough love - by any means necessary.

Allen Iverson has been sued for not showing up, this time to speak to his fans. The lawsuit filed in Douglas County District Court in Omaha, Neb., says the Denver star didn't come to a weekend of booked appearances in Omaha in early August, leaving fans at a youth rally and two clubs without their main attraction. Kermit Brashear, the lawyer for the promotion company that booked Iverson, said the company was told Iverson had a family emergency. The lawsuit says a $10,000 deposit was paid to Iverson's manager Gary Moore to secure Iverson's appearance.

Chuck, Chuck, you all right?" Allen Iverson was sprawled on the Madison Square Garden floor, near the 76ers' bench, his left knee aching after a collision with New York's Latrell Sprewell, and Gary Moore, his longtime confidant, was concerned about the friend he calls "Bubba Chuck. " Iverson, who had come out of the Sixers' game against the Knicks, peered stone-faced at Moore, nodded, and looked back toward the game. "As he grew, I began to exhale," Moore said of Iverson, who had learned just the day before that he had been selected to the U.S. Olympic team.

Any time his mother is involved, it is serious. That's what Allen Iverson said about his beloved mom, Ann, before the 76ers played the Milwaukee Bucks last night. Iverson missed the Sixers' practice on Monday and their walk-through here yesterday morning, he and the team said, to be with his ailing mother. Ann is "fine," Iverson said, although he characterized her as "sick. " "My mom didn't want me to know," Iverson said, explaining that his sister called sometime after the Sixers' game Saturday against the Miami Heat to let him know their mother was ill. The Sixers said that Iverson went to Connecticut, where his mother has a home, on Monday morning, although Iverson said last night that Ann was in Virginia as of yesterday.

He wants love. Hidden behind the tough exterior, the 21 tattoos, the carats of diamonds and the signature cornrows, Allen Iverson needs, like all of us, to be embraced, accepted, and adored. In the exhilarating frenzy after the 76ers' win over Milwaukee last weekend, Larry Brown planted a kiss on Iverson. He was stunned. "Why do you think he kissed me?" Iverson asked his confidant, Gary Moore, on the plane home to Philadelphia. "Because he loves you, man," Moore answered.

Allen Iverson will play. Anyone surprised? A day after watching from his hotel room as his depleted team nearly upended the Milwaukee Bucks, Iverson walked into the Bradley Center yesterday afternoon and declared himself fit and ready to lead the 76ers today in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals. "Definitely," Iverson replied when asked whether he would play. Definitely? No question? Even if Matt Geiger smacks you on the derriere, aggravating that bruised tailbone?