Iverson: Yeah, how you doing, man? I'm sorry I couldn't be on yesterday but I had an illness in my family and I had to take care of that.

Moderator: No problem, we understand that. Allen Iverson is currently leading the NBA in scoring at 28.8 points per game. He is sixth in steals at 2.4 and he is averaging six assists per game, which ranks him 19th. He also is averaging 5.4 rebounds per game and the Sixers are off to their best start since the 1990-91 season at 10-5. Allen, what has been the main difference for you this year? Has it been the shift to shooting guard or are there other areas you have made changes?

Iverson: I think that I have learned a lot from my first two seasons. Playing shooting guard has taken a lot of pressure off of me and I think my teammates are doing a great job of getting me the ball in spots where I am moving and creating scoring opportunities. We are just playing better defensively, and I think that has been the key to our success.

Moderator: How has your game changed defensively on the floor?

Iverson: I have been learning every aspect of the game at the NBA level. My first year, I didn't know the NBA game at all. I knew the college game because of coach John Thompson, and I knew how to play high school ball because of my high school coach. Now coach Brown is teaching me the whole, overall NBA game. I know it takes time and I have a long way to go, but that has been the difference, learning how to play the game a little bit more.

Q: What made you change you hair to corn rows?

Iverson: I was tired of having to try and get my hair cut on the road and different barbers pushing my hairline way back and cutting my hair with dirty clippers. I was just tired of guys messing my hair up and I looked at it like, I wouldn't have to get my hair cut if I got my hair braided. I could go a week, or two or three games or whatever, without getting a haircut or anything, I could just get it done before I'd leave. It just made it a lot easier for me, especially on the road trips.

Q: I also heard that if you had made the All-Star Game this year, you were going to pull the rows out and play the game wearing an Afro. Why is that?

Iverson: Well, you know, I love Dr. J (Julius Erving) as a basketball player and I was thinking about him one day and I said to myself that if I ever made the All-Star Game one day, I would just take my corn rows out and wear number six in the All-Star Game.

Q: With your team winning, do you think you have overcome your image of being a selfish player?

Iverson: No, I don't think so because there is always going to be critics out there, guys who will tear me down. Especially reporters who don't really know a thing about the game, never played the game and nine times out of 10, most of them really don't even understand the game. So there are going to be guys out there who are constantly going to be criticizing me, especially now that I am leading the league in scoring. Now that I play the two-guard, they'll come up with something else to try and tear me down anyway. I know that and I accept that. I think that there is going to be a billion people there that respect my game and love my game and appreciate my game, and a billion people who dislike it. I understand that, so that's what keeps me moving forward.

Q: Are you disappointed or upset about not being selected for the Olympic team?

Iverson: No I'm not disappointed or upset. It would be an honor to be on that team, but I just look at it like how it is. This is life and that is how things go in life. I mean, I want to be on that team but I keep moving on. I was incarcerated before and people said that I would never even get to this level. But I am playing on this level and I am happy. I mean, my family is taken care of, my kids are taken care of. I can't ask for more. That would be an honor to be on that team, but I am pretty satisfied with the things going on in my life right now. Hopefully, I'll be a part of it one day, and if not, well, I'll just move on.

Q: I'm wondering if you were disappointed when the All-Star Game in Philadelphia was canceled and you lost out on a chance to play for your home crowd?

Iverson: I was disappointed. That is just another obstacle in my life, something that I have to overcome. Maybe it will come back one day and I'll be able to be a part of it. That is the way things go sometimes, maybe it just wasn't met to be.

Q: Do you think you can win the scoring title?

Iverson: I don't know. I have no idea. I believe if I keep playing hard and keep playing every game like it is my last, I have a chance. That is not something I am really concentrating on.

Q: Is winning the Most Valuable Player award an important goal for you?

Iverson: It is a goal, but, I'd rather have a great season as a team, than win an individual award like that. That would be great because of the talent level in this league. It would mean something about me as a player.

Q: Early on, your relationship with Larry Brown was rough. What has changed that?

Iverson: Just us getting to know each other and trying to understand each other. He came in with the identity of being hard on point guards. And that is true. He knows that is where a team really starts and that is where it ends at — the point guard position. We started out kind of rocky, but once we got to know each other and understand each other better, we started to have a great relationship.

Q: Were you surprised that John Thompson stepped aside when he did and do you think he will get back into coaching, possibly in the NBA?

Iverson: It did surprise me, and I don't know if he'll coach again and I definitely don't think he'll coach on this level. I think he enjoys coaching kids and teaching them how to be successful on and off the basketball court.

Q: So you are saying you think he'll be back in college but not in the NBA.

Iverson: I think that it is a good possibility. I don't think he'll coach for another college other than Georgetown. I think if he does coach again, it will be at Georgetown.

Q: Can you talk about the transformation from point guard to shooting guard?

Iverson: The transition wasn't difficult at all because in my career, I have always been a scorer and even before I got to the NBA, I played the point guard position but I was still a scorer for my college team. It wasn't difficult at all because playing the two-guard position is a lot easier, especially when you have a scorer's mentality. Then you get to run off screens and get different mismatches rather than having the ball in your hands all of the time. Sometimes you get to run off the ball and get the chance, when the other team misses their shots and the point guard gets the ball, you have the chance to run down the floor and possibly beat the other team and get an easy layup. It hasn't been a problem, the transition has been easy. I haven't really changed that much. I am just not having the ball as much and I am not bringing it down the court. The play doesn't really start with me like it used to. Now we are calling different sets, and like I said, I get to run off screens and get up and down the floor, and it has just been easier and has taken a lot of pressure off of me.

Q: Is there one thing about the two guard spot that has made playing it harder?

Iverson: Nothing. It has been easier.