Same old Allen Iverson? Look again Allen Iverson better be careful or he just might shed his bad boy image.  Iverson, once the poster boy for the NBA's me-first generation, seems to have changed his ways this season.  His play and attitude are the main reasons the Philadelphia 76ers got off to their best start (6-0) in 18 years and are considered a top contender to win the Eastern Conference.  ``This is my fifth year, and I haven't won a championship,'' said Iverson, who has been rookie of the year, scoring champion and an All-Star. ``I don't think I did the things necessary to win it.''  That list includes: being on time for practices and games, taking practices seriously, working out, playing unselfishly and staying out of trouble.  Since training camp started six weeks ago, Iverson has been a different person.  He has arrived early for practice every day, one season after his frequent fines for lateness. He works out regularly, even though he's not fond of lifting weights. He's been a team player, a leader and has done all the things Sixers coach Larry Brown demands of his players.  ``Allen has walked the talk, and has done everything he promised me he'd do in the offseason,'' Sixers president Pat Croce said. ``He said that he screwed up for 24 years in the past. When he turned 25 in June, he said he wanted to be a professional.''  The season didn't start so smoothly, however. The day before camp opened, Iverson's rap CD about violence and street life started getting attention.  The Philadelphia Inquirer printed lyrics to ''40 Bars,'' the debut single, and outrage ensued as Iverson returned to Philadelphia following a tumultuous summer filled with trade rumors and criticism from Brown.  Iverson, who goes by the name Jewelz on his album, repeatedly uses terms for women and gays that drew harsh criticism. NBA commissioner David Stern called some of the lyrics ``coarse, offensive and anti-social.''  Several civil rights groups demanded an apology, and some protested outside the First Union Center before a Sixers' preseason game Oct. 10.  Iverson met with leaders of the NAACP, then apologized in a statement issued by the Sixers. He still feels the issue was blown out of proportion.  ``There's other things more important,'' Iverson said. ``There's so many people who are poor, have no jobs, houses are falling down and need construction. There's rapists, child molesters, racism all over this world. There's so many other things to focus your attention on besides a rap CD.''  Stern met with Iverson in New York two days after the protest, and urged him to soften the lyrics. Iverson says he will eliminate offensive lyrics on the CD, due out in February.  ``I can assure you that there won't be any gay-bashing or any women-bashing in the album,'' Iverson said.  Iverson insists the CD isn't for anyone under 21. He advises parents to tell their children to stay away from the album until they can understand it.  ``It's just an art form,'' Iverson said. ``People hear about a gun, and they think I'm talking about killing somebody. A lot of people don't understand that when (rappers) talk about a gun, we're talking lyrically, rapid fire, our mouth is a weapon.  ``When I say I'm going to kill somebody in a rhyme, I don't mean kill them literally. I mean it lyrically, verbally. If I say, 'I'm going to kill Aaron McKie tomorrow,' you wouldn't take offense to that because you understand I'm talking about basketball, about murdering Aaron McKie in the game.''  The CD hasn't been a distraction to the Sixers, who opened the season with victories in four cities in five nights, including at New York, Orlando and Miami.  Philadelphia also started 6-0 in the 1982-83 season, when it last won the NBA championship. After his team lost to the Sixers, Miami coach Pat Riley said they were the best team in the East.  Iverson is the key. He averaged 24.5 points, 5.5 assists and 4.8 rebounds through the first six games.  ``He's giving the ball up a lot more,'' Brown said. ``He's more comfortable with the players around him. He's defending better, rebounding better and practicing better. His overall game is the best since I've been here.''  Even Iverson's teammates, who have been critical of him in the past, are praising their co-captain.  ``The most important thing is that Allen has changed in a lot of ways,'' forward Tyrone Hill said. ``He's more vocal, not just in practice, but in the games.''  Iverson admits he was hurt by the summerlong trade rumors, particularly the one that had him going to the Los Angeles Clippers.  He had a long meeting with Croce in July and vowed to change. He asked Brown to consider him as a co-captain to prove he was serious.  ``It really does start with me,'' Iverson said. ``I set an example on and off the court, being the first one to come, the last one to leave. My teammates see that, and they feed off that.''  Iverson has spent time in jail for his part in a bowling-alley brawl in high school (the conviction was overturned) and has been implicated after friends were pulled over while driving away from alleged drug deals in his Mercedes.  He has seen death up close. One summer, eight of his friends were killed. His father is serving nine years in prison for assault, and a surrogate father figure, Tony Clark, also was killed.  But that kind of life scares him now.  ``I'm not a person who walks down the street and wants to be part of violence,'' he said. ``There are people like that, but I don't live that way. I want more out of life.''  Iverson has two children, Tiaura, 5, and ``Deuce'' (Allen II), 2, with his fiancee, Tawanna Turner.  He has a six-year, $70.9 million contract with the Sixers, and a 10-year, $50 million deal with Reebok.  He has a better relationship with his coach and his teammates.  The one thing he doesn't have is that championship -- not yet anyway.		Author ROB MAADDI   Source AP SportsDirect   Return to Articles