Back injury forces Iverson to shut down for season

NBA.com staff reports -- Allen Iverson's season is over.

The Detroit Pistons said Friday the All-Star guard will miss the rest of the season -- and the playoffs if they make it -- because of a sore back.

"After talking with Allen and our medical staff, we feel that resting Allen for the remainder of the season is the best course of action at this time," Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars said in a statement released by the team. "While he has played in our last three games, he is still feeling some discomfort and getting him physically ready to compete at the level he is accustomed to playing this late in the season does not seem possible at this point."

TNT analyst David Aldridge reports that Dumars and Iverson arrived at the decision to bench the All-Star during a meeting on Friday.

During the meeting, according to Dumars, Iverson apologized for his post-game comments Wednesday in New Jersey, during which he said he'd rather retire after this season than continue to come off the bench. Dumars said he understood Iverson's frustration. Iverson then said his back was still not feeling right and he thought he was hurting the team more than helping, saying "I can't play up to my standards."

Iverson then said he thought it would be best for the team if he sat out the rest of the season, and Dumars agreed.

The Pistons "don't want to embarass anyone," Dumars said, allowing that he may have had a different reaction if Iverson were in the midst of a long-term contract. However, Iverson is a free agent at the end of the season and Detroit will simply take his $20.8 million salary off its books, freeing up millions should the Pistons opt to go after free agents this summer. They could also roll over their room into the summer of 2010, which could be a talent-rich class if stars like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh opt out of their current contracts.

Iverson missed 16 games from Feb. 27 to March 28. He returned for the past three games and averaged 7.7 points and 2.7 assists in nearly 19 minutes. He complained about his role as a reserve, saying he would rather retire than come off the bench next season.

Leon Rose, Iverson's agent, insisted Iverson's health was the only factor in the decision.

"There's nothing else going on," Rose said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

The Pistons began Friday as the seventh-seeded team in the Eastern Conference. They lead Chicago by a half-game and Charlotte by two with less than two weeks left in the regular season.

Detroit plays Saturday in Philadelphia, where Iverson was the league's MVP. The 76ers traded him two years ago to Denver and the Nuggets then dealt him to the Pistons for Chauncey Billups in November.

While Iverson's arrival started a slump that lasted much of the season, Billups immediately made a huge impact on Denver, which has become one of the top teams in the Western Conference.

Iverson averaged 17.4 points, 4.9 assists and 3.1 rebounds for the Pistons, who struggled to integrate him and his preference to control the basketball on offense.

It seems Iverson had all the right things to say when he was introduced as a Piston, but didn't always do the right thing.

"One thing is for sure, I'm going to do whatever the coach wants me to do," Iverson said at a packed news conference on the day Dumars presented him with a Detroit jersey.

Less than a month later, however, Iverson was the only player who didn't show up for a practice coach Michael Curry wanted to have on Thanksgiving and was fined.

The native of Hampton, Va. has averaged 27.1 points and 6.2 points in his career since Philadelphia drafted him out of Georgetown with the first pick in the 1996 draft. He was league MVP in 2001, when he lifted the Sixers to the NBA Finals, and was an All-Star this season for the ninth time.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.