10 Januarys of A.I.
Throughout the 2005-06 season, the Sixers will join NBA.com and Reebok in paying tribute to “the toughest little man the league has ever seen.” At the conclusion of every month, Sixers.com will post a comparison of all 10 of those months that Iverson has played throughout his career. After taking a look at Iverson’s performance in each month, you, the fan, will get to vote and decide in which year Iverson performed best in the month of November, December, January, etc. Then, at the conclusion of the season, as well as the conclusion of one decade of A.I., you will be able to vote which overall season was Iverson’s most successful.
As Iverson has now concluded his 10th January in the NBA, you can get started and begin the voting. Take a look at Iverson's stats, accomplishments, awards, and the Sixers team performance for each January over the past 10 years, and then vote as to which January you feel was A.I.'s best.
10 Years of A.I. Index
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January 1997 |
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The Sixers continued to struggle in Iverson's rookie year, going 2-14 for the month, but Iverson's play continued to improve. He recorded 27 points, nine assists and nine rebounds on Jan. 17 vs. New Jersey. He also blocked seven shots against Orlando on Jan. 7 and connected on 17-19 free throws while scoring 27 points against Indiana on Jan. 19.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 16 | 23.9 | 6.8 | 2.6 |
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| |  | Noren Trotman/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 1998 |
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Iverson recorded four double-doubles during the month of January, including a game against the Lakers in which he finished with 31 points and 11 assists in a season-high 47 minutes. Iverson was named Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 18. For the month, the Sixers went 7-8.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 15 | 19.4 | 7.0 | 2.2 |
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| |  | Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 1999 |
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Unfortunately, Allen Iverson was not able to display his ability during January of 1999, because all games for the month were cancelled due to a lockout.
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January 2000 |
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Iverson started to establish himself as a Sixers great when he led the team in scoring for every game during the month of January and finished the month with a scoring average of 32.3 points per game. He scored 45 against Milwaukee in a 124-120 OT win. The Sixers tallied a record of 7-5 in January of 2000.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 12 | 32.3 | 5.2 | 2.3 |
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| |  | Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 2001 |
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The MVP talk really started to pick up as Iverson led the Sixers to a 13-3 record during January of 2001. Iverson was named player of the week for games played between Jan. 1 and Jan. 8. On Jan. 6 he dropped 54 points on the Cleveland Cavaliers and topped 50 once again with 51 on Jan. 21 against Toronto. Iverson was named the Player of the Month for January 2001. It was also the first month in which Iverson wore his now famous shooting sleeve.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 15 | 34.6 | 4.4 | 2.7 |
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| |  | Andy Hayt/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 2002 |
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Iverson had one of the greatest months of his career in January of 2002. He recorded his first ever triple-double on Jan. 7 vs. the Clippers with 30 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. He scored a then career high 58 points against the Houston Rockets on Jan. 15. He dropped his 10,000th career point on Jan. 21 against Seattle. He was named Player of the Week twice and went on to become Player of the Month. The Sixers went 11-4 for the month.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 15 | 32.6 | 4.9 | 2.3 |
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| |  | Sam Forencich/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 2003 |
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Iverson proved once again that size isn't a factor for him when he grabbed an average of 5.4 rebounds per game during the month of January, 2003. He scored his 12,000th career point vs. Boston on Jan. 20. He also played all 16 games for the Sixers, as the team went 6-10
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 16 | 25.9 | 5.5 | 1.8 |
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| |  | Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 2004 |
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Iverson missed three games due to injury during the month, but was still able to record his 14,000th career point on Jan. 23 vs. Orlando. He scored 21 points in the third quarter vs. Cleveland on Jan. 24 and totaled 31 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists vs. Dallas on Jan. 14. For the month, the 76ers went 6-9.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 12 | 24.5 | 5.9 | 1.9 |
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| |  | Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 2005 |
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Iverson missed four games due to injury during January of 2004. Yet, he was still able to record four double-doubles while averaging 8.2 assists per game. The Sixers were able to come out of the month with an 8-8 record, even with the injuries to Iverson.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 12 | 28.5 | 8.2 | 1.9 |
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| |  | Rocky Widner/NBAE/Getty Images |
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January 2006 |
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Iverson missed the last three games of January with a sprained ankle, but put up some amazing numbers during the 12 games that he played. He scored over 40 points three times during the month, including in back to back games. He grabbed a season-high nine rebounds against Minnesota on Jan. 22. Iverson was also named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played between Jan. 9 and Jan. 15. For the month, the Sixers played 15 games and went 8-7.
| Games | Points | Assists | Steals |
| 12 | 32.3 | 8.3 | 1.1 |
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| |  | Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images |
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