Allen Iverson, MVP

NEW YORK – Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers has become the shortest player in NBA history to win the league's Most Valuable Player Award. And it is doubtful any other winner of the award had a bigger heart.

As expected, the fearless guard with the lightning quick moves, confounding crossover dribble and unlimited shooting range was named the NBA MVP on Tuesday, receiving 93 of a possible 124 first-place votes and 1,121 points from a media panel. He was the only player named on all 124 ballots.

At 6-feet, 165 pounds, Iverson is the shortest and lightest player to capture the league's most prestigious honor. Bob Cousy, the MVP in 1956-57 with the Boston Celtics, previously held the distinction at 6-1 and 175 pounds.

Although humbled by the MVP Award, Iverson made it clear that he was more thrilled by the Sporting News' NBA Player of the Year honor -- announced on Monday -- which was voted on by his peers rather than the media.

"That one is more special because those are the guys I'm playing against every night," Iverson said.

But such a landslide vote from the media is a major victory for Iverson, who has drawn more than his share of negative publicity because of his tattooed body and his love-hate relationship with coach Larry Brown. A controversial rap CD which Iverson released last year did not help his image.

However, Iverson believes the media scrutiny has made him a better player.

"I would like to thank the media people for putting me through hell because it made me harder and it made me better," Iverson said at Tuesday's news conference.

Power forward Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs was a distant second with 18 first-place votes and 706 points.

Center Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers, who received all but one first-place vote in winning the MVP last season, finished third with seven first-place votes and 578 points.

Despite his frame, Iverson may be the toughest player in the league, withstanding an assortment of injuries to capture his second scoring title with a career-high 31.1 points per game.

Although defenses consistently keyed on him, Iverson continued to drive to the basket with reckless abandon, took his hits and came back for more.

Withstanding a partially dislocated right shoulder and a hip pointer and playing with bursitis in his right elbow that forces him to wear a reinforced sleeve, Iverson played in 71 of 82 games and helped the Sixers to the best record in the Eastern Conference at 56-26 and their first Atlantic Division title since 1990.

Iverson enjoyed two 50-point games, scored 40 or more points 17 times, and 30 or more points 35 times, and also led the league in steals with 2.5 per game and minutes with 42. He is the first player since Michael Jordan in 1992-93 to lead the league in points and steals per game. Iverson also averaged 4.6 assists and 3.9 rebounds.

"My teammates deserve the credit," Iverson said. "Those are the guys that give me the ball where I need it, set screens for me and play every game like it's their last."

The last Philadelphia player to win the MVP award was center Moses Malone in 1982-83.

The first overall pick in the 1996 draft, Iverson is the 12th player to win both the NBA Rookie of the Year and MVP Award, joining the likes of Jordan, O'Neal, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Larry Bird.

Iverson also earned MVP honors in this season's All-Star Game, scoring 25 points and leading the East to a 111-110 come-from-behind victory.

On January 6, Iverson recorded a career-high 54 points on 20-of-30 shooting in a 107-103 victory over Cleveland. Two weeks later, Iverson scored 51 in a 110-106 loss to Toronto.

Yet Iverson was nearly traded last summer due to his shaky relationship with Brown.

"I never wanted to leave here, mainly because of my teammates and the Philadelphia fans," Iverson said. "I always wanted to retire in the same jersey I put on first."

Brown was also present at the news conference and admitted coaching Iverson, albeit difficult, has been ultimately rewarding.

"I am grateful for the opportunity to coach Allen and I never thought I would say that," Brown said. "But he's made all the changes he needed to make. He was the one who decided to be the best teammate he could be and carry us on his back.

"When you spend time with him there's a lot of things that aggravate you, but his heart, his competitiveness, his courage, his loyalty, the way he feels about his teammates, I can only admire."

With Coach of the Year still to be announced, the Sixers have a chance to become the first team in NBA history to win four awards in one season. Center Dikembe Mutombo was named Defensive Player of the Year, guard Aaron McKie captured the Sixth Man Award and Brown is a strong candidate for the coaching honors.

Only four other teams have had as many as three award winners in one season, the 1998-99 Orlando Magic the latest when Doc Rivers won Coach of the Year and guard Darrell Armstrong took both the Sixth Man and Most Improved Player Award.

Chris Webber of the Sacramento Kings was fourth in MVP balloting with five first-place votes and 521 points followed by fellow power forward Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves with 151 points.

O'Neal, Duncan and Webber were named on 121, 120 and 116 ballots, respectively. Seventeen players received at least one vote.

Duncan played in all 82 games and averaged 22.2 points and 12.2 rebounds. O'Neal ranked third in scoring at 28.7 points and fourth in rebounding with 12.7 in 74 games.

Webber ranked sixth in the league in scoring, averaging 27.1 points, and grabbed 11.1 rebounds in 70 games. Garnett averaged 22.0 points and 11.4 rebounds in 81 games.

Tracy McGrady of Orlando was sixth in the voting followed by two-time winner Karl Malone of the Utah Jazz, Jason Kidd of the Phoenix Suns, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and 1994-95 winner David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs

Media voted for five MVP candidates in order of preference and points were awarded on a 10-7-5-3-1 basis.

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