TURKEY: Former NBA star Allen Iverson appears in front of fans of his new club, Besiktas

Record ID: 862088

  • Title: TURKEY: Former NBA star Allen Iverson appears in front of fans of his new club, Besiktas
  • Date: 10th November 2010
  • Summary: WIDE OF CROWD SOUNDBITE (English) BESIKTAS BASKETBALL PLAYER, ALLEN IVERSON SAYING: "I want to thank you, fans for welcoming me, and embracing me the way you have. That makes me really excited about getting here and playing my heart out on the basketball court." VARIOUS OF CROWD SOUNDBITE (English) BESIKTAS BASKETBALL PLAYER, ALLEN IVERSON SAYING: "I had a chance to have my first practice today with my coaching staff and my teammates and that made me even more excited than I am now. I can't promise you that we will win every basketball game but one thing I can promise you is that we will play hard, we will play together, and we will give everything that we have out on the basketball court, night in and night out."
  • Embargoed: 25th November 2010 12:00
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  • Location: Turkey
  • City:
  • Country: Turkey
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA8W72KHLM5L8DSDDPEDLEHTDJH
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  • Story Text: Eleven-time NBA All-Start guard Allen Iverson was given a warm welcome at Besiktas Arena on Tuesday (November 09).
    Thousands of fans flocked to there to greet one of the NBA's most prolific scorers who has signed a two-year contract worth $4 million with the Besiktas basketball club.
    Iverson, who played basketball with children after greeting the fans, said that he is really excited to be playing in Turkey.
    "I want to thank you, fans for welcoming me, and embracing me the way you have. That makes me really excited about getting here and playing my heart out on the basketball court," he said.
    Iverson is 17th on the NBA's career scoring list with 24,368 points and winner of the MVP award in 2001 when he led the Philadelphia 76ers to the finals.
    Iverson played 25 games with the 76ers last season, averaging 13.9 points, but was unable to secure an offer from an NBA team this season.
    Iverson, 35, enjoyed his best years with Philadelphia but also had spells with the Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons and Memphis Grizzlies.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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