Iverson, Nuggets fill mutual need in trade

The 76ers got Andre Miller, Joe Smith and two 2007 first-round picks.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Allen Iverson got the new team he wanted, and the Denver Nuggets got the new superstar they suddenly needed.
The four-time scoring champion was traded Tuesday by the Philadelphia 76ers to the Nuggets for Andre Miller, Joe Smith and two 2007 first-round picks. The Nuggets also get Ivan McFarlin.
I'm very happy about the trade," Iverson said in a statement. "Denver's style of play fits my strengths. I'm looking forward to playing with Carmelo, the rest of the Denver Nuggets, and for George Karl, who is a proven winner. I'd like to thank my fans in Philadelphia. They've been with me every step of the way, through all the ups and downs. I will always be grateful to the 76ers organization, and I wish them the very best."
The deal came just as NBA scoring leader Carmelo Anthony began serving a 15-game suspension for his part in a weekend brawl between the Nuggets and New York Knicks.
Iverson now takes his 31.2-point scoring average to Denver and ends 10 turbulent seasons with the franchise that made him the No. 1 overall pick in 1996.
"Our personality is going to change. It's going to be different. That will take some time," Nuggets coach George Karl said.
"All trades shake your team a little bit," he said. "I hope that they realize that we're doing this to be better, we're doing this to be special, we're doing this to contend."
Transformed 76ers
A seven-time All-Star, Iverson transformed the 76ers from lottery losers to contenders, though he couldn't bring home an NBA title to this championship-starved city. He came close in 2001, when the 76ers lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA finals. Since then the team has fallen from the elite, missing the playoffs twice in the last three seasons.
This year has hardly been an improvement, with the 76ers on an 11-game losing streak. Only Memphis (5-19) has a worse record than the 76ers (5-18), who are winless since Nov. 24.
"We haven't won a championship, and I think we were a long way from winning a championship, even with Allen," 76ers chairman Ed Snider said. "It was time for us to take a deep breath and say we've got to move in a different direction. Allen wanted to move in a different direction."
Now the 31-year-old Iverson's chase for a coveted championship moves to the Western Conference.
Sixers team president Billy King thanked Iverson for his 11 years in Philadelphia, saying, "I think he's one of the greatest ever to play the game."
Needed to rebuild
King made it clear the 76ers are aware they need to rebuild.
"This team was built around Allen and he helped carry us for a long time," King said. "I think now we need to step back and evaluate with different players, with different personnel. With the cap room and draft picks, it'll give us a chance to rebuild again."
Iverson is due the rest of his 18 million this season, and a combined 40 million through the 2008-09 season.
His relationship with the only team he's ever played for was irrevocably broke once he asked for a trade two weeks ago. He had just been fined for missing a team function and his relationship with coach Maurice Cheeks had deteriorated to where the point guard didn't want to play for him anymore.
The 76ers sent Iverson home for good after holding him out of a morning shootaround and, at the time, Snider said the All-Star guard "probably" played his last game in Philly. Iverson's nameplate was removed, his locker was cleaned out, and his dazzling highlights were edited out of a pregame video package.
"I talked to Allen this afternoon. He's fired up. He's pretty fired up," Karl said. "He seems pumped. He misses basketball. He wants to get on the court, he wants to play. I believe him when he says he thinks this, of all the places he was rumored, this is the one he wanted."
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