Allen Iverson had a heartfelt message for his ex-wife, Tawanna Turner, at the end of his Hall of Fame induction speech.
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No one imagined that a 6 ft guard could terrorize the NBA that was always dominated by big men. However, Allen Iverson proved them wrong. He humbled the undefeated Los Angeles Lakers in the first game of the 2001 NBA Finals. The iconic step over Ty Lue is still very fresh in everyone’s mind.
But his tumultuous career grabbed just as many headlines. The Answer earned over $150 million in the NBA, but somehow it all vanished by the time he retired. It severely affected his family life as well. His marriage to high-school sweetheart Tawanna Turner had just as many ups and downs.
Despite the bad blood in their 12-year marriage, Iverson thanked his wife with all the love he could muster up in his Hall of Fame speech.
Allen Iverson did not forget his ex-wife in his Hall of Fame speech
Tawanna Turner endured all of Allen Iverson’s off-court antics for over two decades. They began dating in high school even though they belonged to rival schools in Virginia. They eventually tied the knot in 2001 and thus began a marriage filled with hardships.
In just the first year of their marriage, Iverson is rumored to have kicked his wife out of the house. Stories about AI turning up to Tawanna’s house with a gun surfaced as well. But none of those charges were sustained after the investigation. Nevertheless, it was not the greatest start for the newlyweds.
The 4x scoring champion’s downfall began after being traded to the Denver Nuggets. He quickly ran out of all of his hard-earned money due to Gambling and outrageous expenses. In a court hearing, Iverson said he spends around $360,000 a month while only making a fifth of that figure.
Clearly, AI put her through hell and the heartfelt message in the Hall of Fame speech was probably his way of apologizing to Tawanna.
“This is one of those last-but-not-least things. My number one person in the world Tawanna Iverson,” said Iverson. “Twenty-four years. Ups. Downs. But real love.”
“Thank you,” he told Tawanna, “for loving me the way you do. And caring about what type of person I am and what type of person that I need to be to set an example for our babies.”
Turner allegedly had to sell her jewelry while Iverson was gambling his money away to pay her kid’s tuition. Despite all this, she showed up for her ex-husband on a special day that culminated his remarkable career in the NBA.
The Sixers legend concluded his speech by calling Tawanna Turner a Hall of Famer as well.
