Allen Iverson: Fear no One

by John N. Smallwood Jr.

HE HAS TAKEN HIS GAME -- AND THE GAME -- TO A NEW LEVEL He grew up in Virginia with nothing but his talent and his heart. But he had The Plan: his never-say-die dream to become an NBA superstar. So he began his journey down a road full of obstacles. But the world underestimated Allen Iverson....

Fear No One

From his first days playing college hoops...to his turbulent early years in the pros...to his leading the Philadelphia 76ers to the 2001 NBA Finals and being named league MVP, here is the real story of controversial superstar Allen Iverson. Acclaimed sports journalist John Smallwood -- who has covered Iverson extensively -- shows readers the Iverson they never knew: the boy, the man, the rapper, the player, the role model, and the icon.

Get to know ALLEN IVERSON...the man behind the legend.

192 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published October 1, 2001

Reviews

[Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a great basketball player named Allen Iverson. It talks about the challenges he faced while growing up and how became such a great player. Allen had two siblings and he was born into poverty. His dad would come and go and he barely knew him, but he was a really good football player and everyone knew about him. One time his uncle and his friends were playing basketball and he wanted to play but they said no. So later one of his uncles friends had to leave so Allen jumped in and scored a lot of points and everyone including his uncle was surprised. So from then on his uncle was teaching him the fundamentals of basketball because he knew that he could be great. In high school he was not known for his football skills anymore but now it is basketball and the whole city knew how good he was. After high school he attended georgetown university and he was really good there so after his four years there he went to the NBA draft. He got drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers and he was really good there and everyone liked him. In 2001 he was trying to win his first championship and he was going against another great player named Kobe Bryant , Allens team ended up winning and he won the mvp and got his wish of winning a NBA championship.
“I just play,” allen said after being named Big East rookie of the week for four out of six weeks” (Iverson 35).
This quote is saying to just play don't over think things and just go out there and relax and play at your own pace.
“ Its very rare one of the marquee players get mentioned, especially a young one” (Iverson 151).
This quote is saying that iverson was so good coming out of high school that he was being discussed by other teams and those other teams were trying to trade for him.

[Brandan Buckner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Author John Smallwood one of the city’s top sportswriters and columnists for more than 30 years at the Philadelphia Daily News and the Philadelphia inquirer. Smallwood has posthumously named the winner of the 2021 Sam Lacy-Wendell Smith award. The book fear no one on Allen Iverson, the book is good for kids ages 9-12 Years of age. I would say this book falls under the fictional biography genre. It is a terrific book to pick up if you want to know some more of what went on during Allen Iverson’s younger years. What I got from this book is I learned a lot about Allen Iverson’s life and the many basketball teams that he played for in the NBA. Another thing I got from reading this biography book is, I learned about the many obstacles Iverson had to go through to get in the NBA and through playing college basketball for the George Town Hoyas. And the last thing I learned by reading this book is talent sees everything you do, and even though Allen Iverson was short he never stopped that from playing professional sports. I feel that children ages of teenage years, I feel like that they can learn a lot about not fearing any opponent when it comes to playing any sport and trying your best in every sport you try out for. I also feel like children can learn a well-balanced story about how searching to accepted into playing sports can take you far and learning to follow your dreams and becoming well balanced in what you believe in is a wonderful thing. I would say one last thing, I would say children can learn from this book is how to be patient in everything you do, you might not get it on the first try, but you just must keep trying your best until you succeed. This was a wow book for me because, this book kind of reminded me of when I was playing sports in high school, I wasn’t the best basketball player or softball player, but I tried my best in everything that I had did, and I even made the starting lineup my last year in high school for the basketball team. I just feel like this was a wow book for me, because it took me back to playing for my high school team and trying my best in everything I did. The Author did an excellent job about describing Allen Iverson’s career and how he became a famous NBA Star on his road to retirement. The Author created the pictures that matched his career timeline in photos. Another reason the Author did an excellent job of creating this book is because the story structure that was created for this biography.

[Steven Geter · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book I read is called Allen Iverson: Fear No One and I give this book a 4 out of 5. When I first saw the book it caught my attention just seeing fear no one and how this can really relate to me. Even though Allen Iverson has been retired for a little bit now, he’s still influential to kids and some pros that play now. Only being a 6 '0 tall guard in the NBA made it difficult for Allen physically, but from where he grew up from and his mentality separated him from his peers and haters. I wouldn’t say this book was perfect, but me being a basketball player myself opened my eyes more to stay focused on my path and stay who I am.

This book explains Allen Iverson’s life starting young to becoming the NBA’s Most Valuable Player. Allen didn’t have the easiest or brightest childhood living in a struggling neighborhood in Hampton, Virginia. Having 3 siblings and his mom being a single mother was difficult for him to stay out of trouble. Luckily sports was able to keep him out of trouble being great at football and basketball but choosing basketball as his main sport to play college basketball at Georgetown University. After playing 2 years at Georgetown University, he would declare for the NBA draft and be selected by the Philadelphia 76ers. Some people were expecting for Allen’s energetic play to bring back light into Philadelphia basketball, but most didn’t trust Allen for his past of getting arrested and hanging around with people that weren’t up to no good. From Allen’s perspective, for which I understand, those experiences and hard times made him who he is. It’s not good to get arrested, but that happening to you can be a teaching lesson as well. For his friends, yes they weren’t the best people but they were the guys that had Allen’s back when he was struggling and he didn’t want to switch up on them which is completely understandable. Throughout his NBA career explained in the book, there were ups and downs with his coaches, his attitude, and how the media saw him for how he dressed and styled himself. Overall, Allen was able to achieve his goal by getting to the pros to keep his family safe and learn and mature each season he played as he got better and better to becoming the League MVP.

[Alex Rosenfeld · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very okay overview of Allen's life and early NBA career. The writing is meh and frequently there are silly editing mistakes. It's a quick read, though, if you just want to gain general Allen Iverson knowledge without being pushed at all intellectually or doing any deep dives into what it was really like to experience him playing basketball in person. This book simply lacks the substance and rigor of investigation necessary to be more than a glorified Wikipedia entry.

[Samwise · Rating 2 out of 5]

An okay read for anyone who is interested in learning a little about Iverson's career.

However, if you have seen one documentary about him then there won't be much new information to glean from this book, if any.

I was hoping to learn more about his personal life and interests off the court, particularly his involvement in Hip Hop culture but to no avail.

As another user aptly reviewed below, this book is little more than a glorified Wikipedia entry.

[Justin Taylor-Tipton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book for AI fans

[Brandon Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allen Iverson: Fear No One
By John N. Smallwood Jr.

Reviewed by Brandon Sanders



At a young age I was inspired by a book. The name of the book was “NBA Stars”. This book inspired me because as a kid you look up to people who are successful. You want to be just like them with the money, big houses, and fame. This book could be inspiring for people who are less fortunate because they also now have somebody to look up to.


The book changed my view because I start looking at basketball on television and felt that it was interesting. Basketball is just not a sport it is a job that requires skills and determination. I start playing in 5th grade and it was the start of a new beginning.


Why should someone read this book? Someone should read this book because it could change the way you think about basketball. It also might make you want to play basketball. If you work hard successfulness comes after.

This story takes place in Virginia and in Philadelphia. Allen Iverson grew up in Virginia with nothing but potential, talent, a good mind set, and heart. But he had “The Plan”. His never say die dream to become an NBA superstar. Allen grew with many obstacles in his way. Did they hold him down? Not for long. Allen had his mind set to make it to the NBA and move his family out of poverty. Many people didn’t understand Allen.


Some things you might want to know about Allen. Iverson played his college ball in Georgetown. Iverson was in college for 1-2 years. With his talent he went pro. He got drafted to the Philadelphia 76ers. He went #1 in the 1996 NBA draft. He has been in the league for 13 seasons and is not done. He has had a magnificent NBA career.


One of the obstacles he was faced with was…….. On Valentine’s Day evening in 1993, a bowling alley brawl led to Iverson’s arrest-and a sentence of five years in jail. After serving four months he was released, and he was more determined than ever to make it as a ball player.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book because is shows how Allen Iverson got to the point he is in now. He didn't start out famous or rich in fact he was raised in a bad community and his family was barely survivng.
He knew that he had to start providing for his family so he decided to play basketball because he knew that it paid a lot. So his goal was to make it to the NBA.
With his determination he finally got to the NBA. When he started he wasn't the favorite player around because of his background and the friends he has. Also sometimes he would skip practice and disrespect people and people started to hate Allen Iverson. But in 2001 Allen Iverson and the 76ers went into the NBA finals against the Lakers. Although the 76ers didn't win Allen Iverson became the MVP that year and soon people saw him as a different person.

[Wesley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wasn't that fond of this book. If you haven't guessed by the title, it is a biography of the current Detroit Pistons point guard, Allen Iverson. The book itself, while informative, didn't really tell me anything that I didn't know about him. Most of the stuff that the book describes could be found on such sites as Wikipedia or the official NBA website.
OVerall, the book didn't reallly impress me and I thought that it could have been better. It seemed like it was a book report or a biography that a middle schooler wrote.
I would reccomend this to anyone who want to reinforce their knowledge of Allen Iverson or anyone who is die-hard fan of the NBA. If you aren't any of these however, don't waste your time.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a biography about Allen Iverson. It starts from when he was a little kid to the championship game in 2001, the Sixers vs the Lakers. The book shows the struggles and the obstacles Iverson had to overcome to het to the NBA and there were many. The main one was he really had no money and no father figure growing up.

Overall i liked this book. I mostly liked it because it was about a basketball player i know and i wanted to see how it is in the NBA. Then getting deeper into the book i liked reading about how Iverson was able to rise up from almost nothing to being one of the best basketball players. The book also showed me if you want something you will stop at nothing to get it.

[James Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book, but it was really nothing to brag about considering it was just a biograpghy. But it was still a pretty good book. There is not much plot in the book it is just really talking about Allen Iverson and his whole history as a child all the way up to him being one of the most repsected players in the NBA. This book shows what alot of hard work and dedication can take you in life, and to not let anyone underestimate your abilities to acheive great things. This book teaches a great life lesson.

[Aldin Medunjanin]

one of the main reasons that i read this book is because it was about one of the top NBA players today. Ive always watched Allen Iverson, even when i was little kid and still to this die really admire what hes done. The book takes you through all the struggles he had with the media and first getting into the NBA, since he was a star early in his career, the lights were on him. This book should be read by anyone who likes basketball and likes to read about the not-so-easy lifestyle.

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about the currently active player in the NBA, Allen Iverson. This book gives you a good idea about his high school life. He has to choose between that he all love. What got me to read this book is just by the title itself. Its about Allen Iverson, a legendary and unique player in the NBA. I would recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of him. This book isn't all that fascinating, but it might interest a fan of his'.

[Elijah]

I really enjoyed this book for 2 reasons, i enjoy basketball books, and 2 i really like Allen Iverson, he had it bad growing up, he had to do a lot of work, he was an only kid living with just his mom, his dad had gone to jail for selling drugs. But he still made it out, in high school he played basketball and football, he was great at both but better at basketball, he ended up going to Georgetown University for 2 years then went to the NBA.

[Mandela · Rating 4 out of 5]

IN THE BOOK "FEAR NO ONE" THE CHARACTER THAT CHANGED THE MUST WAS ALLEN IVERSON. ALLEN IVERSON GROW UP IN A BAD NIGHBERHOOD WERE HE WANT THROUGH A LOT OF BAD THING BUT HE WAS ABLE TO OVER COME THEM. ALLEN WAS A REAL GOOD FOOTBALL AND BASKETBALL, BUT HER ENDED UP ON TO COLLEGE FOR BASKETBALL AND WAS GOOD TO GO TO THE NBA TO PLAY PRO.

[Corey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kind of a dull biography, as I remember it. Most people willing to read the book already know about his basketball career. It felt as though Smallwood hadn't done his research on Iverson's life outside of basketball.

[Wyatt Krogman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book awhile ago when I was in high school. I really liked watching him play and wanted to know more about him and this really did that for him. I would recommend this for anyone interested in AI because it really tells you a lot of what he went through.

[Tyrek Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is good and have a clear understanding of childhoods of other athletes

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miss The Answer "We've got heart. We're going to play with that first, talent second"

[Calvin Gesmundo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very exciting book. I will recommend it in mya class.

[Nathan Hipol]

Allen Iverson, one of my favorite players ever, is showcased in his good and bad sides. It talks about a hard upbringing. He grew up not in an ideal enviourment. But his talent woiuld take him to high school stardom. A couple bumps in the road, but he landed in the NBA and took it by storm. He would go on to a Hall of Fame career.