THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 28, 1996 TAG: 9604280180
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY J.A. ADANDE, THE WASHINGTON POST
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
Georgetown University sophomore guard Allen Iverson is continuing to drive a Mercedes-Benz worth more than $130,000 on loan from an Arlington car dealer, an arrangement that might not be permitted under NCAA rules.
Iverson has been driving the car since early April and was filmed in it by Washington television station WUSA-TV more than two weeks ago. If the NCAA determined that he was loaned the car because of his status as an athlete, it could jeopardize his eligibility should he want to return to Georgetown for his junior season.
Iverson, who attended Bethel High in Hampton, has not made any public comments regarding his future, and a Georgetown athletic department spokesman said Friday the school had no comment on the matter.
Iverson's coach, John Thompson, declined to comment Friday night.
Steve Mallonee, an NCAA director of legislative services, said that a case in which an athlete is alleged to have received a special benefit primarily calls into question the athlete's amateur standing.
If an athlete is found to have received a special benefit, he would have to be declared ineligible. The athlete's school could apply for reinstatement. Then it would be up to the NCAA's eligibility staff to determine if the athlete's eligibility should be restored. The conditions for restoration probably would involve a reimbursement for the value of the benefit received.
A school could be penalized in such a case, depending on whether it knew about the situation and whether the person who provided the extra benefit acted as a representative of the school, Mallonee said.
David Loring, manager of American Service Center in Arlington, the dealership that loaned Iverson the car, said the vehicle is an S600 model valued at more than $130,000 and covered by the dealer's insurance. Loring said any Georgetown University student would be able to drive a loaned car from the dealership ``if the situation were right. We give loaners out all the time.''
He said Iverson has not purchased a car and has not signed a document that says he might purchase a car. In this instance, ``I just felt it was the Georgetown thing to do,'' Loring said.
Loring said he has no connection to Georgetown other than being the son-in-law of an alumnus.
Auto dealers frequently loan cars to people they think might be able to bring publicity to the dealership.
If Iverson were to declare his intention to leave school by the May 12 deadline, the issue could be moot. Basketball players who apply for early entry into the NBA draft have until 30 days after the draft to petition the NCAA for the restoration of their remaining eligibility if they have not signed with an agent. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Allen Iverson could lose his eligibility if the NCAA finds the loan
was a special benefit based on his athletic prowess.
by CNB