"The anticipation in Istanbul has been immense. Allen Iverson is coming. The news has been swirling for weeks. It does not seem to matter that Iverson is 35, that his best days are behind him, that he struggled last season in three games with the Memphis Grizzlies and 25 with the 76ers. All that matters is, Allen Iverson is coming. In true Iverson fashion, he was supposed to be there Saturday, to be greeted by throngs of people, to sign autographs, to be introduced to his new teammates with Besiktas. But he missed his flight, supposedly because he arrived at the airport without his passport. (Where, oh where, have we heard something like that before?)

He is holding a 2-year contract worth $4 million, but the celebration was delayed until yesterday, when he was surrounded (mobbed?) by dozens of photographers and media members at Ataturk Airport, with giddy fans singing what seemed to be fight songs. He wore a jersey from his new team - with the No. 4 because European basketball rules forbid anything lower - and a red Phillies cap, and put on his flashy earrings once he cleared security. In various photos and video clips, he seemed almost dazed.

The welcome party will continue today with a light and music show, the team said.

"They were great. That is the most important thing to be accepted and wanted and appreciated," Iverson told reporters upon his arrival. "It was a good feeling to see them come and support me. That's exciting me more and more to get done what I want to get done and that is winning basketball games.

"They obviously have seen a little bit of me playing in the NBA, but they get a chance to see a lot more of me . . . I'm going to be around my teammates a lot and I'll interact with the fans as much as possible. I bet before I leave here I'm going to speak Turkish."

None of his controversial history seems to matter to the fans in Istanbul. Emre Erkul, a native of Turkey who has been in the United States about 12 years and has been the director of marketing for the Borgata in Atlantic City for nearly 8 years, said the first reaction to the news that the four-time NBA scoring champion and former MVP was coming "was as if Billy Joel or U2 were coming for a concert. People were like, 'Oh, my God.' "

Erkul went to graduate school at La Salle University and was recently home, visiting family. The news of Iverson's imminent arrival was huge.

"His is a global name, like Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley and Kobe Bryant," Erkul said. "Turkey is a country of 75 million people; Istanbul, at about 15 million, is the largest city. Bringing a name like Iverson is huge; there are a lot of expectations at this point. Initially, this was a big surprise, because people didn't believe it.""