NBA Hall of Famer Allen Iverson was a tightly-wound tornado of energy when he was on the basketball court. Because of his fearlessness and wizardry with the ball, he became one of the most popular and fashionable players the NBA has ever seen.
When you add that Iverson was an 11-time All-Star, a four-time scoring champ and the 2001 NBA MVP who was a walking testament to hip-hop fashion with his clothing and cornrows, A.I. is the personification of street cred.
Therefore, when A.I. speaks, his words carry weight and extra meaning. During the 2023 NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, he proclaimed LeBron James is the greatest overall player ever, but he seemed pained to supplant his childhood hero Michael Jordan with King James.
“LeBron, I think, to me is the best overall basketball player that we’ll ever see,” Iverson told Marc J. Spears of the “Andscape” podcast. “If you look in the dictionary and look up basketball player, there’ll be a picture of LeBron.”
Iverson, however, paused and pivoted towards MJ because of nostalgia and his hero status to Iverson.
“But for me it’s so different because Mike was everything to me. He gave me the vision. He made me want to play basketball. He’s my everything. I wanted to actually be like him, like the commercial, ‘Be like Mike,’ I really wanted to be him. I’m still starstruck every time I see him. I’m still nervous every time. Because he’s Mike to me. He’s my guy. So, there’ll never be no one at the top of my list besides Mike. But LeBron is just everything that you want in a basketball player. He’s a total package. He’s God’s gift to the basketball world.”
Many people will think that Iverson contradicted himself, but it pinpoints how torn the once-dazzling Iverson is between his hero MJ and the majestic exploits of LBJ.
