Allen Iverson announced that he will be officially retiring from the NBA this week. Iverson has not played since 2010, and the writings were on the wall that he would probably never play again. Lately, Iverson has been in the news for negative reasons as of late.
Issues with money, alcohol, and family has been brought to the forefront since Iverson’s last NBA game. I hope that Iverson gets his personal life in order, but I want to focus on Iverson’s impact as a basketball icon.
Yes, that was not a typo. Allen Iverson is arguably the most influential basketball player in the past 25 years not named Michael Jordan.
Iverson entered the NBA in 1996, and took the league by storm. Iverson won the Rookie of the Year award over the likes of Stephon Marbury, Steve Nash, and Kobe Bryant. Iverson was a feisty point guard with a heart of a lion.
Iverson’s competitive fire along with his skill made him a mismatch on the court. The guard out of Georgetown crossed up defenders for 14 years, and it helped him achieved many accolades. The future Hall of Famer ended his career with over 24,000 points and 5,000 assists. The numbers will never show how great Iverson was as a player.
Iverson won the 2001 NBA MVP award to go along with 11 All Star Appearances, 2 All-Star Game MVP’s , 4 scoring titles, 3 First Team All-NBA selections, and many more accolades. During A.I.’s tenure he played with the Philadelphia 76ers (2x), Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, and Memphis Grizzlies.
Iverson’s impact on the court was celebrated, but his impact off the court as a cultural icon helped propel him to icon status. A.I. rubbed people the wrong way with his braids, tattoos, and hip hop persona, but basketball fans across the world loved it.
Whether it was Iverson’s own peers in the NBA or at your local park there were several players emulating Iverson’s look and style of play.
Even in today’s game you see players wearing their tattoos, and long sleeves on their arms. They can thank A.I. for making that a fashion statement. For example, Iverson first wore the sleeve on his arm during the 2000-2001 season for having tennis elbow.
Thirteen years later that sleeve is being worn as a fashion statement by guys such as Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James who were teenagers when Iverson took the NBA by storm.
As a basketball fan it sucks to see Iverson go, but all good things have to come to an end at some point. Even though he has not played in two years there was always a glimpse of hope that he would lace his Reebok’s one more time.
People always say that there is never going to be another Michael Jordan, but I will go ahead and say there will never be another Allen Iverson. There will never be a six-foot, cold-blooded assassin that gives his all during all 48 minutes. Iverson as a player may have been criticized for shooting too much, and being a pain in the you know what, but what was he supposed to do playing with Matt Geiger and Kevin Ollie.
Even today his former head Coach Larry Brown speaks highly of him despite having an odd relationship with him while he coached him as a player.
Everyone may not understand Iverson the person, but the basketball player will always be loved and adored.
With all of that said, I just would like to say Thank You A.I. for all the memories you produced while on the court. There will NEVER be another player like you!
