The Answer to Your Question: Allen Iverson’s Profound Impact on the Game of Basketball

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If you ask me who Allen Iverson was, I’d say he’s the 6’0, 165 pound Guard known as “The Answer”. However, one thing doesn’t define AI, he’s multi-dimensional. A hero to some, an inspiration to others, Allen Iverson was…

Allen Iverson was more than a basketball player,

Known for his killer first step and signature crossover, AI absolutely humiliated his opponents in ways that even put his victim in awe. I could go on and talk about his basketball repertoire but I’d rather you watch this:

If you go on Youtube, there are hundreds of thousands of videos that consist of highlights of Allen Iverson’s career. To have that many videos for your highlights, you must have quite a bit of them. Iverson came into the league with the quickest first step anyone had seen before and to this day, I’ve failed to see one quicker. Same goes for the crossover; you have Tim Hardaway’s UTEP 2-Step and Jamal Crawford’s Shake N’ Bake yet no crossover is as deadly. AI’s crossover is so deadly, it’s known as “The Crossover”; he practically has the move named after him. Back in his heyday, people used his last name as a verb; “oh you got Iversoned son!”. In fact, I remember saying that phrase when I was younger.

If there was anyone who was set for success worse than Allen Iverson, I’ll be damned. Skills wise, Iverson was as good of a player Jerry West, Clyde Drexler and even Kobe Bryant. The only reason why he won’t be brought up in that conversation is because of the fact that he never won an NBA championship. West had Elgin Baylor and eventually Wilt Chamberlain. Drexler had a few good years with Hakeem Olajuwon. Kobe Bryant had Shaquille O’Neal, Pau Gasol, Phil Jackson and many above-average teammates such Robert Horry and Lamar Odom. Who did AI have? The best player around him was either Theo Ratliff or Dikembe Mutumbo who was past his prime. Imagine if he had one player with even half the talent and production he had. We’re talking about at least an NBA Championship, if not more. Allen Iverson put the Philadelphia 76ers on his back, on part to squaring off against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2000-01 NBA Finals. With a supporting cast that was far below average, Iverson did as much as he could but no one player can win an NBA Championship; we’ve learned that by now with when LeBron was in Cleveland. The fact that he even got to an NBA Finals with the 76ers is amazing. Allen Iverson may have never won an NBA Championship, but the impact on the game of basketball he had is priceless and worth more than anything that a player can strive for.

The thing about truly great players are that they can carry their team all the while making others around him better. An example of this is Eric Snow; he was a nobody before arriving in Philadelphia and AI transformed him into a good player. Players like Allen Iverson only come around once in a generation.

The main criticism he received during his NBA career was being a ball hog of sorts. What I have to say to that is Iverson took so many shots because he knew that if he didn’t score, no one else would’ve produced enough points. Answer this question, would you rather have Allen Iverson taking 25 shots per game or his teammate, Aaron McKie? No matter what you say, you cannot justify any argument against AI “ball hogging”. The best hope the Philadelphia 76ers had to win games was to get Iverson as many shots as possible. Maybe not 47 shots like Chris Webber but at least 20-30 shots per game. The 76ers win/loss column heavily depended on how many shots AI took during the game; boy was Philly lucky to have him over any other player. Iverson could take over a ballgame in the span of a couple of minutes.

Allen Iverson proved that size does not matter as he dominated the NBA. He’s an inspiration to every little man out there whether they admit it or not. He changed the thoughts of NBA front offices, paving the way for others such as Nate Robinson and Isaiah Thomas to make an impact in the league. With the size he had, he also proved that lil’ people can DUNK.

Allen Iverson was more than a city,

If there had to be one person to define Philadelphia, it would be Allen Iverson. He personified the city of brotherly love; “gritty, not pretty, tough, yet tender” as Philly.com said. It has been years since Iverson made a meaningful impact on the team, yet he is the most loved person in the history of the city. Who knew 12 seasons of NBA basketball in one city could do that to the inhabitants.

Allen Iverson was more than a culture,

AI was hip hop and vice versa in Philadelphia. He embodied this culture, on and off the court. From the tattoos all over his skin, to the braids, Allen Iverson just didn’t care what people thought of him. That’s one of the things that made him so successful. In doing so, he popularized tattoos which were formerly seen as unprofessional and made braids that most popular hairstyle at the time. At the time, and today as well, tattoos and braids are very common of people with the love of hip hop. Iverson was a huge factor in making these things popular. Him getting tattoos all over his body and not caring, actually impacted sports such as Football as well (i.e. Colin Kaepernick). Allen Iverson changed the league’s philosophy of being strict to having fun. Players who are currently in the NBA need to appreciate the change AI instigated. Imagine Dwight Howard in the 90’s and early 2000’s. It would be a nightmare. Hip hop is a broad conglomerate of artistic forms yet AI managed to make it a culture in the NBA.

Allen Iverson defined the generation.

If you thought Michael Jordan was influential (which he is), just look at Allen Iverson. Many players today, including Chris Paul and Jamal Crawford, have admitted that the player they modelled their game after was AI and you can see a bit of him in their games. Not just these two but you can see it in the majority of the Guards in the association. Whether it’s the signature crossover or the crossover-to-pull up jumper, Iverson’s skill set is hard to replicate but you can take pieces and bits and that is exactly what CP3 And JC have done.

The reason why you see NBA players wearing shooting sleeves is because of Allen Iverson. Players may have worn it before him but no one had the impact he did. Young basketball fans, striving to become great, wore shooting sleeves because Iverson wore it. I myself am one of those fans and I can say that the reason why I starting wearing them was because of Allen Iverson. I thought that if I could wear a shooting sleeve like AI, I’d be a better player.

The number 23 has already been retired by many of the teams and is known as the number of Michael Jordan, basketball legend. The aura number 23 has around it is as equal to, if not more with number 3. The number of Allen Iverson may not be retired across the league, but it has been retired by the Philadelphia 76ers organization and deservedly so. AI had as big an impact on the game as Jordan. That’s why you see so many players (Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Chauncey Billups, Trey Burke, just to name a few) wearing the iconic number 3. I even found myself doing the same with my school basketball jerseys. CP3 has gone on to admit he chose the number because of Iverson. If you ask all people who are wearing number 3 right now, I bet you the majority of them will say it was because of The Answer.

Michael Jordan is known as the most influential basketball player to ever live to the majority of basketball fans. I understand why he’s so influential but what I fail to comprehend is the amount of people who forget to mention Allen Iverson in this conversation. The impact AI had on the playing styles of so many guards in the NBA is unfathomable. I am going to go out on a limb and say that Allen Iverson is the most influential basketball player that the game of basketball as ever seen. Let’s just say if Allen Iverson’s impact on the game of basketball was a meteor heading towards Earth, the human race would be extinct.

You will be missed…

Allen Iverson had a 14 year NBA career and it seems like not to long ago, he was crossing over Tyronn Lue and stepping over him after hitting the jumper. AI may have retired in 2013, yet it never sank in. Now that his jersey has been retired by the Philadelphia 76ers, it’s just starting to set in that Iverson is truly gone.

I mentioned before that Allen Iverson is a once in a generation player; that he is no doubt. However, AI is a breed of talent, handwork and personality that we will never see again. Forget once in a generation, he is one of a kind. There is never going to be a player like Allen Iverson ever again.

The Answer to Your Question, Allen Iverson.