Allen Iverson was part of an era where the All-Star Game was a ridiculously competitive affair, and he made sure he let the East’s stars know about it.
Per Stan Van Gundy who coached the East All-Stars in 2005, Iverson was a picture of rage when he yelled at the likes of LeBron James and the rest of the star-studded unit to play better.
“At halftime, AI is yelling at guys,” Van Gundy said on the Knuckleheads podcast. “That’s when the West started really taking over the East. And AI’s coming in at halftime. He goes, ‘Man, y’all ain’t like tired of this b******* about how the West is better than us and we’re all a bunch of s***? I’m tired of the West!’ I mean, he’s like giving a halftime talk.”
It’s not surprising that Iverson did what he did. He was a fierce competitor on the floor, and it didn’t matter if it was an ASG. “Every time in the second half I try to take AI out. The assistants were like, ‘No! No!’ Because they knew he wanted to win, and sure enough, we won the All-Star Game. AI got the MVP,” Van Gundy said.
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All-Star Games were supposed to be the platform for the best in the league to put on a show of skill, but over the years, it has been on a wane, and this anecdote serves as a timely reminder of why players wouldn’t back down from a game, even if it wasn’t part of their regular season run.
Kobe Bryant Called Michael Jordan And Allen Iverson As Two Of The Biggest Competitors In The NBA
Such was AI’s competitive spirit that he had a compliment coming from another iconic NBA star Kobe Bryant.
“Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson are the two that come to mind immediately because they were just they were relentless. Now, Michael, his relentlessness was amazing and Scotty’s as well both ends of the floor. In my generation, AI was much the same. I mean from opening tip to the end, I mean this guy was just going and going and going and he’d always put you in jeopardy so those two guys are the most competitive I faced.”
Being competitive was one of the biggest traits that made the likes of Bryant, Jordan, and James successful, and AI had it in copious doses. It only makes sense that he was the player and legend he was and Bryant knew why.
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