“Allen Iverson Is the Ultimate Big Brother”: Lou Williams Describes His Relationship With Sixers Legend

Lou Williams got extremely lucky after being drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2005. He got to share a locker room with one of the greatest NBA athletes of all time, Allen Iverson. Although Williams only had one year with him as AI moved to Denver the next year, the three-time 6MOY developed a bond that’d last a lifetime.

Williams was asked about his relationship with AI on an episode of Run It Back. He was asked about Iverson’s impact on his career referring to a photo in which they can be seen having a conversation on the couch. Williams said that Iverson was like a big brother to him from Day 1.

He said, “He was like the ultimate big brother. From day 1, it was tough love and it was genuine.” Iverson took him under his wing from the beginning and started working with Williams to develop him into a great player. The dynamic of their relationship stayed the same both on and off the court.

The 38-year-old said that he never questioned Iverson’s impact on his life because the positive changes were obvious to him. Williams said, “I never questioned our relationship. I never questioned the impact that he had on me from…The very first time I met him, he gave me a bear hug and he hasn’t let me go in over 20 years.”

Williams stated that he is grateful to know AI and have such a strong relationship with him. After leaving Philly in 2006, AI came back in 2009 to have one last run in the NBA. He retired the following year, but his legacy has lived through several athletes like Lou Williams. This wasn’t the first time when the 38-year-old talked about Iverson in such high regard.

Lou Williams talked about being mentored by Allen Iverson

In a clip uploaded by the NBA on their official website, Williams can be heard talking about Iverson being his mentor. He revealed that he didn’t know if he would get any play time early on since he was a 17-year-old kid in the game. However, Iverson understood his talent and started pushing him to become better.

Williams said, “Over time we developed a relationship, that’s when it became more of a mentor and a mentee where I would start watching things, he would show me things, he would talk about things.” Being a student of Iverson’s game helped Williams develop better than his expectations. The influence of Iverson could be seen all over his game.

The NBA legend also understood his responsibility towards the youngster and he did his best to make him better. Iverson said, “He looked up to me. He knew how much I cared about him. It was easy for him to listen to me, coz he knew I wasn’t telling him anything wrong.” While Williams didn’t get to spend most of his career around AI, he gained a lot in those limited number of years.