“I could’ve blocked Allen Iverson multiple times, I just didn’t want to”: Shaquille O’Neal shocks Dwyane Wade while admitting he used to ‘let’ AI score

Akash Murty | 20/09/2022
“You Saw I Layed Shaquille O’Neal Didn’t You?”: When Allen Iverson Was Proud and Confident of Making it Big in the NBA

Sixers legend Allen Iverson is looked at as one of the most unstoppable scorers, but Shaq believes he would’ve stopped him

Allen Iverson came into the league as the number one overall pick in 1996. The same year, Shaquille O’Neal joined the Lakers and became the highest-paid player in the NBA.

It was also the time Shaq-led Lakers had got their hands on the 13th pick of that year’s draft, Kobe Bryant. It was a year that changed the NBA in many ways.

Not only it gave the league a legendary duo that would three-peat to start the new century with a bang, it also brought in a 6’0 guard who wouldn’t have any title per se but will change the game of basketball forever.

Also read: Shaquille O’Neal, Who Gifted LeBron James a $450,000 Rolls Royce, Was Given His ‘Fifth Ring’ By The King

With everything AI brought in alongside his game, NBA was never the same after he came in. But apart from bringing the hip-hop culture to the league, he brought street basketball to the court and was the first superstar to play that way all his career.

But the man who gave even the likes of Michael Jordan, a 9x All-Defensive First Team selection, run for their money on defense, was supposedly allowed to score on The Diesel because he wanted him to.

Shaquille O’Neal was a fan of Allen Iverson, that is why he ‘let’ him do his thing

As absurd as it sounds to O’Neal’s coaches, the 7’1, 340-pound giant claims that ‘The Answer’ much like Jason Williams, Vince Carter, and Tracy McGrady was able to do his thing against him because he let him.

“There were guys that when we played them, I was such a fan I let them do what they wanted on me. White Chocolate (Jason Williams), I want him to go to work. Vince Carter, A.I. (Allen Iverson) and Tracy McGrady,” O’Neal told on The Lefkoe Show.

To Dwayne Wade, Adam Lefkoe, and Candace Parker’s surprise, he further elaborated, “Every time we played A.I., I liked him crossing over, and he was tough,” the 4x NBA champ said. “I could’ve blocked his shot multiple times, I just didn’t want to.”

Now, Shaq and his team did stop Iverson from winning what could have been his first and only championship. But, it had mostly to do with the team that AI had, for whom reaching the Finals was itself an overachievement.

“Iverson had the heart of a lion. He did it his way. I was glad to go into the Hall of Fame with him.” O’Neal concluded.

Also read: “Shaq’s childlike selfishness and jealousy”: Kobe Bryant, who fought Shaquille O’Neal, almost left Lakers because of his $400 million teammate

 

 

 

 

 

Post Edited By: Akash Murty
Allen Iverson LA Lakers Philadelphia 76ers Shaquille O'Neal

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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