“My kids love my haircut, so it’s all good with me!”: When Allen Iverson shocked the league by shaving off his iconic braids during the 2009 All-Star Game

The All-Star game is usually all-flash, however, Allen Iverson took the opposite route during the 2009 game at Phoenix

Rocking the iconic braids for almost 13 years, Allen Iverson decided to go full Brazilian Ronaldo and shave off his hair. A style that made kids all over the country want their hair the same way, the buzz cut came as a shock to everyone. Especially to the fellow players, since they saw him that way up close and personal, even before the fans.

His teammates went wild when Iverson walked into the room with his hair all buzzed down to the skull because they were so used to the braids. It looked like his hair was too, because it left a permanent part in his hair, despite taking the braids off. He wore them for so long, even his hair couldn’t make the change that quickly.

The braids were a part of his swagger on the court and off it. A 6-foot guard with a crossover so vicious that great defenders could be brought to their knees, it all seemed like AI would continue playing like that forever. He had his fair share of troubles, which meant that the braids had to go, to keep his name relevant towards the end of his career.

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Allen Iverson and his influence on people was crazy – there were people everywhere who wanted to be like him

During the All-Star game of 2009, AI played for the Detroit Pistons. Playing for the longest time with the 76ers, this was his first time suiting up in the motor city jersey. He would not last long there, moving to Memphis and then back to Philadelphia.

For the two years prior to playing for the Pistons, the truth played with the Denver Nuggets for two seasons, a step outside the Eastern Conference for the first time. He was an All-Star pick both those seasons, too, playing with Kobe Bryant.

Young kids usually turned up wearing his oversized jersey, their hair braided, and a headband. It was the iconic look of the 11 time All-Star for the longest time, bar the one year he decided to shave it off. He grew them right back though, which put him back into normalcy. The buzz cut with the part made him look like Stephon Marbury, another guy with an iconic haircut in his own right.

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