Who can forget that young kid who made Michael Jordan look like a horrible defensive player with his crossover? Allen Iverson is one of the most iconic players in basketball history. His killer crossovers and shifty moves made waves in the game. Over the years of playing in the NBA, Iverson earned around $200 million from his contract. Unfortunately, by 2012, AI had somehow exhausted all his money and filed for bankruptcy. Very few know, and the NBA icon was very close to being unknown to the world. A judge sentenced Iverson, who was then perhaps the most famous athlete in the country, to a 15-year prison sentence. After all, he was one of the best student Quarter-Backs in the country.
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By his sophomore year of high school, Allen was the starting QB for his team. Very few know that just a year later, Iverson led his football team to a Virginia State Championship. In the same year, he was also named Player of The Year. 29 years ago, in the class of 1994, the electrifying NBA guard was ranked the number one QB in the country. What is even more breathtaking is the fact that the legendary Peyton Manning was ranked second to Allen.
An unfair 15-year jail sentence that ruined Allen Iverson’s promising career in football
On February 14, 1993, Iverson and a few of his close friends went bowling. The Philadelphia 76ers legend was already making news across the country. However, that night changed what AI’s life would have been like, and what fans could have experienced years later. Iverson and his friends were convicted of being involved in a brawl in a bowling alley. According to the reports, the brawl was planned against AI due to racial tension. In the 1990s, such conflicts between the Caucasian and the African communities were very high in number, and the former NBA star had to pay the price for it. Take a look at the tweet by Frank Michael Smith below.
None of the Caucasian men were charged with anything, but Iverson was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison. However, Tom Brokaw, during an interview, featured Iverson’s story on the news, which ultimately led to the overturning of the verdict. The star player came out of prison after four months. However, by that time, the offers had been taken off the table. From that point on, AI started to focus on basketball. And as the popular saying goes, the rest is history.
Allen Iverson cried when his mom made him play basketball because he thought it was soft
After playing for 14 seasons in the NBA and being counted among the greatest to ever do it, it is hard for fans to imagine Allen Iverson as a football player. Being ahead of the great Payton Manning in the 1994 class, he was not only the best student-athlete in the county but also loved playing football. Relative to this, Iverson did not like playing basketball, because he believed basketball was soft. In an interview, AI recalled that he cried when his mom made him practice basketball instead of football.
“Football was like, my favorite sport. I remember the first time my mom wanted me to play basketball. I came home from school and she told me I was going to basketball practice and I cried all the way and said, ‘I don’t wanna play basketball,’ because I felt basketball was soft.”
It was fortunate for the basketball fans that they got to see one of the greatest basketball players and a cultural icon. Unfortunately, we would never know how good Iverson could have been in football.
