Allen Iverson had an unforgettable impact on the NBA and his toughness was a huge reason behind it.
The 2000s decade was a great time for NBA fans as the league was full of incredible talent.
Be it Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, or Tim Duncan, the NBA had a plethora of phenomenal stars. But one player who pulled in immense attraction to the league was Allen Iverson.
The Philadelphia 76ers legend influenced the NBA community with his unique fashion style and amazing ability to play basketball.
Over the years, AI found his name in several controversies due to his rebellious nature, but it didn’t mean that he disrespected the game of basketball by any means.
In fact, former 3x NBA Sixth Man of the Year award winner Lou Williams recently shared details about Iverson’s tenacity. So much so that AI never thought twice before playing even with ‘broken bones.’
“I watched that man play with broken bones, fractures, anything you name it, he was suiting up. I can’t imagine AI playing in the load management era because he would piss the team off,” Williams said.
“He would literally be like, ‘No. I’m not sitting.’ Man, I used to watch this dude play with so many injuries and go out and get 40 like it was nothing,” he added.
“Go hang out like it was nothing and go do it again the next time you see him like it wasn’t nothing. He lived by his own set of rules,” Williams concluded.
Iverson entered the league in an era when players took pride in playing through injuries rather than relying on load management to get rest.
See, there is no harm in playing through injuries during crucial moments of a season. It could be an important regular season game to clinch a playoff berth or a Game 7 in the playoffs.
But unnecessarily pushing the body to its limit only hurts an athlete in the long run. Iverson’s career was cut short due to injuries when he was in his 30s.
While AI remains one of the best players to ever grace the hardwood, he could have given fans a few more years had he taken better care of his fitness.
Iverson retired from the league after a 14-year stint at 34 years old. But imagine if he had sat down a few games here and there, he could have added at least a couple of more years to his career.
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