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Allen Iverson is widely considered the greatest ball handler in the NBA. His legacy is unsurpassable because of the extraordinary style he brought to the game. Allen quite literally changed how we perceive the league and its participants. He was the flag-bearer of the cultural representation we see in the league today.
His cornrows, his tattoos, his flare, and love for hip-hop; they were never seen in such a way. And his game? He is arguably the greatest small player in the league. Standing at 6' 0", Iverson won four scoring titles. He averaged 26.7 points in his career and is still the seventh highest career points per game scorer of all-time.
What would have happened if Allen Iverson played football instead of basketball?
If not for the fiasco of his last two seasons in the league, Iverson's average points per game would have been 27.8, placing him below only Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain.
But what if Allen Iverson had never played in the NBA? What if he had accepted a scholarship for football instead? According to Iverson, he would have been an even better football player if he had joined NFL.
Appearing on a virtual Club Shay Shay podcast episode, this is what Allen Iverson had to say about the prospect of being an NFL player:
Not being cocky, not being arrogant, I think... No, I know, I would have been a better player in football than I was in basketball. And that's not disrespecting basketball, guys. That's not disrespecting the game. That's done so much for me. I mean, I am a household name, I am Hall of Famer in that sport.
He went on to add the following to the podcast with Shannon Sharpe:
But football was my first love.
After a prodigious career that AI enjoyed in basketball, his statement comes as a bitter-sweet what-could-have-been alternative to "The Answer's" NBA career. A quarterback for Bethel High School, Allen Iverson was also gifted in gridiron football.
In fact, he was immensely famous in Virginia and was being scouted by teams and colleges before he chose to play for Georgetown instead.
Tom Lemming had this to say about Bubba Chuck in an interview with Vice:
A lot of people bring it up and ask me how good he was. He was a great player. Not a good player, but a great football player.
One thing that is a universal law in the world we live in: We cannot go back in time and change the future. We'll never know how brilliant our beloved Allen Iverson could have been in the NFL but one thing is for sure, he is definitely one of the most influential players in the world of basketball.
Also Read: Allen Iverson’s net worth, salary, endorsements and more
Guess the Lakers players!
