Zack Schlemmer 
Kicking off our look at Allen Iverson’s historic impact on both the game of basketball and sneaker culture, last week we detailed how Reebok was able to secure the coveted NBA rookie to their roster of athletes in 1996. Reebok going for broke on the under-sized and controversial guard by inking him to a $50 million, 10-year deal before he ever even stepped foot on the NBA court—before he was even drafted—still stands as the biggest gamble ever by a sneaker brand when it comes to signing an athlete. Now obvious all these years later, it was a risk that certainly paid off.
Iverson’s electrifying play during his rookie season and the subsequent launch and immediate nation-wide popularity of his first signature shoe, the Reebok Question, was more than enough to pay for that $50 million leap of faith. And that rookie season was no fluke. AI would go on to become one of the most popular basketball players of all time, not to mention Reebok’s most important and brand-defining athlete ever. We’ll get into all of AI’s cultural influence later, but today let’s focus on that rookie season, when the skinny 6-foot tall guard seemed to stand taller than all the giants in the league, when Allen Iverson’s coming of age tale began.
The #1 Pick
Despite some troubles off the court and being undersized for the NBA, Allen Iverson earned himself the position as the most sought-after player in the 1996 draft thanks to his outstanding play in college at Georgetown. The Philadelphia 76ers won the lottery, and Iverson is indeed who they selected with the #1 pick. Just like how Reebok took a gamble with that major sneaker endorsement contract, the 76ers selecting him with the first pick was a bet that paid off, as AI would go on to become the franchise’s most beloved player ever.
Signature Shoe
Because Reebok had pursued Iverson so aggressively before signing him, the brand already had a signature shoe ready and waiting (one of the major reasons he decided to go with Reebok). This meant, unlike most NBA superstars that eventually had their own signature line, Iverson played his very first game on the NBA court in his own shoe. This, of course, was the Reebok Question, named after all the questions surrounding AI as he entered the league. All the doubts would soon be vaporized, as AI electrified the crowds on a nightly basis. His attention-grabbing play and the ensuing media madness was the best thing Reebok could ever hope for. The Question was scooped up by Iverson’s fans immediately, and has since become one of Reebok’s best selling and most iconic shoes ever. Now twenty years old, the love for the Question continues.
Superstar Scoring
Only in his first year in the league, Allen Iverson was scoring like a seasoned veteran. Wait, scratch that. He was scoring like an absolute superstar. AI’s impressive scoring stats his rookie season read like this: twenty 30+ point games, five 40+ point games, and even one 50-point game. Iverson failed to reach a double-digit point total only three times in his 76 games played.
Crossing Over the G.O.A.T.
Iverson’s most notorious moment of his rookie season was no doubt the night he did the unthinkable: show up Greatest of All Time. On March 12, 1997 with the Chicago Bulls in town, the Philly fans witnessed the crossover that would prove there was a new superstar in the NBA. Hear the story straight from AI above.
Rookie of the Year
By the end of the 1996-97 NBA season, there was no doubt who’d be taking home the Rookie of the Year honors. Keep in mind that this was one of the most stacked rookie classes ever. Allen Iverson had proven himself to all the doubters and critics, and single-handedly ushered in the next generation of the NBA. With the Questions on his feet, The Answer was born.
Stay tuned to Sneaker News for more looks into Allen Iverson’s storied career in celebration of the Reebok Question’s 20th anniversary.
