Lebron is certainly the King of the world right now when it comes to the game of basketball but obviously it wasn’t always like that. In fact it’s hard to believe it’s already been 11 years since Bron was drafted and the young boy playing for St. Mary’s St Vincent’s high school in Ohio became a man in front of our eyes. Most players his age always wanted to be like Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson, but not Bron. He had a younger idol himself.

@IamJoeSports

Even though everyone loves to compare Lebron to MJ, he wasn’t focused on him when he was younger. Instead Bron wanted to be like the young bull full of heart, Allen Iverson.

Chris Palmer wrote a great story about AI for Bleacher Report, and it was he who revealed the statement by Lebron as part of the interview. Even Carmelo and Chris Paul chimed in about Iverson.

“I didn’t want to be Michael or Magic,” says LeBron James. “I wanted to be Allen Iverson.”

“He changed everything,” Carmelo Anthony says. “An entire generation owes him.”

Chris Paul calls him simply the most influential player of all time.

Allen Iverson literally shaped a culture and he changed the way people looked at things. It is amazing to hear how many former and current players have the same respect for him as they would for MJ or another legend. Salute!