Allen Iverson is an NBA legend. In part because of what he was able to accomplish on the court as a somewhat undersized point guard, but also because of how he was able to unapologetically represent the Black culture.

Cornrows. Afros. Baggy pants. Long chains. Tattoos.

Allen Iverson was the culture before the culture. But everybody didn't love it.

In fact, many were put off by Iverson's style and demeanor, unable to understand what they couldn't relate to. One such person was the late David Stern, who preceded Adam Silver as NBA Commissioner.

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“I really took the a– whupping for it,” he tells Andscape's Marc J. Spears.

“It’s kind of bittersweet… But now we fast-forward to 2023, these guys are being able to express themselves and look the way they want to look and really show their personality in the way they dress. And I think I had a lot to do with that and I feel that’s cool.”

Feeling targeted, the Hall of Famer says “I was getting picked on. But see, mine was just, it was so different. It was something that was never seen before and I think people looked at it the wrong way.”

“My whole thing was, I never wore a suit to the basketball court, to the playground. In my day, it was suits was going to the funeral or going to church. And as young as I was back then, 21 years old, after the game, I probably was going to the club or something. So why would I have on a suit?”