At the peak of his career, the great Allen Iverson had his fair share of naysayers. Right now though, his historic career is widely celebrated by fans and critics alike. One such admirer is none other than Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.

Kerr looked back at Iverson's unforgettable stint in the NBA, as the Dubs shot-caller likened AI to one particular player in the league today — Russell Westbrook:

“For me, looking back, I love Iverson,” Kerr said Friday on 95.7 The Game's Damon, Ratto & Kolsky, via Marcus White of NBC Sports. “I love his passion. I love his energy. I love just his will. I think, in many ways, he was a lot like Russell Westbrook, where maybe he's not everybody's cup of tea. Maybe you don't love certain aspects of his game, but you just have to admire his ferocious athleticism and desire that's apparent every single night. And that's what I loved about AI.”

You could see some similarities in the game of Iverson and Westbrook — with both being high-scoring and highly-athletic point guards — but as a whole, they are two completely different players. What Steve Kerr is pointing out here is that much like what Westbrook has been doing throughout his career, Iverson too impacted the NBA in ways that we had not seen in the past.

Kerr went on to heap praise on Iverson, expressing why he believes the former league MVP revolutionized the game:

“The guys you watch now and the whole game is based on hesitation and disruption of ballhandling,” Kerr said. “So Iverson literally changed the rules without ever saying anything. By just playing the way he did and doing the things he did, changed a whole generation if you watch every player that comes up.”

Allen Iverson is now considered to be one of the greatest players to have ever played the game. He's a first-ballot Hall of Famer. It's interesting to consider if Russell Westbrook will be able to reach similar heights once it's all said and done for him.