Allen Iverson joined Robin Lundberg of Sports Illustrated to discuss the state of the NBA and his March Madness partnership with Pepsi.
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00:00 I'm Robin Lundberg, joined now by the great Allen Iverson,
00:02 who's here with us on behalf
00:04 of the Zero Right Bracket Challenge,
00:06 presented by Pepsi Zero Sugar,
00:08 where fans have a chance to win $100,000.
00:11 I like the campaign, the Ask AI,
00:13 of course, you play in the role
00:15 of artificial intelligence on that one.
00:17 And in today's day and age,
00:19 you know, everybody's out there at AI
00:21 and they've got a platform,
00:22 but LeBron James, actually,
00:24 I saw right before this interview,
00:26 really gave you some flowers.
00:27 He said that you and Steph Curry
00:29 are the most influential players he can remember.
00:31 Did you see that?
00:32 And what are your reaction to those comments?
00:34 - I just saw it right before this.
00:40 And I mean, what an honor, man.
00:44 Like the world know how great he is,
00:46 arguably the best that ever played the game,
00:50 but I know him, you know, as a person.
00:52 You know what I mean?
00:53 I love him to death.
00:54 I love his family.
00:55 I'm a lucky dude, man.
00:56 - There you go.
00:58 Let's talk about positive in the current state of the game.
01:01 What do you make of Victor Wembenyama
01:03 and the hype he's gotten in his rookie season?
01:05 - Well-deserved.
01:07 Well-deserved.
01:09 Oh my God, man.
01:11 You know what I mean?
01:12 It's something that we've never seen.
01:15 Something that we've never seen before.
01:17 You know what I mean?
01:18 And it's a blessing for our league.
01:21 You know what I mean?
01:21 We just evolving.
01:23 We just getting better and better.
01:25 You know what I mean?
01:26 It's just more eye-opening, you know what I mean,
01:29 to the world.
01:31 You know what I mean?
01:31 And the progression that we have in our league,
01:36 it's just, it's something else, man.
01:39 You know what I mean?
01:40 Like, just when you think you saw it all,
01:43 no, you didn't.
01:44 Like, this is the NBA.
01:46 It's the real deal.
01:47 - Different type of player,
01:49 but similar sentiments with Anthony Edwards.
01:52 He's got that viral dunk from last night.
01:54 I mean, all the moments in your career,
01:56 I don't know if you ever gambled on something like that.
01:57 - Oh my God, Ant-Man.
01:58 Ant-Man is crazy.
02:02 Ant-Man is crazy.
02:04 He's crazy.
02:05 I mean, it is what it is.
02:07 You know what I mean?
02:08 Like, and he'll tell you who he is.
02:10 And he'll go out on the basketball court and show you.
02:14 - Last one before we get to the bracket challenge.
02:16 Speaking of the brackets,
02:18 the women's side of the bracket
02:19 has gotten so much attention.
02:21 Maybe even more than the men's.
02:24 And we're in the middle of like a little bit
02:25 of a renaissance there.
02:27 What are your thoughts on Kaitlyn Clark and the like,
02:29 and what she's meant for the elevation
02:32 of the ladies' side of the game?
02:34 - Man, she's everything.
02:36 She's everything.
02:38 She's everything that we want in our sport.
02:41 You know what I mean?
02:42 She's the perfect role model for what we want.
02:47 You know what I mean?
02:48 In our sport.
02:49 You know, the hell with if she's a woman or a man
02:52 or anything like that.
02:53 It's just who she is.
02:55 You know, her elevation, who she is.
02:58 I mean, it's just a beauty.
03:01 You know, just to see, you know,
03:04 how she affects so many people
03:07 and how she make so many people feel good.
03:10 You know, just, you know,
03:11 for those minutes to get a chance to watch her
03:14 and see her do her thing
03:16 and then be a class act off the court as well, man.
03:20 It don't get no better.
03:22 - Now tell us about your partnership here
03:24 with the Zero Right Bracket Challenge
03:26 and the chance for fans to win $100,000.
03:29 - I'm AI.
03:30 You know what I mean?
03:31 I think it was the perfect match, you know,
03:33 for us to collaborate and do our thing.
03:38 But, you know, I think the best thing for you to do
03:43 is lose in your bracket.
03:45 (laughs)
03:47 - Whoever can get the lead on that,
03:50 whoever can get the least right, right?
03:52 Like whoever can get, if you can get a zero bracket,
03:54 you win or then it's the closest to it, right?
03:58 - Losing might be a good thing, man.
04:00 - Allen Iverson, appreciate the time.
04:02 Thank you, man.
04:03 - Love, brother.