Tyronn Lue Never Took Allen Iverson's Iconic "Step-Over" Personal
Tyronn Lue and Allen Iverson remained close friends after the step-over
In 2001, star Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers made the NBA Finals for the first time. They ended up playing the defending champions Los Angeles Lakers.
But this was also when the iconic “step-over” took place.
In overtime of Game 1, Iverson scored seven straight points but his last shot was what gained attention. He took a step-back two-pointer to give the 76ers a comfortable lead but after the shot, he stepped over Tyronn Lue. It instantly became a popularized moment.
But little do fans know that Iverson and Lue had mutual respect for each other, even before the incident took place. On Jul. 27, an episode of Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes’ All The Smoke podcast went viral. During the episode, Lue said he didn’t take the “step-over” personal.
“But it wasn’t even a big deal. Like to me, you know what I’m saying?,” Lue said. “People make a big deal out of it, like it’s a part of history and that’s okay. Like, I love A.I. Even before the series, it’s someone I idolized. He’s two years older than me. But like, man, the cornrows, from the hood, my height. He changed the culture for us. It made it okay to be an NBA player but also be who you are. So I idolized this dude. I told him from day one. So if it’s a moment in history and he deserves it.”
When the occasion took place, a lot of NBA pundits believed Iverson had a personal vendetta with Lue, considering the way he stared him down after intentionally stepping over him.
But that wasn’t the case.
On Sept. 24, 2020, a separate episode of the All The Smoke podcast went viral. During this episode, Iverson talked about the situation and admitted that he hated it.
"I don’t like it because I love him,” Iverson said. “He was giving me so many problems man, harassing me, just straight dog. What’s so crazy is I don’t know how it happened. I didn’t know I did it. You don’t know when you’re gonna do something."
Yes, the “step-over” will be an iconic sports moment forever. But neither side took it to heart.
Cory Nelson is a contributor to Sports Illustrated’s channel “Inside The Heat” and Fansided’s “Wiz of Awes”. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson and Instagram @ckenzynelson