In the same vein as our scouting report on a baby-faced Kobe Bryant, below is a breakdown of a thrilling game between Bethel and Kecoughtan from 1991 when a 15-year-old Allen Iverson stole the show.
HAMPTON, VA — The 1991 NBA Draft is barely a week away and yet here I am, at Bethel High School in Virginia to gather intel on a kid who just turned 16-years-old and isn’t eligible to attend college for another two years.
That’s a testament to just how special Allen Iverson is.
Anyone involved in basketball has heard Iverson’s name over the past year. He is a supreme athlete, one of the best in the nation. Not only is he Bethel’s star player on the basketball court, he was recognised as the state’s top quarterback after leading the Bruins to a state championship. As if that wasn’t enough, he moonlights as a defensive end, skying for 14 interceptions this season alone.
If he continues at this rate, Iverson will have the nation’s top basketball and football programs knocking down his door. As the old cliché goes, the world is his oyster.
However, we’re still far removed from him deciding which college to attend. The goal today is to find more about Iverson to make sense of all the hype. To do so, we’ve acquired footage from BigStar2Raw of Bethel’s matchup against Kecoughtan from earlier this season, and broken it down with film and notes.
Film Room
Iverson is lightning quick from end-to-end and makes up for his scrawny 5-10 frame with speedy hands and 41-inch vertical. As you’d expect, the Bruins maximize his otherworldly athleticism by using him in a variety of ways on both ends of the court.
For example: Of everyone on the team, Iverson was the one who jumped ball to begin the game. And even though he’s their point guard, he plays on the backline of their 2-3 zone.
While undersized in the paint, Iverson isn’t afraid to battle with opposing bigs. He has great timing and uses his 6-4 wingspan to perfection when corralling defensive rebounds. Once the ball is in his possession, he takes advantage by doing what he does best — get out in transition and use his blurring speed to create scoring opportunities for himself and others.
Watch him thread the needle on a bounce pass to his teammate for Bethel’s first basket of the game.
Other than his crisp pass to get the Bruins on the board, Iverson struggled to find his rhythm offensively in the opening quarter. He missed his first three shot attempts, two of which didn’t come close to touching the rim.
Iverson has a huge speed advantage, but his size is clearly an issue when creating shots off the dribble. He was forced to settle for a number of fade away jumpers with defenders draped all over him in an attempt to create breathing room.
Shot selection is an entirely different problem for Iverson. Even after missing a handful of shots to open the game, he settles for a contested look early in the clock instead of getting into the teeth of the defense and making a play.
It took some time for Iverson to find his groove, but he still managed to impact the game by wreaking havoc on defense.
Following a missed shot from his teammate, Iverson flaunts his athleticism by skying in from the perimeter for a putback dunk attempt. While he fails to capitalise on the opportunity, he’s quick to make up for the blunder by picking off a pass, attacking the rim and drawing a shooting foul with a shifty one-two step.
Missing shots doesn’t rattle Iverson’s confidence — a double-edged sword for an undersized point guard who prides himself on scoring the rock. But as soon as he sees the ball go through the rim, Iverson’s confidence soars. He’s capable of whittling off points in a hurry, doing so in impressive fashion.
Off a made basket, Iverson streaks to the other end of the court and pulls-up for a 3-pointer in transition with nobody stopping ball. It’s not an ideal shot for the Bruins (Iverson started the game cold and they found themselves in an early deficit), but it’s one he can make when feeling it.
It’s sequences like this that forces defenses to account for Iverson whenever he has the ball in his hands. Once he finds his stroke, the defense is at his mercy.
For proof, look no further than the very next play of the game: Iverson makes almost the exact same shot — a contested 3-pointer in transition from the right wing — only seconds later.
Even if Kecoughtan anticipated the play sooner, there’s not much they can do to stop a speed demon pulling up 20-feet from the basket with a full head of steam. Besides, knowing what else Iverson is capable of, it’s a shot they’ll live with him taking and making.
It’s obvious Iverson has a scorer’s mentality. Combined with his confidence and awe-inspiring athleticism, he has all the makings of an elite scorer in the NBA. However, he’s very much a volume shooter at this stage of his career and has a tendency to force the issue when he doesn’t have an advantage. He’s a fantastic facilitator when he wants to be, but he looks for his own shot far more frequently.
The best word to describe Iverson’s play at times: Erratic.
Watch as he blows by his man with an effective change of pace, only to barrel out of control and settle for an off-balanced floater in an attempt to draw a foul.
When Iverson’s under control, though, he’s a handful for teams to deal with. Back off him and he’ll rise for a 3-pointer or midrange jumper; pressure him in any sort of way and he’ll get the defense moving, playing right to his forte.
After nailing a couple of 3-pointers in the first half, Kecoughtan scrambles to run Iverson off the perimeter following a skip pass from the right wing. Instead of driving to the rim in the hope of drawing a foul, he immediately puts the ball on the floor and rises for a sweet floater over a shot-blocker.
The Bruins started the game out slow, but mounted a huge comeback in the second quarter thanks to Iverson. Fittingly, it was Iverson who punctuated their run on the final possession of the half.
Isolated at the top of the key, Iverson creates separation from his defender with an in-and-out crossover. While his opponent attempts to salvage the play by contesting the shot, Iverson gets to his sweet spot, rises for a routine jumper and sinks it with ease.
Just like that, the Bruins waltz into halftime with a 35-32 lead.
Unlike the first half, Iverson wasted little time asserting himself on offense.
Iverson immediately puts pressure on the defense by blowing by his opponent and rising for a jump shot outside the key. Even though he’s going full speed towards the basket, he jumps straight up and squares his shoulders to the basket, culminating in another bucket despite an awkward fall.
Iverson’s ability to play under control with his speed is mesmerizing. Even when he’s driving towards the basket with the accelerator on, he stops on a dime and makes a play.
While Iverson’s scoring ability has captivated the nation, I’m most impressed by his motor. Whether it’s off of a missed shot or turnover, he’s constantly looking for gaps in the defense to zero in and impose his will.
Take this play as an example. Over the course of 20 seconds, Iverson sets his teammate up with a golden opportunity with a slick bounce pass, records two steals after hustling back on defense twice and earns two free throws on a drive to the basket.
That doesn’t happen unless you want the ball more than anyone else on the court.
After a strong third quarter, Kecoughtan began face guarding Iverson whenever the ball was out of his hands. That forced him to pick and choose his moments, but it didn’t stop him from putting pressure on the defense whenever the opportunity presented itself.
Iverson’s dribbling ability for a 16-year-old is unprecedented. He’s able to withstand bumps on the way to the basket by staying low to the ground and keeping the ball close to his hip. He’s also just as comfortable driving with his left hand as he is with his right.
Even with the entire defense honed in on him, Iverson pushes the ball off a made basket, weaves around five defenders and works his way free for a reverse layup. Notice how he keeps his head up the entire time, surveying the scene for an opening.
With the Bruins down by three points in the closing seconds of the game, everyone in the gym knew who the ball was going to. Iverson finished the game with 36 points, after all, and proved to be the only Bruin capable of creating his own shot in the half court.
Bethel didn’t run a specific play to free Iverson up for a shot, however. Instead, he simply received the ball at the top of the perimeter for an isolation. From there, he took three dribbles, pulled up for a contested 3-pointer and … hit the back iron.
Kecoughtan turned Iverson’s miss into a fast break and put the game out of reach.
Final score: 74-69.
Wrap-up
With two years remaining until he’s eligible for college, Iverson is the hottest prospect in the nation. Everything about him says he shouldn’t succeed, yet that’s exactly what makes him special. Even with his scrawny physique and shoot-first mentality, Iverson finds ways to impact the game on both ends of the court, torching teams and making everyone around him better in the process.
Of course, Iverson is far from a perfect prospect. Despite being faster and more athletic than any of his counterparts, he’s turnover prone and settles for ill-advised shots. He needs to become a better decision maker and fine-tune his shooting mechanics if he hopes to succeed at the next level.
There’s also a question about Iverson’s personality. He has a certain arrogance about him — a quality that helps him be the dominant player he is — but some coaches may struggle to reel him in.
In saying that, there’s no denying that Iverson is a remarkable talent. Whichever college he decides to attend will welcome him with open arms, knowing full well that he’s one of brightest young players in the nation. And who knows, maybe several years down the line he’ll be a star in the NBA. Nobody’s doubting that he has all the tools to make it happen.