When it comes to team accolades, Allen Iverson’s name rarely comes up. But there have been very few who influenced the league and the culture like The Answer. That impact helped establish one of the most iconic basketball magazines, SLAM. As part of its 30th anniversary celebrations, it paid a special tribute to AI, who featured on the magazine’s cover 14 times. And it had a former Boston Celtics star reminiscing about the greatness of Iverson.

2x All-Star Isaiah Thomas took to his social media account to express his appreciation for the 11x All-Star Iverson. Using the popular GOAT (Greatest of All Time) emojis, Thomas conveyed his deep respect for the 2001 MVP. SLAM’s 30th-anniversary celebration not only reminisces about the past but also shows the continued impact of basketball’s elite on the magazine’s legacy. However, it could have been very different for AI.

Iverson was not initially in SLAM magazine’s cover plans. Dennis Page, publisher of SLAM, acknowledged the then-college basketball player Iverson’s prowess but hesitated due to concerns about the cover’s marketability. It was Scoop Jackson, an executive at SLAM, who saw beyond the doubts and believed in Iverson’s future impact on the league.

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While AI had already debuted for the magazine in 1994, against the odds, he finally graced the cover in the 1996 issue. Then we saw another “Who’s Afraid of Allen Iverson?” in the June 1997 issue. For the first time, that cover picture featured the Philadelphia 76ers legend wearing jewelry.

Allen Iverson’s most iconic SLAM covers

Following that came the iconic “Soul on Ice” cover in 1999, featuring Iverson in a Mitchell & Ness throwback jersey. Former editor at SLAM, Tony Gervino was the mastermind behind this photo. He had Iverson pose like Sixers legend Julius Erving. These photos perfectly captured the essence of the Philadelphia 76ers star as a cultural icon. SLAM is paying the perfect tribute to AI and the other iconic basketball stars who have graced the covers during the magazine’s 30-year run.

The 30 legends on SLAM’s tribute list also feature Kevin Garnett, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Maya Moore, Zion Williamson, and more. Each cover, a snap of a defining era, contributed to the ongoing conversation about basketball’s cultural impact. Which SLAM cover of Iverson is your favorite?

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