
USA Today via Reuters
Mar 10, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Former Philadelphia 76ers player Allen Iverson acknowledges the crowd during the game against the Brooklyn Nets during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

USA Today via Reuters
Mar 10, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Former Philadelphia 76ers player Allen Iverson acknowledges the crowd during the game against the Brooklyn Nets during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
“THIS HAS BEEN THE BEST 50 YEARS OF MY LIFE,” Ann Iverson had posted on Instagram, still glowing from her son Allen Iverson’s 50th birthday. And honestly? She has every right to celebrate. From raising Bubba Chuck in the tough streets of Hampton, Virginia, to watching him become a global icon, Ann’s been the fire behind his fight since day one. No dad around, barely any support—just her, doing whatever it took. So if she wants to keep riding this milestone wave, she has all the right to. She’s earned every bit of it. And now, she’s letting us all in on the celebration by sharing unseen moments from The Answer’s unforgettable birthday bash.
In the first video, she gives us a front-row seat to what she calls “the special moment in my life”—watching her son say a prayer and blow out his candles. But of course, it wouldn’t be an Iverson party without some laughs. She hilariously recalled freaking out over the black and gold sprinkle fireworks coming off the two-tier cake, writing, “Honestly what I really thought about was my son’s face…Mommy went in protection mode.” The cake? A total showstopper, decked out with dollar bills and all. But the real beauty? That moment of prayer and pure love between mother and son.
And the party didn’t stop there. In another video, Ann gave us a glimpse of Allen grooving to the music—just pure joy. Meanwhile, she was still in awe, saying out loud in disbelief, “I got a 50-year-old son!” She captioned it, “2nd VIDEO JUST STR8 UP LOVE FROM FAMILY AND FRIENDS HAPPY 50th SON FROM US ALL‼️🎂❤️” It was pure energy. Laughter, dancing, hugs—it was everything a milestone like this should be.
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In another post, Ann had to share what she called one of the funniest moments of the night. Allen, trying to unwrap gifts from her brothers Gregory and Stebie Iverson, found himself in the middle of a full-blown family roast. One gift even had the whole room yelling, “Where Tawanna at?”—and the twist? She was standing right behind them the entire time. The gift? A special framed photo that had Allen smiling from ear to ear. It was laughter, nostalgia, and love all in one scene.
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And finally, Mama Iverson closed her video series with her own personal touch: a gift that couldn’t have been more fitting. She surprised Allen with custom-fitted hats bearing his chain logo, complete with a Lids hat holder. “Gifts time from Mommy… I love you son,” she wrote with a heart emoji. It was the perfect ending to a celebration filled with love, legacy, and the kind of bond only a mother and son like Ann and Allen could share. And now? We’re all just waiting to see Bubba Chuck rock that custom cap—because no one does it like AI, and no one loves him like his mama.
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Allen Iverson’s road to financial recovery has been nothing short of miraculous. Having spent almost all his earnings from his playing days and declaring bankruptcy, and going through a tough divorce with his wife, Tawanna Turner, at the same time, it looked like AI was going down the road of self-destruction that many ex-players do once they are done playing. But throughout these difficult moments, there was one partner who always had his back, and at one point, his only source of income: Reebok.
The $32M trust fund awaits Allen Iverson in 2030
In 2001, while Allen Iverson was tearing up the NBA—dragging the Sixers to the Finals and earning MVP honors—he made a move off the court that would quietly become his financial lifeline. Instead of chasing a bigger bag right then, Iverson restructured his Reebok endorsement deal. The result? A unique agreement that gave him two golden parachutes: $800,000 annually for life, with no promotional obligations, and a $32 million trust fund locked away until he turned 55—June 7, 2030. “It shows a lot of commitment,” Iverson told ESPN then. “Hopefully I can stand up to my part… They always stood by me when times were bad.”
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Those bad times hit harder than anyone could have imagined. Despite earning $155 million in salary during his 14-year NBA career, Iverson was flat broke by the early 2010s. In court documents from his 2012–13 divorce, it was revealed he was burning $360,000 a month while making only $62,500. “I don’t even have money for a cheeseburger,” he told his ex-wife, who then handed him $61. That’s when the public first learned about the Reebok trust fund—and that half of it had already been signed over to Tawanna Iverson in their divorce. According to Not a Game, Kent Babb’s 2015 biography, Iverson violated the agreement, but Tawanna still let him keep half. Even then, his only steady income was reportedly the $800K Reebok paid each year.
But here’s the twist: Reebok never walked away. In fact, in October 2023, they doubled down—naming Iverson as Vice President of Basketball, working under Shaquille O’Neal, now Reebok’s president. “We’re putting them in real management roles,” said Reebok CEO Todd Krinsky. It wasn’t just symbolic. Iverson remains a cornerstone of Reebok’s retro sneaker line and has joined forces with Authentic Brands Group (which also reps Shaq, Ali, and David Beckham) to scale his brand. He’s even dropped reworked golf shoes and teamed with Al Harrington’s Viola, a cannabis brand. As he told GQ: “It’s one of the greatest feelings in the world that when you can’t play no more, you making millions of dollars off of what you did when you were playing.” And in five short years, that $32 million cushion he signed for at age 26 becomes real.
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