Allen Iverson is apparently a fan of the Vancouver Canadians
The Vancouver Canadians have international appeal.
On Wednesday, an NBA legend was spotted wearing a Vancouver Canadians hat at a location nearly 5,000 kilometres away from Nat Bailey Stadium.
Allen Iverson, who recently celebrated his 51st birthday, posted to Instagram this week for a photo op in Newport News, Virginia. The retired NBA star was checking out a street named Allen Iverson Way, which is located near his hometown of Hampton, Virginia.
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But for Vancouverites, it was his hat that caught people’s attention.
Iverson was rocking a red Canadians ballcap as he posed for photos in the Newport News neighbourhood.
Of all basketball stars to rock the cap, Iverson probably wouldn’t have been a prime candidate.
For starters, he has no clear ties to the city. The only time Iverson and Vancouver were widely discussed together was in 1996, during the NBA Draft.
The Vancouver Grizzlies and Toronto Raptors had the best odds of securing the 11-time All-Star at the draft in 1996. However, the NBA’s expansion rules prevented the Grizzlies or Raptors from actually winning the first overall pick.
Even though the Raptors ended up winning the lottery, they were disqualified from securing the top pick. Instead, Iverson was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers, where he became one of the most iconic ballers in the city’s history.
The Hall of Famer did have one tie to the Grizzlies franchise. He signed with the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2009-10 season, the last of his career. Iverson spent just three games there before finishing his career in Philadelphia.
Allen Iverson surprised Vancouverites by rocking a Canadians hat. (@theofficialai3/Instagram)
While Iverson’s reason for rocking the Canadians hat is unclear, his ode to Vancouver didn’t go unnoticed.
“Amazing hat choice,” the Vancouver Canadians Instagram account replied to his post.