Tim Hardaway wanted to take a stand for his rightful place in crossover history. The sole inventor of the UTEP Two-step (AKA the between-the-legs crossover), Hardaway — the ex-Warriors/Heat point guard and father to Tim Hardaway Jr. — has snatched his fair share of ankles.
Allen Iverson responded to Tim Hardaway’s crossover critique with a HOF burn
Iverson was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame last year. Hardaway, 10 years removed from the NBA, is still waiting.
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So in a March interview with NBA.com’s Scott Howard-Cooper, he disparaged Allen Iverson, known as the king of the crossover, citing his own crossover is the longer-standing move of the two.
“I’m going to tell you this and I tell everybody this: Allen Iverson carried the basketball,” Hardaway told NBA.com’s Scott Howard-Cooper. “I had the original killer crossover and people are doing my move. They’re not doing Allen Iverson’s move. They’re not doing nobody else’s move. They’re still trying to perfect my move as the killer crossover and it’s my move, all right? That’s the way it is. I brought a unique style to the game.”
Don’t mess with Allen Iverson
Iverson caught wind of the comments and responded the only way he knew how: With a burn.
“I carried my crossover all the way into the Hall of Fame. So, there you go,” Iverson said in an interview with B/R Mag’s Jonathan Abrams.
Yikes.
Iverson spent 14 seasons in the NBA, most notably with the Philadelphia 76ers, and retired in 2010. He was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame six years later in 2016.
Hardaway, conversely, retired in 2006 and has missed the nod for more than a decade. He is now one of 14 Hall of Fame finalists for the class of 2017. Hardaway was also a finalist in 2014 and 2015.
Iverson was also the beneficiary of a recent rule change. A player can now be inducted into the Hall of Fame after being four years removed from the league, instead of five.
Here is a list of players inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame since Hardaway became eligible five years after his retirement:
2011: Artis Gilmore, Herb Magee, Dennis Rodman, Arvydas Sabonis, Goose Tatum
2012: Reggie Miller, Ralph Sampson, Jamaal Wilkes, Chester Walker, Melvin Daniels
2013: Gary Payton, Bernard King, Richie Guerin, Oscar Schmidt, Roger Brown
2014: Alonzo Mourning, Nolan Richardson, Mitch Richmond, Gary Williams
2015: Louie Dampier, Spencer Haywood, John Isaacs, Dikembe Mutombo, Jo Jo White
2016: Zelmo Beaty, Allen Iverson, Yao Ming, Shaquille O’Neal, Cumberland Posey
2017: Tracy McGrady, George McGinnis, Nick Galis, Zack Clayton
It’s tough to get into the league’s league of extraordinary gentlemen. Hardaway is indeed in the same class as those names and his time will come. It’s just uncertain when.
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