VERZUZ has completely taken off in hip-hop culture and has become one of the most entertaining events in music over the last couple of years. It was debuted in 2020 by Grammy-award winning producers Timbaland and Swizz Beatz. VERZUZ has become a must-watch series of legendary artists going at it, hit song for hit song.
Some notable past episodes have included great match-ups such as Snoop Dogg vs. DMX, T-Pain vs. Lil’ John, and Ashanti vs. Keyshia Cole. And that barely scratches the surface of the amount of entertainment and pure nostalgia these events have brought.
VERZUZ: Allen Iverson vs. Tracy McGrady
Now there are plenty of VERZUZ match-ups people have been clamoring to see. However, this NBA All-Star weekend, VERZUZ and Bleacher Report have partnered to bring a truly legendary match-up: Philadelphia 76ers legend Allen Iverson (AI) going highlight for highlight with fellow NBA legend Tracy McGrady (TMac). This is a first for the VERZUZ platform.
Photo via @saycheesetv IG
The Hype Was Real
It’s hard to tell who was the favorite going in to this VERZUZ; one legend is a crossover king, while the other is a slam dunk savant. Both have an insane amount of nasty highlight reels that’s sure to get people out of their seats. AI and TMac both talked plenty of smack leading up to the match-up. Continuing that energy once the cameras were rolling, the two stars did not disappoint in bringing an entertaining show to NBA All-Star weekend.
The night started out with some Fat Joe corniness, saying he is now the Tinder Swindler, as well as reminding everyone how big Shaq is, because it’s just so easy to forget.
Shaq did play a big part in the night as the match-up’s commissioner, as well as working to get the whole ordeal organized behind the scenes. The night then couldn’t proceed without a succession of shout-outs of some big names in the crowd. With each name came a question, “who you got tonight?”.
To many people’s surprise, of the three asked in the beginning, all of them said they were picking AI.
Allen Iverson Comes Out Swinging Big
*Legends picked their own highlight plays*
Allen Iverson: AI comes out strong with his iconic cross-over, the NBA’s all-time great Michael Jordan. This was a move that drew much surprise and pleasure from the crowd, letting people know he didn’t come to play.
Tracy McGrady: A respectable start for TMac, he comes out with his posterize dunk on Bulls player Kornel David. This was not a bad start but it wasn’t apparent if it could beat out AI’s starter.
Some fun and friendly trash talk with a mix of story-telling ensued along the next set of highlights. In one of them, TMac took the opportunity to take a shot at the OG Shaq with a block he got on him, that the crowd agreed was goaltending. TMac refused to budge though, still saying that if “the ref didn’t call it, it’s not a goaltend.”
Allen Iverson: Iverson started to get personal with it, showing his highlight on TMac’s cousin and fellow NBA legend Vince Carter. The play was his alley-oop lay-up that he had caught from behind the backboard and brought back around to complete the scoop lay-up.
Tracy McGrady: TMac followed-up with some bully ball, knocking a defender, Gordan Giriceck, to the floor before slicing multiple defenders to finish at the rim.
Photo via @saycheesetv IG
Halftime & Fan Check-In
At the halfway point, the hosts checked in to see what people were thinking and who might be the favorite at the moment. From what the fans online and in the crowd gave off, they seemed to be caught in the middle with both legends receiving similar reactions.
Tracy McGrady: TMac brought some street ball to the night with his teaching moment on a rookie player; crossing the ball behind his back between him and the defender before turning around for the fade-away swish.
Allen Iverson: It took some time but AI finally pulled out the vaulted tapes with his insane cross-over on a Nets defender Jon Von; making Von fall to the floor and splashing the shot afterward.
Allen Iverson: AI’s final highlight before the Iconic Moment was another sick cross-over dropping a defender twice on his way to the rim. This made him look like he was break dancing on the court; it was one people were waiting to see.
Iconic Moment
Tracy McGrady: What else did you expect it would be? It had to be the 13 points in 35 seconds, ending in a game winning 3-pointer. This is one of the most clutch performances of all time.
Allen Iverson: Tyronn Lue is punching the air right now, possibly thinking he made it safe just to be Allen Iverson’s victim to his Iconic Moment with the “step-over” highlight. Enough said. AI did make sure to give Lue his flowers though afterwards, telling people a story about when Lue told him how much of a real one he is.
Who Do You Think Won?
It was a good match-up with both Allen Iverson and Tracy McGrady proving just how great of players they are. It’s a hard call to make but I’m going to have to go with AI, personally. TMac had some nice moves but AI’s ability to shake defenders, get his shot off, and finish at the rim at his height gives him the slight advantage for me. Not to mention, more of his highlights came against reputable players we still mention today. While many of TMac’s came against players not many remember. No offense to them, I mean they still made it in the NBA but there’s levels to this.
Allen Iverson vs Tracy McGrady VERZUZ Full Live Stream
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