Allen Iverson joins Dawn Staley podcast, has high praise for South Carolina freshman
South Carolina basketball freshman Raven Johnson has a forever fan in former Philadelphia 76ers point guard Allen Iverson.
The 2001 NBA MVP spoke about the Gamecocks’ guard on head coach Dawn Staley’s NETLIFE podcast episode that was released Wednesday.
Johnson made history as the first girl to play in the Allen Iverson Roundball Classic high school basketball event in May. N.C. State guard Diamond Johnson was the first selected to play in the 24K Showcase at Iverson’s Classic in 2020. It was canceled that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so she couldn’t compete.
Iverson was unsure how Johnson’s male opponents would respond, he said, but was proud of the way she handled herself.
“I was just so happy that she held her own the way she did, and I was so proud,” Iverson said on the podcast, which was recorded Sunday. “I just felt like I saw myself in her with the ‘I can do it attitude,’ and ‘I want to do it. I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid to go at it.’ It’s so gratifying to see.”
After the Classic, Iverson shared words of encouragement with Johnson, something Staley said the young Gamecock can use as motivation when she gets back on the court. Johnson suffered a season-ending knee injury during the second game of the year against South Dakota on Nov. 12. She had one rebound in one minute of play.
“She’s a killer on both sides of the basketball, so I’m glad she got a chance to just touch the hem of your garment because I know those experiences will propel her to being great,” Staley said to Iverson. “Like next year, this time of the year, she’s going to be talked about, and talked about in a big way because she’s going to lead us. The only thing she wants to do, like you, is win a national championship.”
In addition to calling Johnson his favorite women’s basketball player, Iverson said the Gamecocks were “my mob,” and commended the team’s 80-50 win over Creighton in the Elite Eight.
“If I could have it my way, I want it to stay like that,” he said. “Rather than win by one point, I’d rather blow somebody out than be nervous. Or if I lose, I’d rather lose like how they lost to y’all than get beat at the buzzer. That’s just me.”
South Carolina is set to play Louisville in the Final Four at 7 p.m. Friday, the second straight semifinal appearance for the Gamecocks. Though Johnson will be on the sidelines, Iverson and Staley look forward to getting her back next year.
“I was trying to hold back and keep it in when I was talking to her because I meant every word,” Iverson said. “The sky’s the limit for her, and that takes some toughness to be able to step in the fire like that. It was unfortunate that she got hurt, but I’m looking forward to rooting her on.”
This story was originally published March 30, 2022 at 6:06 PM.
