National Basketball Association

Allen Iverson, Al Harrington talk today's NBA at 'Club Shay Shay'

Updated Aug. 24, 2021 7:40 p.m. ET

"Club Shay Shay" is lively enough when just one guest stops by, but it's a special occasion when there are multiple guests at once.

Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Allen Iverson and retired 16-year NBA veteran Al Harrington joined Shannon Sharpe for a special visit at the club this week, and the memories were flowing.

Iverson is heralded as one of the greatest players in NBA history, ranking seventh all time in scoring average, with 26.6 points per game for his career. He also was an 11-time All-Star and the 2001 NBA MVP.

But he told Sharpe that in his eyes, he would have been an even more dominant player in the NFL than he was in the NBA.

"I think – no, I know – that I would have been a better player in football than I was in basketball," Iverson said. "And that's not me disrespecting the basketball gods, that's not me disrespecting the game that has done so much for me. Football was my first love."

Based on Iverson's high school football résumé, there might be some merit to his claims.

Iverson started on the varsity football team at Bethel High School in Hampton, Virginia, and as a senior in 1993, he led the team to a state championship while being named AP Player of the Year in both football and basketball.

Max Kellerman shared the belief that Iverson could have dominated in football, singing his praises on ESPN's "First Take."

"I wouldn't doubt Iverson," he said. "No. 1 overall recruit in the country in football and basketball — that was impossible to do."

Iverson then attended Georgetown University and became the No. 1 pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, which is widely considered one of the greatest draft classes in NBA history.

Along with Iverson, Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash were both MVP award winners from that class. Those three, plus Ray Allen, have been inducted into the Hall of Fame, and six other players from their class made at least one All-Star Game.

Iverson said he believes his class can go toe-to-toe with the best draft classes in NBA history.

"You already said the best draft class, when you named ours [draft class]," he said. "Look at how many players you named."

Also, as dominant of a scorer as Iverson was during his career, with four seasons averaging at least 30 PPG, he believes he could have been even more dominant in today's NBA, with the floor spacing and less physicality.

"The way they play now – and it's so wide open – definitely more than my highest average," he said. "I think the most I averaged in a season was 33 [PPG]. Definitely more than my highest average because it's too wide open."

Watch the latest episode of Club Shay Shay with Allen Iverson and Al Harrington below!