Allen Iverson is one of the most influential players in NBA history for a myriad of reasons, but his shooting sleeve has permeated basketball culture itself.
Imagine an NBA superstar wearing what looked like pantyhose on his arm at the peak of his popularity. Now imagine that look becoming a fashion staple in the game of basketball, at every level, for nearly two decades since.
Allen Iverson was a trendsetter and one of the most influential players in NBA history for a number of reasons, but the shooting sleeve he first donned on his arm back in 2001 has permeated basketball culture to the point of saturation.
In the middle of the most memorable season of his career, A.I. was dealing with bursitis in his right elbow. According to The New Yorker, it was then-Philadelphia 76ers trainer Lenny Currier who offered a solution. He “cut a swath of tube bandage called compression stockinette,” which extended from his bicep to his forearm. For Iverson to play with it on, it needed to be firm enough for compression, but lightweight enough to avoid disrupting an already less-than-efficient jump shot.
On Jan. 21, 2001, Iverson wore his new arm sleeve for the first time and proceeded to drop 51 points on the Toronto Raptors’ heads. He would go on to average 35 points a night for the rest of the season, ultimately leading the league in scoring (31.1 points per game) and steals (2.5 per game). NBA history buffs will also recall how that was the year he:
- Dragged the Sixers to the NBA Finals
- Effectively ended Tyronn Lue’s career with the infamous step-over in Game 1 and
- Handed the Los Angeles Lakers the only loss of an otherwise immaculate championship run.
All that, while wearing what looked like pantyhose on his shooting arm.
Of course, it didn’t look that way forever. Not long after Currier’s prototype caught on, Under Armour reached out to see if A.I. would be interested in wearing a longer, nylon version of the sleeve. They were made in white, red, blue and black, giving him options depending on what color the Sixers were wearing that night. Iverson loved them so much he gave the elderly woman who was stitching them together an autographed jersey for her trouble.
Equal parts fashion statement and potential placebo to avoid future injury, Iverson rocked the shooting sleeve for the rest of his NBA career, and like everything he else he did at the time, it became the latest fad. Darren Rovell reported for CNBC that the sleeve had become the most popular non-apparel item sold by the league by 2008. It was more than just injury prevention; it was the latest accessory that made the NBA cool.
Stars like Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, John Wall, Paul George and Kyrie Irving would all eventually wear shooting sleeves in the future, even though many of them never wore them for elbow or arm injuries of any kind.
While that kind of mild compression helps keep a player’s shooting arm warm to improve circulation, there’s been no study to prove that the sleeves really do anything for a player whose arm isn’t injured. And yet, people wore them, and have continued to wear them for 18 years now.
Why? Because Allen Iverson was one of the league’s most prominent fashion icons. He was the Regina George of the NBA hip-hop movement. When NBA players saw Allen Iverson wearing tattoos and nylon shooting sleeves, they bought tattoos and nylon shooting sleeves.
Whatever he wore spoke to his throngs of younger fans, and even when commissioner David Stern imposed a dress code designed to limit that kind of influence, the compression sleeve could no longer be compressed.
To this day, basketball players of all ages rock the arm sleeve that Allen Iverson made popular — even on their non-shooting arms. It’s evolved to full-leg compression pants, which have become the new norm for many NBA players whether they’ve dealt with injury or not.
Iverson’s impact on the NBA and his influence on hoopers of all ages can be felt to this day in a myriad of ways. Cornrows, braids and tattoos? Obviously. Nasty crossovers? Also yes. Revolutionary takes on the true meaning of practice? Undoubtedly. But the shooting sleeve is perhaps the most overlooked piece of the Allen Iverson puzzle, another question with only one true Answer.