Allen Iverson says Michael Jordan called him a “Lil Bitch” when he met him so he paid him back with infamous crossover

One of the most unforgettable moments of Allen Iverson’s Hall of Fame basketball career came during his rookie season during a 1997 game against the Chicago Bulls when he famously caught Michael Jordan with his iconic crossover.

The crossover of Jordan, the greatest player of all-time, was immortalized first on every sports highlight show around the world, and later on YouTube and now in social media memes and GIFs. Everyday on Twitter, someone pulls out the GIF of Jordan flailing wildly as the young A.I. shakes him and hits a 16-foot jumper.

According to a recent interview with Complex, it seems there was a little spice behind that crossover. It stems from a meeting the two had during the 1997 NBA All-Star Weekend.

Notorious shit-talker Jordan was known for getting in the ears and heads of anyone on the floor, including friends, legends, and even teammates.

So when he met the young Iverson, he was ready.

“The first time I ever talked to him was that year, playing in the rookie game,” Iverson said in the interview. “I’ll never forget it, because he said, ‘wassup, you little bitch?’ I’ll never forget it.

“I looked at him like ‘Aight, man.’”

Iverson remembered what he said and when he saw an opening a month later, he put Jordan on a poster.

“I always knew when I got to the elite, I was going to try my move on the best, so he was just a victim that night,” Iverson said of the infamous crossover. He said he recently talked to Jordan – now the owner of the Charlotte Hornets – and said that Mike is still a little salty more than 20 years later.

“I went to a [Hornets] game and I was telling him how much he meant to me and how much I rocked with him,” Iverson said. “And he said, ‘You couldn’t have rocked with me like that because you wouldn’t have crossed me like that.’”