Some might say it’s another podcast story gone wild. Rap artist Nelly, known more for his connection to baseball than hoops, allegedly got the best of an inebriated Allen Iverson in a game of horse at Jermaine Dupri’s house.
Last week, the legendary producer and Atlanta icon was a guest on Carmelo Anthony’s ‘7PM in Brooklyn podcast. An old story surfaced about the Sixers legend via Hampton Roads, Virginia. Dupri proclaimed that there was one instance when Iverson lost a game of H.O.R.S.E. to Nelly.
Super Producer Confirms Rapper Nelly Beat NBA Legend Allen Iverson In H.O.R.S.E
Stories such as these always have three sides and some extenuating circumstances. Dupri said AI lost but also suggested that the competition was set up for Nelly to win.
“Yeah he lost, but to his defense, y’all be shooting the ball so high, and my ceiling ain’t as high as the stadium,” Dupri said. “So unfortunately, a couple of times he shot the ball up it hit the ceiling…But Nelly was shooting like my gym was his gym.”
“He knew not to shoot an NBA shot,” Dupri said of the St. Louis rapper.” Nelly kept saying, ‘I’m gonna beat you,'” Dupri recalled.
Sounds like Nelly put up a couple hundred warm up shots from time to time at JD’s house, and the fix was in.Or his jumper was just flat enough to be money every time, Iverson’s pro rainbow jumper kept scratching the ceiling.
Carmelo Anthony Says Allen Iverson Was Scammed Like Rigged Dice Game: Nelly Is Former Athlete
Melo acknowledged that something was a bit fishy about that story.
“So your crib is like the rigged dice game,” Melo joked.
“And he said he was drunk, too,” Melo added. “Nelly ain’t no slouch, athletically.”
Melo noted that Nelly has the same competitive streak as Iverson on and off the field because Nelly was an athlete before he gave up sports for rap stardom.
“Nelly played baseball, Nelly played football and probably played basketball a bit. So he felt like he could challenge Chuck in sports,” Melo said, because Nelly was also a multi-sport athlete in high school. Iverson’s unassuming size, he added, may also have given Nelly a boosted sense of false superiority.
Carmelo Anthony Recalls Fierce Rivalry Between Nelly and Allen Iverson Early 2000’s
Melo recalls how hard Nelly and Iverson went at each other at celebrity football games back when Iverson was the No. 1 basketball attraction in the world and Nelly was competing for No. 1 rap artist. Both were at their peaks, and a rivalry developed in everything they did.
“They played against each other every single day,” Melo said. “They would compete and then hug and (AI) would start crying…When you’re challenging a professional athlete there’s a switch that goes on no matter where we are at. When the lights go on and that popcorn gets to poppin’ that switch goes on. And once that switch kicks in that separation just goes. and that’s the difference.”
Nelly Is A Former Athlete
“Nelly has an athletic switch. If you tell Nelly he gonna do a seven and out route or a post route, you tell Nelly to run a four flat, he’s gonna try to run a four flat,” Melo raved
Dupri ended with a story about former NBA Sixth Man of the Year and A-Town legend Lou Williams. Dupri says Williams was a mainstay at his studio and constantly beating civilians on Dupri’s home court who think they can outshoot him in H.O.R.S.E. When it comes to Atlanta, has Lemon Pepper Lou ever lost in anything?
Iverson Admits He Lost To Nelly When Drunk, But Beat Him The Next Time Sober
This isn’t exactly a new story as back in 2016, during an interview with Complex‘s Gerald Flores, Iverson gave some perspective to it and admits he was beyond blasted, telling Complex in an interview that he’s never played any celebrities one-on-one, but admits Nelly scraped him that night.
“Me and Nelly played H.O.R.S.E. He’s a friend of mine. I remember one night we went to Jermaine Dupri’s studio and I had been drinking before I got there. We went into the gym and he beat my ass. Then he went on 106 and Park and bragged about it. So the next time we played, I made sure that I came prepared. I hadn’t drunk anything and beat his ass. And during that game he was saying, “You need to get him a couple drinks.” I told him, “Nah. Not today. You ain’t going to brag on this one.”
Iverson got his revenge, but it doesn’t change the fact that Nelly hustled him into an L the first go round.
