On this day in 1996: Allen Iverson scores 30 in his debut as the draft class arrives

Thirty years ago next month, the 1996 draft class finally took the floor. On Friday, November 1, 1996, Allen Iverson scored 30 points in his first NBA game for Philadelphia. The same night, Ray Allen, Stephon Marbury, Antoine Walker and Steve Nash all played their first minutes. Kobe Bryant was in uniform for the Lakers against Nash’s Suns and did not play. His first game came two nights later, on November 3 against Minnesota: six minutes, zero points, one rebound and one blocked shot.

That weekend opened one of the richest drafts in league history. Iverson won Rookie of the Year. Bryant, Allen and Nash became Hall of Famers. Marbury and Walker became All-Stars. None of the debuts looked like a coronation, except Iverson’s.

• Allen Iverson (Philadelphia, No. 1 pick), Friday, November 1, 1996: Bucks 111, 76ers 103 at Philadelphia. 30 points (12-19 FG, 2-4 3P, 4-6 FT), 2 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal in 37:05 as a starter. Attendance: 20,444.
• Ray Allen (Milwaukee, No. 5 pick), same game: 13 points (3-10 FG, 2-3 3P, 5-7 FT), 2 rebounds, 3 steals in 28:15 as a starter. Milwaukee won.
• Steve Nash (Phoenix, No. 15 pick), Friday, November 1: Lakers 96, Suns 82 at Los Angeles. 0 points (0-1 FG) in 5:10 off the bench. Attendance: 17,505. Kobe Bryant was inactive for the Lakers.
• Stephon Marbury (Minnesota, No. 4 pick), Friday, November 1: Timberwolves 82, Spurs 78 at Minnesota. 0 points (0-3 FG), 3 rebounds, 2 assists in 8:04 as a starter. Attendance: 18,109.
• Antoine Walker (Boston, No. 6 pick), Friday, November 1: Bulls 107, Celtics 98 at Boston. 12 points (5-12 FG, 1-3 3P, 1-4 FT), 3 rebounds in 26:35 as a starter against Michael Jordan’s Bulls. Attendance: 18,624.
• Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles, No. 13 pick), Sunday, November 3: Lakers 91, Timberwolves 85 at Los Angeles. 0 points (0-1 FG), 1 rebound, 1 block in 6:22 off the bench. Attendance: 15,407.

Iverson vs. Allen: 30 points on opening night

Iverson arrived from Georgetown as the clear face of the class. Philadelphia gave him the ball immediately. He made 12 of 19 shots, including two threes, and added six assists in a loss to Milwaukee. Derrick Coleman matched him with 25 points and 13 rebounds for the Sixers, and Jerry Stackhouse scored 14. It was not enough.

The opponent was carrying its own piece of the same draft. Ray Allen, taken fifth by Minnesota and traded to Milwaukee for Marbury on draft night, started and scored 13 with three steals. Vin Baker led the Bucks with 25 points and 13 rebounds, and Glenn Robinson added 19. Milwaukee left with a 111-103 win.

Iverson’s second game was a 115-86 loss at Chicago on November 2. He scored 15 in 26 minutes. By season’s end he had played 76 games, started 74, and averaged 23.5 points, 7.5 assists and 2.1 steals in 40.1 minutes. He won Rookie of the Year. The Sixers finished 22-60.

Nash’s five quiet minutes — and Kobe on the other bench

Across the country the same night, Phoenix visited the Lakers. Nash, the 15th pick out of Santa Clara, checked in for 5:10 and missed his only shot. Sam Cassell led the Suns with 20 points and six assists. Wesley Person had 17, Wayman Tisdale 16 and Michael Finley 11. Los Angeles won 96-82 behind Shaquille O’Neal’s 23 points and 14 rebounds. Cedric Ceballos added 15 and 11. Nick Van Exel had eight assists. Bryant, 18 years old and already with the Lakers after Charlotte drafted him 13th and sent him west, did not leave the bench.

Two nights later, on Sunday, November 3, Bryant finally played. Minnesota came to Los Angeles without Marbury, who was listed as not with the team. Bryant took one shot in 6:22, missed it, grabbed one rebound and blocked one shot in a 91-85 Lakers win. O’Neal dominated with 35 points and 19 rebounds. Van Exel had 13 points and 11 assists. Tom Gugliotta led Minnesota with 26 points and 14 rebounds, and Kevin Garnett, in his second season, scored 12. Another 1996 Lakers pick, Derek Fisher (No. 24), had already debuted on November 1 with 12 points in 20 minutes; on Bryant’s night he played 13 minutes and scored two.

Bryant’s next games climbed in small steps: one point at New York on November 5, five at Charlotte on November 6, then 10 at Toronto on November 8 on 3-of-8 shooting. He finished the season with 80 games, six starts and averages of 7.6 points in 15.5 minutes. The Lakers went 56-26.

Marbury’s eight minutes, Walker’s night against Jordan

Marbury’s debut was almost as quiet as Nash’s. He started for Minnesota against San Antonio, played eight minutes, missed all three of his shots and finished with two assists in an 82-78 win. Garnett had 17 points, nine rebounds, six assists and four blocks. Marbury then missed the next stretch of games; his second appearance did not come until November 19 at Houston, when he scored 12 with seven assists. He still finished second in Rookie of the Year voting after averaging 15.8 points and 7.8 assists in 70 games. Minnesota went 40-42 and reached the playoffs.

Walker drew the hardest opening assignment of the group. Boston hosted the defending champion Bulls, and Jordan scored 30 with Toni Kukoč adding 20 off the bench. Walker started and scored 12 points in 27 minutes. Dana Barros led the Celtics with 24, and David Wesley had 19. Chicago won 107-98. Walker played all 82 games as a rookie, started 68, and averaged 17.5 points and 9.0 rebounds. He finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting. Boston went 15-67.

What the class became

Iverson played 14 seasons and scored 24,368 points. He won MVP in 2001, when the Sixers reached the Finals, and entered the Hall of Fame in 2016. Bryant played 20 seasons, all with the Lakers, scored 33,643 points and won five championships. He was inducted in 2020. Nash won back-to-back MVP awards in Phoenix, finished with 10,335 assists, and joined the Hall of Fame in 2018. Ray Allen played 18 seasons, won titles in Boston and Miami, and went into the Hall the same year as Nash. Marbury made two All-Star teams across 13 seasons. Walker made three.

On the first weekend of November 1996, most of them looked ordinary. Iverson did not. Thirty points on opening night announced the class, and the rest of them spent the next two decades catching up to the night.