Basketball star Raven Johnson is shaking things up on the court as the first girl to play in a boys basketball All-American Game.
While playing at the Allen Iverson Classic in Memphis, Tennessee, she got a stamp of approval from the legend himself.
”These are the best of the best [players] right here,” Iverson said, Philly Inquirer reports.
“That’s that mamba mentality that everybody talks about,” he said to Johnson in the locker room, referring to the late Kobe Bryant.“They want it, but only a select few got it. You got it, just for your heart and to come in here and do this.”
According to ESPN, Johnson is the No. 1 high school basketball point guard in the country, which led to her being recruited to the University of South Carolina’s basketball team. Standing at 5’9,” Johnson was also named the 2020-2021 MaxPreps national player of the year after leading Westlake High School to the state championships in Georgia.
"Where we’re going with women’s basketball, what Kobe was trying to do, kind of continue to keep that legacy going," Stephen Jackson, former NBA player and coach for Johnson’s Iverson Classic team, said, USA Today reported. "And by having her here, it’s a big step."
As visibility and support for the WNBA is increasing, in part due to Bryant’s affinity for women in basketball, Iverson Classic organizers wanted to honor the late player and his daughter Gianna’s legacy. They figured the best way to do so would be to invite a top player on the women’s front.
"I was crying. I was like, 'Wow, me?' " Johnson said, after waking up to a direct message from Iverson asking her if she was interested in the classic.
"When they said, 'Yes, you,' I was like, 'Wow, I get to make history and represent for the girls,'” she recalled.
The scrimmage consisted of 29 of the country’s best boys basketball players, along with former NBA stars Bonzi Wells and Philadelphia native Rasheed Wallace.
“It means a lot that I get to represent for the girls,” Johnson said. “Just putting out there that girls should get the same publicity as boys.”
During player introductions, Johnson received a loud, standing ovation from the crowd.
"I felt like she belonged out there,” Tennessee signee Brandon Huntley-Hatfield said after playing with Johnson in a practice game. “She controlled the pace of the game. It was really good, hats off to her.”
“It’s good to see that women can do whatever men do," he added.
Despite making history as the first girl to play in the All-American classic, Jackson says that the 18-year-old’s talents are what landed her a spot on the national team.
"The good thing about Raven, she’s already confident in her ability, whether she’s a girl, boy," Jackson said. "She’s confident in her ability to play the game, and that’s why she’s here. My job is to continue to keep her confident, to continue to let her know she’s here because she’s good and not because she’s a girl."
Diamond Johnson, a Philadelphia native, was the first girl selected to integrate the all-star game in 2020 but it was canceled due to COVID-19.
