Iverson Is Sued Over Nickname

Jamil Blackmon says he came up with “the Answer.”

Now, Blackmon, who claims to be an old friend of Allen Iverson, is demanding 25% of the proceeds that the NBA’s reigning most valuable player has realized from the catchy moniker, “the Answer.”

Blackmon filed a lawsuit Friday in U.S. District Court, alleging that he nicknamed Iverson in 1994 when he was driving the 6-foot native of Hampton, Va., to an alternative high school each day.

Iverson would become “the Answer” to the NBA’s woes, Blackmon told the player at the time, the suit claims.

Iverson’s attorney, Larry Woodward, of Virginia Beach, Va., said Monday that he could not comment on the specifics of the case, but that Iverson would fight it.

“We’re going to defend the case and represent Allen, but we’re not going to have any comment on details of the case because it’s in litigation,” Woodward said.

Woodward said the lawsuit, which alleges breach of contract and idea misappropriation, was not a surprise because Blackmon has made the claims before.

Blackmon alleges in the lawsuit that he and Iverson struck a verbal agreement in 1996 specifying that he would receive 25% of the profits connected to the use of “the Answer.”