Nike is "pulling back on plans for a shoe that sneakily honors" former NBAer Allen Iverson after he "questioned whether the company could use his old number and team colors" while he endorses rival Reebok, according to Dan Gelston of the AP. Iverson said that Nike "used his identity, likeness and persona without permission for a sneaker." The "ambiguously titled sneaker has the No. 3 .. on each back heel and the red, white and blue colors" of the 76ers. Neither Iverson nor the 76ers are "named on the sneaker or on the branding for the shoe," which is "expected to be released" later this year or in early '15. Iverson's attorney Derek Challenger in a letter to Nike this week "demands the company remove the sneaker from any retail inventories or website advertisements and cease any future sales of the product." Challenger said Thursday after learning Nike was pulling the shoe that Iverson "should be compensated for shoes that have already been sold and would still object if the No. 3 is on the heel of the sneaker" (AP, 11/20).
