Back by Popular Demand: Michael Jordan Bashing Teammates

[DFolks]

goat MJ!!

[The Shiv]

stockton was one of the most clutch players in nba history. zeke was just lucky his team was good before jordan hit his prime.

Hm hm. What a joke. The Detroit Pistons were rubbish before Isiah arrived. There's no luck in leading players like that (Dumars is the only other one who could be labeled a legit all-around star, imo) to 3 straight Finals appearances and 2 titles.

Then you characterize Jordan's failures as "not being in his prime".

Isiah and the Pistons earned everything they got.

Jordan was one of the most clutch players in league history. That's why you saw him beating the Jazz at the buzzer in the Finals and why you didn't see Stockton beating Chicago at the buzzer in the Finals. Most clutch players in league history have a title or more under their belt. An actual title. Not RS games, not stats, not conf finals appearances. Championship.

stockton was clutch as hell in the finals. the problem was that malone was the one who choked.

[magicman123]

If Kobe/LeBron/Dwight/Wade were to say that now, people would be ripping them apart. Unless they were saying it about Stacey King. Everyone knew he sucked.

u mean like dwight saying he likes kobe's all around game over lebron , sensitive people

[Mamba Venom]

There is an i in six.

[blkout]

I admire Jordan for the majority of those quotes. The dude was a leader and kept it real, he didn't except any bull and got **** done. A lot of the things he said are the same kind of things many of us say on RealGM about our own teams, he just had the balls to say it to their face.

+1

People rip on athletes for being boring and not speaking their mind, people rip on MJ for speaking his mind. Call him whatever you want but the guy was a winner of the highest level and a lot of these guys he was bashing have him to thank for their own personal successes.

[Idunkonyou2]

MJ was Tiger before Tiger was Tiger. He cheated on his wife. He was a class a douche bag. Funny how the media made him out to be something he wasn't, same with Tiger.

[durden_tyler]

i don't care if MJ was the devil himself but he's the greatest player of all time .

[blkout]

MJ was Tiger before Tiger was Tiger. He cheated on his wife.

How is this relevant at all?

[Jordan23Forever]

A lot of these quotes are taken out of context and/or seem much worse without the surrounding context. About a year or so ago, when this topic came up, someone who has the Jordan Rules book actually posted the surrounding context/quotes and it made most of these sound a lot less brutal.

[BarneyGumble]

I dont think there's any doubt Jordan is up there in the discussion as the GOAT.

I also dont think there's any discussion that he's also one of the most prideful, selfish, and lonely men in history. His divorce was the most expensive divorce in history at the time. He has alienated himself from former teammates, coaches, executives, and contemporaries. He made rivalries out of personal things in life, where rivalries are best left to the hardwood.

I dont care how many rings he has, I wouldnt trade my life for Jordan's....not even for one day.

[LApwnd]

MJ was Tiger before Tiger was Tiger. He cheated on his wife. He was a class a douche bag. Funny how the media made him out to be something he wasn't, same with Tiger.

I dont think Tiger is a dbag like MJ, other then the wife cheating stuff, which I assume Tiger wasn't getting much arse until he got famous.....Jordan was probably getting it everyday when he was at UNC

[Sedale Threatt]

Media and reporters aren't new things. Meet The Press has been on TV since 1947.

You cannot possibly compare the modern news cycle to what it was even two decades. Cable TV and talk radio exploded. Then came the Internet and all the resulting technological devices it wrought, which is right up there with the printing press in my opinion.

Look at LeBron James and the whole handshake stink last season. That would have been an item in some reporter's notebook column in the 1980s. Fast forward 25 years, and it's grist for the insatiable media mill that requires constant, 24-7 feeding.

Don't know if Jordan or Bird would have been thought any less of, but I'd be willing to bet their images and reputation would be significantly different.

[writerman]

Funny? No. Sickening? Yes.

As big an ego as Wilt had, he was never the total **** that Jordan was. Jordan might have been a great ballplayer, but he was a nasty person, and some of his worst nastiness was focused on whites--just plain racist. Can you imagine the furor if Bird had said something like that about Robert Parish? He'd have been run out of the league by the PC posse...but Jordan gets a pass...

[Sedale Threatt]

Unfortunately, that nastiness is what made him the player he was. Can you be nice and still win? Certainly. But for Mike, it's hard to argue with the results.

[chitownsports4ever]

Unfortunately, that nastiness is what made him the player he was. Can you be nice and still win? Certainly. But for Mike, it's hard to argue with the results.

Exactly and I think whats gets left out is how physical the game was . Jordan was doing what he needed to prepare his team for the wars they went through with the knicks and Pistons . There was no time for being soft and wanting a hug like todays players . He put himself into a position where his team feared him more than the opponent and it was always about winning the title. Not winning MVP,making the playoffs ,a new deal or any of that .

[sule]

"Flaming f****t" is what he called Kwame Brown. Destroyed that man's career before it even started.

[writerman]

Unfortunately, that nastiness is what made him the player he was. Can you be nice and still win? Certainly. But for Mike, it's hard to argue with the results.

One name: John Havlicek. And he was "the man" on a number of title teams, if I remember rightly. So that's a lame, pissy excuse for Jordan being a total dick. I don't care how good you are there's never an excuse for being a total a-hole, and no, I don't believe it was that nastiness that made him great. Aggressiveness and competitiveness do not = being a jerk and excuse being one in any way

[writerman]

Unfortunately, that nastiness is what made him the player he was. Can you be nice and still win? Certainly. But for Mike, it's hard to argue with the results.

Exactly and I think whats gets left out is how physical the game was . Jordan was doing what he needed to prepare his team for the wars they went through with the knicks and Pistons . There was no time for being soft and wanting a hug like todays players . He put himself into a position where his team feared him more than the opponent and it was always about winning the title. Not winning MVP,making the playoffs ,a new deal or any of that .

Physical? If Jordan had played in the 60s or 70s, he'd have ended up with half a tongue, going to the hoop with it stuck out as he habitually did. The game in Jordan's era was marginally more physical than today, but nothing like the thuggery that went on in the paint in the 60s and 70s...

[Sedale Threatt]

Unfortunately, that nastiness is what made him the player he was. Can you be nice and still win? Certainly. But for Mike, it's hard to argue with the results.

One name: John Havlicek. And he was "the man" on a number of title teams, if I remember rightly. So that's a lame, pissy excuse for Jordan being a total dick. I don't care how good you are there's never an excuse for being a total a-hole, and no, I don't believe it was that nastiness that made him great. Aggressiveness and competitiveness do not = being a jerk and excuse being one in any way

It was a rhetorical question that I already answered, so I didn't really need an example, thanks. Switching sports, Joe Montana seemed like a hell of a nice guy and he won a lot, too.

Even so, I don't think Jordan's will to dominate is a lame or "pissy" -- where do you come up with this stuff? -- excuse.

Everybody has their motivation. Jerry West was driven by neurotic perfectionism. Larry Bird was driven by the shame of a poor upbringing. Bill Russell and Oscar Robertson -- not exactly the nicest guys on Earth -- were deeply impacted by the racism they encountered growing up.

Where Jordan developed his need to completely dominate even his own teammates, I have no idea. I'm certainly not trying to excuse it either. I'm just stating the obvious -- it was the driving force, way more than his immense athletic ability, behind one of the most amazing careers in basketball history. In other words -- it worked for him.

[mattyBoi]

I admire Jordan for the majority of those quotes. The dude was a leader and kept it real, he didn't except any bull and got **** done. A lot of the things he said are the same kind of things many of us say on RealGM about our own teams, he just had the balls to say it to their face.

But when Shaq or Garnett gets on a teamate like that..they are team cancers?
The MJ butt shining is in full service on this thread. I dont have a problem getting on a teamate but damn he got personal. Damn you know that guy who was getting tickets ready for his family when MJ dissed him was thinking youre lucky I make so damn much being your whipping post or else I'd whip your ass right here right now.

There is a difference in saying these things because you want to win and saying these things because you are **** who doesn't give a ****. A cancer IMO is just a moron who doesn't care about the game or winning and projects that on the team. I guarantee Garnett and Shaq have said similar things to teammates, it's just the way it is, things get heated when the stakes are so high.