Isiah Thomas, Michael Jordan
*Isiah Thomas says the beef that started between himself and Michael Jordan in the 1980s is still ongoing.
In a recent interview, Thomas shared his thought on how he was portrayed in “The Last Dance,” documentary series about Jordan and the 1998 Bulls.
“When I was watching ‘The Last Dance,’ I’m seating there and I’m watching it with my family and I’m thinking everything is good. And then this guy comes on television and he says that he hates me and then he calls me an asshole,” Thomas said, per EuroHoops. “And then I proceed to watch a whole documentary about him being an asshole. I’m like wait a minute, time out. Until I get a public apology, this beef is gonna go on for a long, long time, cause I’m from the west side of Chicago.”
In the series, Jordan admits that he “hates” Thomas but noted that he respects his talent.
READ MORE: Isiah Thomas on Why He’s Not Feuding with Former Rival Michael Jordan
My full quote don’t shorten it or take it out context see below why! https://t.co/2Vckw2yb3d
— Isiah Thomas (@IsiahThomas) November 8, 2022
“I respect Isiah Thomas’ talent,” Jordan said in the docuseries. “To me, the best point guard of all-time is Magic Johnson, and right behind him is Isiah Thomas. No matter how much I hate him, I respect his game.”
Jordan and Washington’s feud was explored in Episode 5 of ESPN’s “The Last Dance,” in which it was made clear that MJ still has ill feelings toward his former rival.
For all you non-sports fans out there, here’s the backstory between the two NBA stars, via The Spun:
Jordan’s Bulls had to go through Thomas’ Pistons before reaching their NBA champions level in the early 1990s. When Chicago finally topped Detroit in the Eastern Conference Finals, Thomas and some of his Pistons teammates refused to shake hands with Jordan.
Thomas tried to give an explanation for that move in The Last Dance, but Jordan wasn’t buying it.
“You can show me anything you want,” Jordan told the interviewer before being shown Thomas’ comment. “There’s no way you can convince me he wasn’t an asshole.”
The former Detroit Pistons star spoke out previously about the perceived diss.
“I’mma call a timeout on the feud because really I wasn’t fighting him. I was winning all the time so why am I mad at him?” Thomas told Jason Whitlock in a 2020 interview.
Thomas has also shared his thoughts on if MJ was the reason he was left off the Dream Team that won a gold medal at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.
“Being left off the Dream Team, that personally hurt me,” Thomas said. “The only thing that’s missing from my resume is [the Dream Team]… I still don’t know who did it or why I didn’t make it. I know the criteria for making the team, I fit all the criteria. That’s a big hole in my resume.”
