Isiah Thomas has been making headlines this year thanks to his comments on Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Thomas and his ‘Bad Boys’ Detroit Pistons were a nightmare for MJ and co. during the late 80s, dominating them in the playoffs whenever they faced each other.
It wasn’t until 1991 that Jordan and the Bulls got past them, swept them in the Eastern Conference Finals and went to win their first NBA title. They created a big rivalry with the Pistons and that hasn’t changed a bit after all these years.
Thomas recently claimed he didn’t know Jordan hated him so much. Well, he didn’t try to change that as he once again threw shade at MJ during a recent interview with Shannon Sharpe. Zeke claimed that he was dominant over MJ during his prime, explaining that his competition was other players like Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, or Julius Erving.
“Head to head, I was dominant over him (Michael Jordan)… Until 1991 when I basically had career-ending wrist surgery, my record against him and his team, it really wasn’t competition there.”
Isiah Thomas vs Michael Jordan from 1985-1990
▫️21.1 PPG
▫️4.0 RPG
▫️9.4 APG
▫️1.9 SPG
▫️45%FG ▫️43.2%3PT
▫️20-10 record (68%)
▫️3-0 in playoff series
He’s allowed to say what he wants https://t.co/yXXXqwg8pk
— Just a fan of a fan (@ALLICONICSPORTS) November 11, 2020
This raised a lot of eyebrows around the league but one fan made the case for Thomas, recalling his numbers against Jordan from 1985 through 1990, where the Pistons dominated the Bulls.
Detroit beat Chicago in three straight postseasons, from 1988 through 1990. In 1988, they won their second-round series in five games. The next year, they did it in six games before repeating the dose in 1990, winning the series in seven games.
The Bad Boys were Jordan’s biggest obstacle to the title and once they got past them, things went a lot better for him. He recognized in his award-winning docuseries ‘The Last Dance’ that he couldn’t stand losing against the Pistons and when he finally beat them, nobody could stop MJ and co.
