Michael Jordan had many rivals throughout his career and despite the sheer dominance of the 2nd half of his career, they often got the best of him in the early years. The Boston Celtics knocked them out in Jordan’s early years before the rivalry with the ‘Bad Boy’ Detroit Pistons, which is one of the most popular stories in the history of the NBA.
Both these teams were in the Eastern Conference, the same as the Chicago Bulls, and while that meant the Bulls invariably faced one of the two in the playoffs as they attempted to get a championship. As such, the stars of every team were in tune with and asked about the series if the other two teams were playing one another.
In 1987, a dangerous play by Bill Laimbeer saw him get into a proper fight with Larry Bird, who ended up chucking a basketball at his head. Jordan was new to the league, and young, normally wouldn’t have been expected to comment, but he did, showing maturity by simply decrying sny flagrant fouls that might hurt a player seriously. It’s even more impressive considering that Jordan has admitted to hating the Pistons.
“I thought it [Laimbeer’s foul] was a lot more flagrant than it should be. I understand you don’t let a player get an easy layup, but you don’t do a flagrant foul where the individual might be injured for the rest of their lives.”
Michael Jordan knew what he was talking about, he had to deal with the same rough play from Laimbeer and his teammates when they faced one another. In any case, with the opportunity to speak about other superstars, it’s refreshing to see that Jordan always took the advice and kept it to himself. Choosing to focus on his own game and gaining bulk, all while not worrying about what the Pistons might do next is an excellent example of what allowed Jordan to become the GOAT.
