The basketball world suffered a huge blow when former NBA player and longtime Chicago Bulls commentator Stacey King passed away on Sunday at the age of 59. King was a beloved figure, and his former Bulls teammate Will Perdue reflected on his legacy during an appearance on the Spiegel & Holmes Show. While doing so, Perdue shared a hilarious story about King and their former teammate Michael Jordan.
“When we started flying charter, it was me, [John Paxson], BJ [Armstrong], Bill Cartwright, Stacey, Eddie Nealy up in the front of the plane, the non-card plane guys,” Perdue said. “And Stacey just used to keep us entertained. And the one thing about Stacy was he could give it, but he could also take it.
“And for whatever reason, Stacey decided to bring a video of him playing at Oklahoma,” Perdue continued. “… You know how MJ is. He would ride guys, and I think Stacey felt, ‘All right, I’m going to bring some receipts here. I’m going to bring this tape of me playing at Oklahoma.’ And he put it on the video thing, and of course, he forgets it plays through the whole plane.
“So MJ comes walking up, and [asks], ‘What is this crap?'” Perdue added. “He goes, ‘This is me.’ And he goes, ‘Well, when are we going to get that guy?’… And Stacey wasn’t hesitant. He’d fire right back. He wasn’t afraid. He didn’t care who it was.”
Before making his way to the NBA, King spent four seasons with the Oklahoma Sooners. As a senior, he averaged 26.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 2.3 blocks per game in 1988-89.
King was a consensus first-team All-American in 1989, and the Bulls then selected him with the No. 6 pick in the 1989 NBA Draft. He was a promising prospect, but would only turn out to be a role player in the NBA. That explains the jab thrown by Jordan.
While King wasn’t dominating on the court, the Bulls would start to dominate not long after he was drafted. He was part of their title-winning teams in 1991, 1992, and 1993.
Jordan then retired in 1993, and King wouldn’t be around for much longer. He was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1994 and finished his Bulls career with averages of 6.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game.
King would go on to play for the Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, and Dallas Mavericks as well in the NBA. After eight seasons in the league, he headed overseas in 1997 and then retired in 1999.
As for Jordan, he came out of retirement in 1995 and led the Bulls to another three-peat from 1996 to 1998. That solidified his status as the greatest player of all time, and King believed he was the best ever, too. His passing has hurt Jordan, who released a statement upon hearing the unfortunate news.
“I’m deeply saddened to learn of Stacey’s passing,” Jordan wrote. “We shared some special years together as teammates, and he was part of a group that helped define an era of Chicago Bulls basketball. My thoughts are with Stacey’s family, friends, and everyone whose lives he touched.”
King is survived by his four sons, Erick, Garrett, Brandon, and Mason. He appears to have been a great influence on them, with Brandon sharing a throwback picture on Facebook and writing, “Long Live The King.” Long live indeed.
