Michael Jordan attended the Naismith Hall of Fame Awards Gala on Saturday and met his former head coach Doug Collins there. Jordan and Collins shared a warm embrace when they crossed paths, after which the former hilariously accused the latter of lying about him.
“Whatup dog? What’s happening? … I know he did. He told a bunch of lies about me. I know he told you a bunch of lies,” Jordan said.
Michael Jordan to former coach Doug Collins: "Whattupp dawwg??" pic.twitter.com/76CKeDsNEv
— Sneaker News (@SneakerNews) October 13, 2024
It’s great to see Jordan and Collins on such good terms after all these years. It was back in 1986, that the latter became the head coach of the Chicago Bulls and these two had a fair bit of success together.
It was under Collins, that Jordan won his first playoff series in 1988. He then led the Bulls to the Eastern Conference Finals the following year where they lost to the Detroit Pistons in six games.
Collins was fired the following offseason and Jordan reportedly wasn’t too pleased about that. In the three seasons they had worked together, he had won an MVP and a DPOY award. These two would then reunite over a decade later in 2001, this time on the Washington Wizards.
Jordan, who was part owner of the Wizards at the time, hired Collins to be the head coach of the team in April, just months before he announced that he’d be coming out of retirement for the second time. They worked together for two seasons, after which Jordan retired and Collins was fired.
In all, Collins ended up being Jordan’s head coach for five of his 15 seasons in the NBA. While the two never won a championship during their time working together, they did make some unforgettable memories. In The Last Dance documentary, Collins shared an epic story about Jordan telling him he won’t let him lose his first game as head coach against the New York Knicks.
“The game was tied,” Collins said. “I’m soaking wet with sweat and it was Michael Jordan and he looked at me and said, ‘Coach, I’m not going to let you lose your first game.’ He went out and scored like the last 10 points of the game. Ended up with 50.”
Jordan ended up recording 50 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, and 3 blocks as the Bulls won 108-103. It was a special performance and Collins would get to witness a lot more of those firsthand in the coming years.
Getting back to the present, Collins was inducted into the Hall of Fame as a contributor this year. He was selected with the first pick of the 1973 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers and went on to make four All-Star teams.
Collins’ career was cut short by injuries and he retired after just eight seasons with career averages of 17.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game. He became a successful broadcaster following his retirement and then got his first opportunity to be a head coach with the Bulls.
Collins would later go on to coach the Detroit Pistons, Wizards, and 76ers and amassed a 442-407 record over the years. He worked as a broadcaster at various points in between and has now been honored for all his work with a spot in the Hall of Fame.
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