Michael Jordan was the definition of intense during his tenure in the NBA, no one came close to being as hardcore as the GOAT. The situation with Draymond Green and Jordan Poole has everyone remembering the time MJ punched Steve Kerr during practice. And his intensity never let up, be it in practice, in an NBA Finals game, or in a pick-up game against non-professionals.
MJ was the star of Space Jam, he was widely considered the reason the movie did so well. And the stories from the time the legendary movie was shot are incredible. They had set up a court for Jordan to keep practicing on set, and that court saw some legendary pickup games involving the most elite players of the 90s. And according to some, it got quite heated as well.
Space Jam Extra Spoke About How Michael Jordan Trash-Talked Him
Keith Gibbs is a man who had an interesting career, he was an extra on movies related to basketball throughout the 90s. He recently spoke to Grantland about his time on the set of Space Jam. Playing against prime MJ was a privilege, especially when one wasn’t an NBA player, but it didn’t spare Gibbs from getting the full competitive MJ experience.
Interviewer: “Did Jordan trash-talk you?”
Keith Gibbs: “Oh yeah, nonstop. He didn’t give a sh*t who you were. When I was doing Space Jam, we played three days. I thought it was over. I had to go out of town. I get a phone call, they’re like, ‘Why aren’t you here?’ I was like, ‘Oh, they’re still playing?’ I had no idea.
“I walk in, and it’s Reggie Miller, Charles Barkley, Alonzo Mourning, Charles Oakley. Grant Hill shows up. Jerry Stackhouse shows up. Now, all of a sudden it’s an NBA All-Star pickup game. Every night.
“Yeah, so Jordan … I had to guard Reggie Miller and Michael Jordan in back-to-back games. It was so bad. I was friends with Chris Mills and Tracy Murray — we had been to some camps together. One play, I got switched onto Jordan, because Chris was like, ‘Keith, you take him.’ Jordan hit a 35-footer on me. I mean, it was ridiculous: leg out, tongue out, all that stuff … hit a 35-footer on me and goes, ‘GET THE F**K OFF THE COURT.'”
This sounds exactly like something Michael Jordan would do, there was no off-switch for him when he was playing basketball. MJ became the GOAT for a reason, and while not the most positive experience, having Jordan himself talk trash to you would be one of the highlights of any hooper’s life.
