Last night I watched a preview copy of the NBA Dream Team documentary that airs on NBA TV Wednesday, highlighting the 20th anniversary of the original (and greatest) Dream Team and their run up to and through the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
Watch it. It is fantastic stuff. Great stories, a reminder of how huge this was and how it changed international basketball, and just a fun trip down memory lane.
But one thing that stuck out — everyone confirmed the long-time rumor that Pistons guard Isiah Thomas was blackballed from the team. It started with the Bulls Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, although Jordan hints there were people up the USA Basketball ladder that were more than happy to do that, and NBA exec Russ Granik basically confirmed that.
Jordan and Pippen pulled no punches.
“That was one of the stipulations put to me (on the team) that Isiah wasn’t part of the team,’’ Jordan said.
“Isiah was the general (of the Bad Boy Pistons),’’ Pippen said. “He was the guy who would yap at his teammates and say ‘Kick them on their ass. Do whatever you have to do.’ No, I didn’t want him on the Dream Team.’’
Granik pointed to an incident at the end of the Bulls/Pistons playoff series that year where Thomas led his teammates off the court before the final buzzer even sounded. That kind of sportsmanship and image was not what the NBA wanted to project to the world.
So Thomas was out in 1992. He would not be part of this documentary, either.
Seriously, watch the entire documentary. You’ll learn a lot more than this. But this part may be one of the most gripping.
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- blarry21 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:02 PM
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To me, the underlying stories in sports are the most interesting. I think Isaiah got what he deserved. That wouldn’t happen nowadays though. Not with our “participation award” society the way that it is.
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- eddit13 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:15 PM
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No? Lebron didn’t just walk off the court when Dwight and the Magic whupped his Cavs in the ECF in 2009? MJ & Scottie were his enemies so it’s no surprise they picked yes-man John Stockton over a two-time NBA champion. It’s all good though.
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- bils293 - Jun 12, 2012 at 7:10 PM
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really?? another article that has absolutely nothing to do with lebron, or even players of his generation for that matter, and someone finds a way to throw him under the bus. this just proves people hate on lebron just to hate, considering kg and rondo just did that exact same thing about 3 days ago and yet this tool uses an incident that occurred over 3 years ago just because it involves lebron
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- brutl - Jun 12, 2012 at 8:05 PM
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Lebron was on the court at the end of the game and didn’t walk off until the buzzer sounded.
These other guys walked out of the court area before the game ended. The article doesn’t say anything about not shaking hands.
You people must think of Lebron all day long it’s a little weird.
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- cantonbound13 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:24 PM
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Love that dream team. That was the last time NBA players actually had skills.
Isiah was and still is a classless jerk. If only the Raptors, Pacers, CBA, and Knicks blackballed Isiah, they all would have been much better off.
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- broadstbully - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:24 PM
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I personally think Stockton was better than Thomas, both on the court and off.
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- knightrider1755 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:36 PM
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Stockton over Isiah hands down.!
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- cantonbound13 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:39 PM
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Plus he rocked the short shorts even when the players went to the longer ones.
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- Filipe Furtado - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:49 PM
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Stockton was not as good as Thomas, but he was probably way better than him in 92. Isiah had one of the weirdest falls from a guard I can think of, 92 was probably his last good season and he already looked more like a solid starter guard than a superstar, by his next season he was actually mediocre to worse. So I think Isiah on 92 team would be very much like Bird’s presence more a way from the league to recognize one of its better known stars than about basketball.
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- jimbo75025 - Jun 12, 2012 at 10:25 PM
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Big difference between Bird and Isiah. Both were cocky a**holes at times, but Bird was generally respected (although maybe not liked at the time) by his peers and his trash talking was more him telling you exactly what he was going to do and then doing exactly what he said.
As someone else noted, the international game was/is more of a drive and kick kind of game and God knows Larry Bird bad back and all could drain threes with the best of them. Factor in the whole Larry/Magic resurrecting the league and setting the stage for MJ and he certainly belonged on the team. Basketball was certainly more fun to watch back then
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- iamhoraceknight - Jun 13, 2012 at 12:28 AM
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Stockton was NOT better than Zeke … and the next season he blew out his Achilles and retired .. 12 All Star games in 13 Years … Zeke was Done wrong by Jordan
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- sasquash20 - Jun 13, 2012 at 3:32 AM
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In the prime of each guys career it is pretty close. But Stockton to me was the better PG. He averaged less points scored, but had more assist, less TO, shot way better from the FT, shot better from 3PT, and better overall FG percentage, and had more steals. Both are all time greats but Stockton was better.
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- savvybynature - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:28 PM
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“Last night I got to watched an preview copy”
Seriously dude? Please tell me you have some kind of severe learning disorder or had to battle some kind of extreme adversity to become a professional writer. Otherwise, the only explanation is the old adage that it’s not what you know but who you know.
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- andrewproughcfe - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:58 PM
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Did you hear the one about the guy who freaked out over spelling errors on a basketball blog?
I can’t remember the punchline. Something about priorities in life…
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- savvybynature - Jun 12, 2012 at 9:54 PM
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I don’t care what you are blogging about, a decent grasp of the language is a necessary skill for a writer.
Btw, you hear the one about the guy who “freaked out” on someone else for “freaking out” over something trivial?
Turns out he was a hypocrite.
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- leehwgoc - Jun 12, 2012 at 10:27 PM
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You are SUCH a cliche internet look-for-any-excuse-you-can-to-act-superior asshat.
There are these things called typos. They happen. To EVERYONE. Blame the website editor, he or she is supposed to catch such things.
If there’s someone here who struggles with intelligent thinking, it’s obviously you. A simple word/thought-order typo cannot possibly be any more obvious than the one you pointed out, and yet leapt to assume must prove severe illiteracy or learning disability (conveniently ignoring that the rest of the article is just fine).
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- leehwgoc - Jun 12, 2012 at 10:33 PM
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Obviously, ‘savvybynature’ (your nick is comically ironic, btw, and really helps underscore the pathetic character-profile you’re building for yourself here), you’re just one of the many people on the internet whom try to compensate for their inferiority complex by taking shots at people whenever you can, with the tiniest sliver of opportunity.
You have fun with that, chief.
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- raysfan1 - Jun 13, 2012 at 12:08 AM
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It’s called a typo. Big deal.
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- takingbovadasmoney - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:29 PM
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Stay classy Mike! Prolly won a bunch betting in Vegas on who would be on the team.
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- mrlitl - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:37 PM
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I love Thomas but with Stockon you had no loss in skill or production but less friction. Good move by Team USA.
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- cantonbound13 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:38 PM
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Isiah’s Resume:
1. Took a Pacers team that went to the Finals and made them a lottery team.
2. Destroyed the Toronto Raptors.
3. Single handedly caused the CBA to collapse.
4. Humiliated and set the Knicks franchise back 10 years.
5. Sexually harassed a woman that cost his employer millions of dollars.
6. Tried to commit suicide & failed. Then decided to throw his daughter under the bus by lying and saying she tried to commit suicide.
7. Failed miserably at Florida International University.I wonder why people won’t hire him?
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- hojo20 - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:59 PM
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I don’t have NBA TV, so I can’t follow your orders to watch it.
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- playin2x - Jun 12, 2012 at 6:59 PM
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@eddit
What’s ur point ?? Rondo and kg did it vs the heat ?? In 2012 ecf ..
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- drunkenjunk - Jun 12, 2012 at 7:22 PM
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so whats your point? A lot of people do it. Who cares? I like it, the nba needs more of it. I like it when players are pissed that they lose.
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- rocketsredbear - Jun 12, 2012 at 7:05 PM
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I’d say that Isiah was the better athlete, scorer, defender and clutch player. Stockton was the better point guard in terms of basketball IQ and not rocking the boat. And on the Dream Team, you didn’t need all the things that Isiah did when you had Mullins, Drexler, Magic, and Michael Jordan at the guard positions. What you needed was a guy who would take a backseat, distribute the ball and hit the occasional wide open 3 in the international slash-and-kick game. Which……was what John Stockton was!
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- jckid21 - Jun 12, 2012 at 8:49 PM
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All those things about Thomas are correct except a better defender. Stockon does hold the record for career steals.
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- iamhoraceknight - Jun 13, 2012 at 12:31 AM
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Stockton didn’t play defense at ALL ..
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- sasquash20 - Jun 13, 2012 at 3:35 AM
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Stockton was a solid defender. More steals then Thomas and held opposing PG to a lower FG percentage.
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- numba1recx19 - Jun 12, 2012 at 8:09 PM
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Who even cares, he was a monster on court
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- kspl1 - Jun 12, 2012 at 8:28 PM
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Not good if he doesn’t get to tell his side.
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- philtration - Jun 12, 2012 at 8:32 PM
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What about Isiah’s racist comments about Larry Bird after the Pistons lost to the Celtics in the 1987 Eastern Conference finals?
I am sure that Larry was not thrilled with the thought of playing with Isiah either even though he said all the right things about not being mad.Thomas was a jag off then and it sounds like he still is.
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- labratre - Jun 12, 2012 at 9:39 PM
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We are talking about the Dream Team, and how does Lebron name come up in the discussion at all. U people are sick, Zeek was a lot worse of a person than Lebron is. Come on, get off his sack, people! It’s funny though, you would mention Lebron while we are talking about a group of great players, hmmmmmmmmm………
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- cantonbound13 - Jun 13, 2012 at 11:46 AM
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LeBron would be lucky to be the 12th man on that team.
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- j0esixpack - Jun 12, 2012 at 9:41 PM
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None of this is a secret is it? I’m not sure if Thomas was even well liked on the Pistons let alone by other teams.
Thomas was one of the most disliked players out there at the time – and it wasn’t because he hurt fragile players feelings by walking off the court in an already decided game before the clock expired
(Seriously Kurt – do you really think NBA players suffer from that type of PMS that they’d have a “he’s a poor sport” hissy fit after winning a playoff series??)
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- mogogo1 - Jun 12, 2012 at 9:56 PM
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Hard to feel any sympathy for Isiah. I did see him do an interview not long back and I felt a little bad for him when he talked about how his friendship with Magic had fallen apart. At least listening to his side of things–a dangerous thing to do–it sounded like maybe he hadn’t been at fault in that one. But we’re still talking about the guy who tried to hang his overdose on his daughter and called the paramedics who responded to help him liars. All because he was trying to hang onto his job wrecking the Knicks. He’s not a nice guy.
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- jucam1 - Jun 12, 2012 at 10:26 PM
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Amazing player but gigantic D-bag….. I am sure the people of Detroit don’t care…. But Zeke will forever remember the fact that he was such a massive tool bag, that the players of his generation left him off the greatest team ever assembled…. Also, he was the worst GM in history…. And that says a lot!
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- lakerluver - Jun 12, 2012 at 10:31 PM
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Isiah got screwed. Pippen was a really good player but he was not on Isiah’s level. They played different positions but Isiah should’ve been on that team before Pippen. And Stockton was NOT as good as Isiah. I don’t care what anyone says!!
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- 1historian - Jun 12, 2012 at 11:14 PM
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For a moment there all I could think of was the image of Magic and Isaiah kissing before each game in the 1988 (or 1989) finals.
Then I got all choked up
Tempus fugits and feces occur
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- mnsadsportsfan - Jun 12, 2012 at 11:38 PM
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kurt your an idiot
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- iamhoraceknight - Jun 13, 2012 at 12:36 AM
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Zeke should have been on the Team, Hands Down …. He was a better player than Stockton and would had been on the team had Jordan not had him Banned From The Team …
Sucker Move by MJ
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- musicman495 - Jun 13, 2012 at 12:39 AM
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If being a jerk disqualified someone from being on that team, half of them should have been passed over. The fact that Thomas was not on that team was a travesty, and rooted in the fact that people like Jordan and Pippen are happy to dish it out but can’t take it.
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- badintent - Jun 13, 2012 at 1:39 AM
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MJ would never back stab a team mate ( oh hell, what a dozen team mates in the big picture , right ?). Karma is a bitch , Zeke, but the kissing was nice. Your mom Mary was the real man of the family, standing up to drug dealers in the hood. Now we got stuck with Cris Paul doing his best short man , short man complex impression of Zeke. I like a MMA fight with Nate Robinson in the cage with Zeke for bragging rights. Stockton ws class, first class, ask Karl Malone. He made Karl the #2 scorer in NBA history with great passes and steals leading to fast breaks assists to the Mailman. Who put 51 stiches in Zeke’s head !! just saying.
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- asublimeday - Jun 13, 2012 at 2:55 AM
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That bad girls team was a bunch of pu**ies. Poor sportsmanship, poor ethics, and low quality people.
Man, I enjoyed watching my bulls whip their soft asses.
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- southpaw77 - Jun 13, 2012 at 2:58 AM
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Stockton to Malone, so a passing point guard with all those weapons was needed. The dream team had scorers with MJ, Drexler, Mullin, Malone, etc. Needed a few guys to create like Stockton and Magic, not gun like Isiah.
Now putting Christian Leatnner (sp?) In there over Isiah would be the better argument and travesty but when Isiah basicly puts orders out to lay Jordan and Pippen out bounty style and said Magic was possibly bisexual and that’s why he got HIV then Isiah sealed his own fate.
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