Jordan Rules author says Michael Jordan lied about many things in The Last Dance: "The thing at the end was a complete, blatant lie"

The 2020 ESPN documentary ' The Last Dance ' captured the imagination of basketball fans worldwide. Shown during a period when sports were shut down, it made every NBA fan recall the glory years of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls during the 1990s. But while it entertained viewers, the docu-series was also full of lies - or so its critics say.

One of those who accused MJ of lying was Jordan Rules author Sam Smith , who followed Jordan's NBA career from start to finish. According to Smith, His Airness lied not once, twice, and thrice but many times during the entire 10-part series.

" There were several things in the documentary that I saw, I would know that he made up or he lied about. They weren't major things but it was like when a T.V. movie comes on and they say this is based on a true story. That's what that was. It was based on a true story." accused Smith.

It wasn't really about the team, it was about MJ

The Last Dance was supposed to document the events surrounding the Bulls' final championship run during the 1997-98 NBA season. It was supposed to be a story of how the team kept themselves together that final year for one more shot at glory.

Instead, what was delivered was a version that glorified Jordan and put his key teammates like Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant in a bad light. Both Pippen and Grant protested the way they were depicted in the documentary. Meanwhile, Smith says MJ edited some events to sensationalize them.

"There were all the outlines of what happened," added Smith. "But a lot of the detail like the pizza thing, the poison, that was complete nonsense. There were a couple of other things like that that I won't go into. They weren't major but the thing at the end was a complete blatant lie."

Smith says Jordan was never coming back in 1999

Towards the end of the final episode of the Documentary, Jordan claims that he wanted to return for the 1998-99 campaign to chase a 7th title. MJ said that he, Pippen, Rodman, and head coach Phil Jackson were willing to return on one-year deals if management offered them such deals. Smith also claimed that in July 1998, or before the lockout, Jordan told GM Jerry Krause that he was ' done ' and he didn't want to be around his teammates anymore.

"To come back in '98 and do what he did and basically walk away when he didn't have to, and then to pretend that he was the one that wanted to play and they forced him out? Whoever forces Michael Jordan out to do anything? Anyway, such a blatant lie, but hey, that's part of the mystique of Michael Jordan." continued Smith.

Michael Jordan is considered by many as the greatest of all time in basketball. However, he is far from the mythical figure that he was portrayed in the series. And 'The Last Dance'? It was more of a Jordan propaganda than a documentary, one that Pippen claims MJ used to fend off LeBron James' emerging GOAT challenge .

Related: "Besides, he wasn't on the team" - Scottie Pippen was upset with Michael Jordan for including his infamous playoff drama in 'The Last Dance'