In September 2009, Michael Jordan was visibly moved by the heartfelt tributes from his competitors and teammates, who extolled his legacy and its significance to basketball. However, amidst the heartfelt moment, the five-time MVP found himself unable to refrain from directing veiled shots toward those he disliked, including former Chicago Bulls GM Jerry Krause. As a result, his antics were despised by a particular Hall of Famer.
Jordan's antics weren't appreciated
Mike's speech commenced with a pointed reference to his former high school teammate, LeRoy Smith. The 6'6" shooting guard emphasized how, since a young age, he had been hellbent on proving his coach wrong by choosing Smith over him on the team. Subsequently, he proceeded to sarcastically express gratitude to former coach Jeff Van Gundy for providing additional motivation by challenging him.
Later in his speech, "His Airness" went further into his rivalry books and called out Krause despite the latter not being present at the event.
"Jerry's not here. I don't know who'd invite him. I didn't. I hope he understands it goes a long way. He's a very competitive person. I was a very competitive person. He said organizations win championships," Jordan voiced . "I said, 'I didn't see organizations playing with the flu in Utah. I didn't see it playing with a bad ankle.'"
So, while some attendees perceived Mike's demeanor as jolly, one particular unnamed Hall of Famer expressed his disappointment to Adrain Wojnarowski in private. This individual felt that Mike had failed to recognize that the stage was set to honor him as the GOAT, rather than an opportunity to address personal grievances.
"MJ was introduced as the greatest player ever, and he's still standing there trying to settle scores, " the unknown HoFer said , as per Woj.
It was nothing 'out of character'
Interestingly, this event presented Jordan with an ideal opportunity to acknowledge the underappreciated individuals who contributed to his success, such as his trainer, Tim Grover. However, MJ abstained from doing so.
To make matters worse, an unnamed high-ranking team executive found Mike's antics unsurprising, noting that it was nothing 'unusual' with the Bulls icon's usual character.
"It wasn't like he was out of character," an executive said, as Woj mentioned. "There's no one else who could've gotten away with what he did tonight. But it was Michael, and everyone just goes along."
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