"We were even at dinner a couple times, and he was always pleasant" - Zeke talks about the time he and MJ were on good terms

The drama between Detroit Pistons legend Isiah Thomas and Michael Jordan is well publicized, but what if I told you there was a point in time when both players seemingly only had differences on the floor and were amicable counterparts off it. That was the reality before the release of the Chicago Bulls documentary "The Last Dance."

You see, the bad blood between the pair really started when Thomas and the Pistons chose not to shake the hands of MJ and the Bulls in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals, but after Thomas later gave his explanation for not doing so, and Jordan accepted it, that was the end of their impasse.

No problems

According to Thomas, who spoke with CBS in May 2020, there was always a warm exchange between him and MJ off the court, as well as with other league legends at the time.

"I was definitely surprised. Because we've been in each other's presence before, and I've never gotten that type of reaction from him. We were even at dinner a couple times, and he was always pleasant. Always good to my kids. Always good to my son. He even gave my son a pair of gym shoes. They seem to like all the guys that they beat," he said .

"Bird, Magic, Jordan, all of them said, 'This is the guy we want to represent us.' Again, every time I've interacted with any of them, any time I've seen any of them out in public, it has been warm. That's the only thing I can go on," he added.

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Things changed quickly

Going by Thomas' comments, there seems to be a little jab in there in regards to liking the teams that Jordan and others beat, but at the time of the interview, it seemed harmlessly light-hearted.

While the world waited for the moment when Isiah eventually sat down with Jordan and cleared the air so that they could move forward, similar to how Thomas did with Magic and Kobe did with Shaq, that moment never came.

Unfortunately, it only added to their tension, and the nail was put in the coffin of any peaceful coming together following the release of the Bulls' 10-part docu-series "The Last Dance," which saw MJ mock Thomas in front of the world.

After the series aired, it would trigger a series of exchanges among many NBA legends, most notably by Isiah , who fired back at how he was portrayed.

Nevertheless, despite all the bad blood, there was a time when all personal feelings were left on the floor. But looking at the situation now, it's understandably hard to believe and is no doubt a distant memory for both superstars.