Imagine him trying to do that today, barely 20 years after he retired?
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Not really. It's competitive intimidation. Trash talking. I've said something similar while playing pool tournaments or gambling, even against my own teammates. As Jordan said, if you can't handle that kind of pressure in practice, you'll crumble when in the playoffs against the Knicks or whoever. He was preparing his teammates for the battles to come.

Jordan didn't make Pippen take that crappy contract. There wasn't a salary cap; Pippen could've negotiated a better deal, but he chose not to. Not Jordan's fault. That was completely on Pippen not valuing himself highly enough.


MJ's driving force was to win at any costs. Is that self-centered? Maybe. Or maybe it was just being utterly focused on a single goal.

Did he lead his team to 6 championships? Are any of those teammates complaining that they rode MJs cape to 6 rings?

Every player interviewed was grateful to Jordan for not only the opportunity, but also how he led them.
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I feel like it's been pretty fair. They've touched on his hatred of Isaiah Thomas, the gambling issues, the alleged scandal with his father's murder, the borderline bullying etc.

I can appreciate that it's not just pumping rainbows and sunshine up our asses for two hours every Sunday.
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It wasn't "trash talking", it was physical and mental intimidation.

Professionals don't need to be physically and mentally intimidated in order to perform at their highest level. That's an outdated 50's and 60's model that's been proven false time and time again.

He didn't help Pippen, either. Pippen took the contract offered because he didn't really have any alternatives. If he was injured, his playing days could and he'd have little to show from it.

If you're phsyically and mentally abusing someone in order to win a champsionship, you're an asshole, plain and simple. Bullying is no longer acceptable in today's society.

Note that you said "every player interviewed". To date, the documentary hasn't shown every second of every interview with his former teammates, so you have no idea how each of them feel.

Documentaries are made in the Edit Bay. They're not historical documents.
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I don't know how anybody can watch this and not come to the conclusion that MJ was a massive asshole (which I don't think is surprising new information). He had the final cut on this and he still comes off as someone just awful to be around (and other than Isaiah, they've really only included interviews with his friends).

And that isn't even getting into the central narrative of the entire thing which doesn't hold up to much scrutiny (the vilifying of Krause, a guy who helped build the greatest roster in history around MJ). Was Krause really supposed to rework Pippen's contract just to be nice or not scout guys like Toni Kukoc in Europe just so it wouldn't upset Jordan/Pippen? And yeah, you can say that Krause had some responsibility for the dissolution of the Bulls at the end, but Reinsdorf could have stepped in at any time and stopped it if that's what he/MJ/Phil wanted to do. The lack of any voice being there to defend the guy's actions throughout is a failing of the documentary.
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Agreed.

The way he constantly insulted and belittled Krause was difficult for me to watch, so I can only imagine what it felt like to actually be in his shoes.
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Maybe. We'll never know if those Bulls teams would've won 6 rings without MJ crafting those teams as he did. What we do know is that it worked. And just how do you know what works and doesn't with pro athletes? Some players need to be reined in, while others need to be turned loose. And so forth. The list of players that could've used a swift kick in the pants on a weekly basis in every sport is a very long and inglorious one . . .

Pippen has admitted several times in previous interviews years before this docu-series saw the light, that he took the contract he was offered because he came from poor beginnings and he was afraid that he might somehow get hurt and not be able to provide for his family, which was his ultimate concern. That's not on Jordan. And where is it written that it was Jordan's job to help Pippen with his contract negotiations?

Oh for Pete's sake. Cry me a river. We're not talking about today. This was over 20 years ago. It wasn't called "bullying" back then. It was called "toughening up your teammates".


I don't recall saying that this was a historical document. I don't recall using the word "historical" at all. Not in a single post to this thread, anyway. I don't recall saying every second was aired. I don't even recall saying every player that played on those teams. I pretty much said that every player we saw interviewed in the series . . . which is a subset of the total. I didn't even say that I knew how all of those players feel. I said that of the players we saw interviewed, they all seemed appreciative and grateful. Which are only a couple feelings, not every done they might've felt.

But they were significant enough feelings of gratitude for them to all express during their interviews which says something.
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Pippen was one of my favorite players as a kid (I still have his jersey in my closet), but when the reason for taking a contract is "I needed the (long-term) security for my family", then that's what you give up in exchange. He chose not to gamble, and he got what he wanted. Ownership literally told him not to take the deal.
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Exactly. I forgot about that part. They told him not to take that deal.

Good catch.
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You're the worst kind of fan because you don't care if a superstar treats those around him like complete and utter shit. He cheated on his wife and treated everyone around him as if they were beneath him.

His post Bulls career has been a joke, which isn't surprising given how he treated people in the past. Who would want to play for that guy?
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Then why offer it? The answer is clear: To take advantage of him, plain and simple.

I hope that franchise never wins anything, for 100 years or more.
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You're right. I don't care if other fans think a player treats his teammates however they think he/she treats them. In general, I don't care about a player's private life, or how they get along with the teammates.

Do I care that Van Gogh cut off his ear and gave it to a prostitute? Do I care that Elvis began dating Priscilla when she was only 14? No, not a bit.

If that makes me somehow a bad person, well, so be it.
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How in your convoluted mind is that Jordan's fault?
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Convoluted? What the fuck?

This forum has been bitching for decades about Tom Brady taking less money each year so that the Patriots can put a team around him. People have been hoping that Mahomes will take a "Hometown Discount" so the Chiefs can continue contending for Super Bowls in the next 10 years.

But you have no issues with Jordan taking $36 million while Pippen receives $2 million per year?

Yeah, Jordan's a real team player and couldn't have done a thing for his teammate(s).

Good fucking grief.
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Wha?

He wanted a long term deal. They offered one, because he asked, but advised against it. He signed it. 5 years later he got pissed at management for holding him to a contract that he requested.

Should they have renegotiated because he was one of the best players in the NBA? Probably. But to say they "took advantage" of him for giving him exactly what he requested - long-term security - is completely backwards.
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