As he tends to do with basketball-related queries, MJ answered them with candor. Here’s a selection of the questions and answers, as seen in the video above from Bay Area HQ:
(Questions as said by Jordan himself.)
If I had to play one game, who would I want to coach: Phil Jackson or Dean Smith?
“Dean Smith. [Some audible gasps/murmurs.] Fortunately Dean Smith helped me become the basketball player I am today. Phil was lucky because I was taught the game by Dean Smith.”
How did I feel when the Detroit Pistons walked off after we beat them in 1991 [in a 4-0 sweep in the Eastern Conference finals]?
“I felt fine. I felt accomplished. We beat them and they felt ashamed about us beating them. I felt like it was bad sportsmanship. I would not advise you guys to do that. You’ve got to be able to lose in grace and win in grace — so don’t walk off the court. Even though you hate losing, that’s just bad sportsmanship if you do that.”
Biggest trash-talker I ever played against?
“Probably Larry Bird. He talks a lot of trash. Good trash, though, not dirty trash. Good trash
What did I think about when Shaq said that the all-time five of the greatest Lakers could beat the Bulls’ five greatest players?
“I just felt like he was just talking. It’s a debate. The thing is that we would never know. I think we would have killed them. He thinks they would have killed us. You guys decide. It’s just a debate.”
“Favorite player to play pick-up games with?”
“My best pick-up game I’ve ever played was the games and the practices with the [1992] Dream Team. … My team was myself, Scottie Pippen, Patrick Ewing, Larry Bird and Chris Mullin. We played against Magic Johnson, Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley, David Robinson — that’s five, right? — and we killed ’em.
Note: That’s not five; the other player team’s fifth had to be either Karl Malone, John Stockton or Christian Laettner. There’s also a chance Jordan is misremembering a bit, and he’s talking about this scrimmage covered in-depth by Sports Illustrated, which featured a Jordan-Malone-Ewing-Pippen-Bird five against Magic, Barkley, Robinson, Mullin and Laettner (although a 40-36 final score in favor of Jordan’s team hardly constitutes a “killing.”)