Not going out there looking to improve: Despite being accused of being selfish, Michael Jordan once blamed his own teammates

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Michael Jordan and his NBA legacy are unmatched, and there are many reasons for that. The six-time NBA champion was a fierce competitor and demanded more from everyone around him. A huge reason for the success of the Chicago Bulls team throughout the 90s. Although some players understood MJ’s demands early on, other players were a bit slow to catch up. Naturally, when His Airness saw a lack of effort from his teammates, he was no duck sitting around doing nothing about it.

In the book The Jordan Rules, it was revealed how the Bulls no. 23 gave it his all when he couldn’t see the effort from his teammates. His Airness publicly denounced his teammates because he was tired of their selfish performances.

Michael Jordan wasn’t the only one to put up with his teammates’ lackluster performances

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In Sam Smith’s book The Jordan Rules, a lot was revealed about Jordan’s days as Chicago’s best. Among all the stories, one story told of a particular game between the Chicago Bulls and the Brooklyn Nets.

When the Bulls were leading by 24 points, Jordan was taken out of the game because the Bulls had a comfortable cushion. But the teams’ reserves couldn’t fulfill their role properly as the 24-point lead was turned into a 10-point lead. Therefore, Jordan had to be reinstated, which he didn’t like at all since he made it known after the game.

Our guys on the bench aren’t looking to improve the game, Jordan complained. He further added that they were mostly looking to improve their stats instead of learning how to play with each other and achieve some sort of continuity. They play as individuals and that’s something they need to change.

Although his teammates weren’t happy with MJ’s comments, their poor performance coming off the bench was a fact. Players like BJ Armstrong, Stacey King, Dennis Hopson, Cliff Levingston and Craig Hodges were all under fire.

Coach Phil Jackson also asked more of them as he mentioned that their roles were different from MJ and Scottie Pippen, and that life wasn’t meant to be fair.

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MJ and Pippen were indeed different from the rest as they were integral to the Bulls’ dominance throughout the 90s.

The Pippen-MJ partnership that tore down the sides for an entire decade

The pair didn’t initially click, but as they defeated the Detroit Pistons in the 1990-91 season, there was no stopping them. They quickly cut teams like hot knives through butter.

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Watch this story: What 3 numbers did Michael Jordan wear during his career?

While they won a total of six championship rings together, their stats while playing together were even more incredible. The duo have played a total of 691 games over 11 years and have won 514 together.

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