“Don’t Wake the Bear”: Noting Paul George’s Beef With Devin Booker, Former Charlotte Hornets Guard Reflected on Talking Trash with Michael Jordan

Former Charlotte Hornets shooting guard Rex Chapman recently made an appearance on the True Livin’ podcast. The interview was part of episode 71 of the podcast, posted on August 24^th. Asked about Paul George and Devin Booker’s long-term feud that recently spilled on Instagram, according to Sports Illustrated Chapman talked about how players during his day did not have podcasts. While this made it difficult to take up beef before games, they also had the presence of mind to choose their fights.

Playing against Michael Jordan in the late 80s and the early 90s, Chapman witnessed the majority’s GOAT during his prime. He claimed that, unlike today, players of that era were careful enough to not get into beef before games. This was especially true for Michael Jordan, with Chapman noting that nobody wanted to “wake the bear.”

Rex Chapman confirms Michael Jordan respect from his peers

Chapman claimed that while getting into a beef is much easier today, most people wouldn’t think of it during Michael Jordan’s time. This was because Jordan in particular used to revel in such situations.

Always notorious for his trash-talking, it didn’t take a lot to get MJ going. Chapman claimed that players knew better than to engage in beef during his era.

“If I got a podcast back in the day, and I got around talking shit about Michael Jordan. Yes, don’t wake the bear. I looked at everybody that way. You did know, if you get Michael get going, You knew if you let him dunk one in Chicago, the crowd would go crazy. He was the best. I enjoyed playing against him because he hated the screen. I knew that I was going to get like 15 good looks. On the ball, he was tough.”

Chapman talked about how unlike today, players in his time did not “talk trash about each other” on microphones. Instead, there was a threshold of respect that they had for each other. Chapman talked about how he was that respectful to each and every team that he played against, and hoped that MJ had the same kind of outlook towards him.

Jordan once promised 50 points to Byron Scott before the game

Michael Jordan’s lore and legend mean that a range of almost unbelievable stories have surfaced, about him. The player was once told by the likes of Reggie Miller and Magic Johnson that there was a “new sheriff in town.”

This was in relation to Byron Scott, who had won 3 championships along with the Lakers in the late 1980s. The next time, when MJ played against the Lakers, he found that Scott was actually missing the game.

He said before the game that he would score 50 points. MJ proceeded to score a whopping 54, and more than stood up to his claim.