“He Doesn’t Deserve to Eat”: Why Michael Jordan Wouldn’t Allow Horace Grant to Have Food at Times

Earlier this year, Horace Grant went on a ‘No Bull’ tour with Scottie Pippen and Luc Longley to chide Michael Jordan. History suggests that his gripe may have been justified as yet another story proves the ruthless and over-the-top ways of the 6x Finals MVP. In Sam Smith’s controversial 1991 book “The Jordan Rules”, the author narrated how MJ used to deny Grant access to food if he didn’t play well. The author also revealed how Bulls athletes used to visit and tell him about the harrowing tales related to Jordan. One such story involved the 4x MVP not allowing Horace Grant his share of food mid-flight, 

“Players would come to me over the years and said, ‘You know what he did? He took Horace [Grant’s] food away on the plane because Horace had a bad game. [Michael] told the stewardesses ‘Don’t feed him, he doesn’t deserve to eat.’

This example proves Grant hasn’t looked kindly at his former teammate’s ways, decades after parting ways with him. In fact, in his ‘The Last Dance’ series, MJ alleged that Horace Grant was the one who leaked Bulls’ inside info to the controversial author. In an interview with ESPN, Grant denied the allegations,

“Lie, lie, lie. … If MJ had a grudge with me, let’s settle this like men”.

While admitting he has been friends with Smith, Grant declared that he would never compromise the “sanctity of the locker room”. He is not the only one who faced the ire of his highly driven teammate. There are numerous tales about his teammates facing mistreatment.

Michael Jordan’s daunting ways to win

For the former Bulls Ace, winning a title was everything. Hence, he wanted his troops to be ready to handle the playoff pressure. His methodology involved calling them names during practice and challenging their very being. In a CNBC article, Kathleen Elkins registered Steve Kerr, Will Perdue, and Bill Wennington’s statements about the experience of playing with Jordan. While crediting MJ for his winning mentality, Perdue didn’t hold back in describing his treatment, 

“He was an a**hole. He was a je**. He crossed the line numerous times. But as time goes on, and you think back about what he was actually trying to accomplish, you were like, Yeah, he was a hell of a teammate,” Will Perdue stated.

During the end of one of the episodes of the docuseries, the 6x Finals MVP acknowledged his brutal methods of winning. However, he didn’t show any regret as his approach wasn’t for everyone and they could have refused to adhere to it.

“Like I don’t have to do this. I’m only doing it because it is who I am. That’s how I played the game, that was my mentality. If you don’t wanna play that way, don’t play that way,” Jordan stated.

Thus, winning with one of the greatest ever came at a high price. In terms of attitude, Kobe Bryant also adopted MJ’s mentality. While they turned their teammates away from them, they also taught them how to rise to the occasion during playoffs.