In 2002, Jalen Rose found himself face-to-face with Michael Jordan. At that time, Jordan was donning the jersey of the Washington Wizards, while Rose was a pivotal figure in the Indiana Pacers’ roster. During this exchange, his ‘rude’ and ‘disrespectful’ words led to immediate repercussions. A video explaining the incident recently resurfaced on YouTube.
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However, this wasn’t the first time Jalen Rose and Michael Jordan had crossed paths on the hardwood. During Jordan’s iconic Bulls era, Rose’s team, the Pacers, was the only formidable force capable of taking on MJ. He took Jordan’s Bulls to a grueling 7-game showdown in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Jalen Rose got ejected and Michael Jordan took advantage
Jalen Rose has acknowledged that, during Jordan’s Bulls era, trash-talking His Airness was not easy. However, everything changed when “Superman,” as Rose called him, donned the Wizards’ jersey. It was now much easier to talk trash to the legend.
The game started with Jalen Rose and Michael Jordan locking horns on the court. However, during a crucial moment, an altercation on the court changed everything. Rose shouted disrespectful words at Jordan.
The repercussions were swift and severe. Rose found himself ejected from the game. Jordan then seized the opportunity to assert his dominance, propelling the Wizards to victory.
Despite beef, Rose chose Jordan over LeBron James
Despite the intense rivalry and his public dislike of Michael Jordan, Jalen Rose claimed that in a hypothetical one-on-one matchup, Jordan would emerge victorious over LeBron James.
He said,
“So why it would never happen is because Michael Jordan was All-Defensive First team nine times… So Michael Jordan led the league in scoring 10 times, okay 10! LeBron James led the league in scoring once! So Im talking about a guy who’s been the best offensive player and the best defensive player!”
The beef between Rose and Jordan may never be resolved, however, that hasn’t changed his mind in terms of basketball ability. By choosing Jordan over LeBron, he made a conscious decision to make the right basketball choice, at least according to him.
