Michael Jordan quickly grew to become the most dominant player in the NBA during the 1990s, but there were many people who didn’t think he could do it.
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One of those people was New York Knicks legend Walt Frazier. Frazier was a seven time NBA All Star and two-time NBA champion with New York, and he wrapped up his amazing career with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1980.
Jordan had caught the attention of Frazier during the time he was drafted in 1984 as Frazier was always keeping up with what was going on in the league.
Regarding Jordan’s pick, Frazier had some interesting thoughts, thoughts that the Bulls legend would make him definitely regret over his time in the NBA.
Walt Frazier Thought That Michael Jordan Couldn’t Lead The Chicago Bulls To A Title
In a historic 1984 draft class, Jordan would be selected third after the Houston Rockets took Hakeem Olajuwon first, and the Portland Trailblazers took Sam Bowie second overall.
Frazier wasn’t a fan of the Bulls pick at all. During his time in the NBA, he had seen the way centers had been dominant. Playing against Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul Jabbar and seeing the success Bill Russell had before him, Frazier felt like being tall and good as a post-up player was the key to winning.
Frazier would say, “Michael gotta realize he’s not seven-foot, so he’s not gonna carry a team.” Well, Jordan proved Frazier wrong basically immediately.
From 1978-1984, the Bulls made the playoffs once out of seven seasons. As soon as Jordan arrived, he took the Bulls back to the playoffs, and they never missed it again during his time with Chicago.
Of course, Jordan’s biggest achievements could come in the 1990s, when he won six NBA championships and five MVP awards. Those six titles also came from from the work of two three-peats. Simply put, he couldn’t be stopped at all during that decade making Frazier’s comments completely moot.
