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“Michael Jordan lit Will Perdue up for setting an illegal screen on him”: Horace Grant reveals the Bulls legend punched his own teammate during practice

Samir Mehdi
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“Michael Jordan lit Will Perdue up for setting an illegal screen on him”: Horace Grant reveals the Bulls legend punched his own teammate during practice

Michael Jordan threw a punch at Will Perdue during Chicago Bulls practice after the latter had set an illegal pick on him. 

Michael Jordan wasn’t afraid to call anybody out, especially if you were his teammate. ‘The Last Dance’ docuseries revealed several instances where the 6x champ berated his own squad members on the Chicago Bulls for not pulling their weight and dragging the team down. 

One thing that wasn’t talked about during the docuseries was Michael and the crew calling Stacey King ‘Doughboy’ due to him being a heavy-set man. This is just a glimpse into what Jordan was like with his teammates and back in the 90s, this was looked at as banter between friends.

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Michael Jordan also seems to be completely fine with socking his Bulls teammates in the face as he once punched sharpshooter, Steve Kerr, during practice. While tensions rose between the two, they subsequently died down and continued to be on good terms with one another. 

Michael Jordan punched Will Perdue during Bulls practice. 

Prior to Michael Jordan punching Steve Kerr in the face in 1995, he had a similar situation with big man, Will Perdue. Horace Grant, who was with the Chicago Bulls for their first 3-peat before joining forces with Shaq and Penny in Orlando, details an incident where Perdue and Jordan got into it during practice.

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“I hate to tell this story but Will and I are still good friends. Typical Phil Jackson; we run this play and Will set and illegal pick on MJ and MJ said, ‘Will, don’t do that again.’ ‘Whatchya talking about?’ asked Will. MJ says ‘alright’.” 

“Phil says run it again. So, we naturally run it two more times; illegal pick. MJ walks up to Will: boom. Lit him up. It was over. We grabbed Will, told him you’re not going to hurt MJ, he can take care of himself. Next day on the plane, Will gets on with this huge shiner.” 

According to Will Perdue himself on the Rich Eisen Show, this was normal and that him and Michael Jordan went about the rest of their practices as if nothing happened. 

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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