Michael Jordan was ultra-competitive – He was also supremely confident in his abilities.
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In the 1995-1996 season, Chicago Bulls attained god-tier status being almost unbeatable, never losing 3 games in a row. They only lost 10 games in an 82 game season, winning a championship in the process. The main reason was Michael Jordan, who literally played like Black Jesus that season.
Chris Webber recalls a time when he was a young recruit in the league, only playing his third season in the league. While he was on the way to the stadium in the team bus, and Jordan’s Ferrari rolled past them. While some players have a cigar post-victory, rolling up to the stadium smoking one is a supreme level of confidence.
It may have only been the Washington Bullets (later renamed the Wizards), but the message was loud and clear. It was not just to the Bullets, but to the entire league. Whoever it may be, there would be only one winner in the end, and it’d definitely be the team from Illinois.
Michael Jordan is a legend of the game – but his competitiveness can be demoralizing for others
Jordan’s trash talk stories and excerpts like these are something of a legend – Fans and players love them. The players not so much when they are on the receiving end of it, but they do respect that effort. Even trash talk felt like some sort of recognition from the Black Cat, and people took it anyway it came from him.
Some may say that Michael Jordan is the definition of a sore loser, and to an extent he is. But that also makes him the most successful basketball player in the modern era too. 6-0 in the Finals is a record that speaks for itself.
2 three peats, 6 championship titles and 0 answers to the one man that made Chicago the team that it is. The only championships the Bulls ever won came under Michael. None before him, and none after.
There may come a day when they do win another one, but that doesn’t look like it any time soon. Not because the Bulls are bad, it just feels like the competition right now is between the Brooklyn Nets and the Golden State Warriors.
The Bulls did have an amazing start to the league season, but slowed down slightly. They had an exemplary offseason, stealing DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso right from under the Lakers’ noses.
