“Mine Cries Everyday”: When Michael Jordan’s Complaint About Bulls Coach Abruptly Ended All-Star Locker Room’s ‘Fun’

Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf fired head coach Doug Collins back in 1989. This was after the Bulls lost the Eastern Conference Final against the Detroit Pistons. By the end of his tenure, Collins had issues with almost every player on the team. Things between him and Michael Jordan were so bad that the latter decided to complain about Collins to his NBA All-Star teammates, according to Sam Smith’s The Jordan Rules.

While other players were also talking about their coach’s hilarious antics, Jordan’s example was enough to end all fun and games inside the locker room. He revealed that his Collins would cry every day, leading to a stunned reaction.

Michael Jordan once complained about Doug Collins to All-Star teammates

During the 1989 All-Star match, the players found themselves gelling over a conversation about the trouble they would have with their coaches. Dominique Wilkins found himself complaining about Atlanta Hawks’ Mike Fratello.

Fratello was the coach of the year in 1986 but was fired in 1990.  Isiah Thomas complained about Chuck Daly, who had helped the Pistons win the 1989 NBA title and was responsible for the Bulls’ ouster.

However, when Michael Jordan compared the situation to his own coach’s antics, everyone stopped having fun. MJ quickly explained to the other All-Stars why he had it the worse:

Once at a charity exhibition, Jordan sat with players from around the league, swapping stories, when the subject turned to coaches. Everyone had something to add, from Dominique Wilkins telling about Mike Fratello’s demonic rages to Isiah Thomas telling about his willful exchanges with Chuck Daly. So everyone had a good laugh, but there was silence after Jordan said, “You may think you’ve got problems with your coaches, but, well, mine cries every day.”

Of course, while the Bulls finished with their best Playoff run in years, Reinsdorf still decided to sack Doug Collins. This was because of the disarray that his presence resulted in, for players.

Doug Collins was fired despite Chicago Bulls owing him another year of salary

Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf was infamous for being thrifty. Reinsdorf was notorious for underpaying players and staff and yet decided to fire Collins one year before his contract ended.

This was because while the Bulls had finished in the Eastern Conference Finals, most of the players had grown frustrated. Collins had had run-ins with his assistant Phil Jackson, as well as Tex Winter, who had pointed out some of Collins’ mistakes, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Perhaps going against Michael Jordan turned out to be the mistake that ended up costing Collins. Regardless, the move worked out well for the Bulls, who saw Phil Jackson helping them to 6 NBA titles in the next few years.