There are many former athletes who want to see the best for the next generation that takes on their sport. NFL and MLB Hall of Famers are incredibly supportive of the rising stars in their respective games today, something that can’t be said for the NBA. While there are a handful of legends willing to give props to the league’s current crop of stars, many detract from their accomplishments simply because the game looks different.
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Nowadays, the NBA’s current stars and icons of the past don’t typically gel well together. But that wasn’t always the case. Back when Michael Jordan was playing, there was a mutual respect between past and present, as demonstrated by his meeting with Wilt Chamberlain during the festivities for the NBA 50th Anniversary Team, officially called the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.
It’s almost a given to see retired players working out or somehow being involved with the league today, but that, too, wasn’t always the case. Before the times of social media, players couldn’t constantly communicate with each other and likely only spoke over the phone or in person. So for MJ, this was a monumental moment in his life.
“I got the chance to meet Wilt Chamberlain for the first time, which I thought was a privilege for me,” Jordan said back in 1997. “Being that I finished second to him in a lot of individual stats and career stats and scoring stats. He was a very nice individual, came up to me, and congratulated me on my basketball career.
“I’m a basketball enthusiast, you know. I honor and respect the people that gave me the opportunity to excel at this game and make a living of this game,” the Bulls legend continued. “To see a lot of those guys was a privilege for me.”
It is interesting that Jordan had those words to say about the late Chamberlain. In 1998, the latter gave an interview, responding to Jordan’s claims about being the GOAT of the sport.
“Michael, until you are so great that they are changing the game to stop your greatness, I don’t think you have the right to make that accolade in that particular way.
“I have a friend of mine who I talk to about once a week. You know what he says about Michael’s [then] 4 championships? He doesn’t say anything about it because he has 11! I don’t think you can predicate how great a guy really is because he has championships,” Chamberlain said.
In 2021, the NBA expanded the list for the 75th Anniversary Team, but it’s hard to say their reverence for past legends matched the level of Jordan’s, and understandably so.
Jordan even talked about the younger generation during his prime, stating that they don’t have the amount of respect that they should for those who paved the way for them to play professionally. “I think it’s a whole. I think when you want to say something specific about an attitude about something the game, I think you should generalize it.”
“I think everybody is guilty of it to a certain extent. But we’re trying to get that passed on to the Grant Hills, the Anfernee Hardaways, you know, the new players that are coming in,” Jordan continued. “So the awareness, I think, is a little bit overblown, but it has to be so that the kids understand.”
For basketball icons from all eras to find mutual respect, the two sides must find a way to mend their differences.
