“Wow, That’s Going to Be Scary”: Michael Jordan Had 2x DPOY Sidney Moncrief Shook in His Rookie Season

Sidney Moncrief is a Milwaukee Bucks legend and a 2x Defensive Player of the Year in his 11-season NBA career. The 5x All-Star has faced some of the game’s greatest legends, such as Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, during the peak of his career. Hence, facing a highly touted rookie like Michael Jordan did not seem like a tough idea for Moncrief. However, watching His Airness’ moves and skills on the court, the Bucks star was surprised and shaken.

Michael Jordan was drafted into the league just a year after Moncrief won his first DOPY award. However, Jordan’s potential was something that the Bucks star had hardly seen among any other legends he had played against in the league. As described by the X account, The Jordan Rules, Moncrief described facing Jordan as follows,

“I kind of thought I knew his potential, because I had played against the best players in the NBA so far: the Magics and the Birds and the Dr. Js and Kareems. Some great players. Then all of a sudden, this rookie comes into the NBA and I watched the way he moved on the court and his instincts, and I’m like, ‘Wow, that’s going to be scary.” 

As a rookie, Jordan had already started leaving a mark for himself on the NBA hardwood. Jordan’s rookie stats amounted to him averaging 28.2 points on 51.5% shooting, helping to make a team that had won 35% of games in the previous three seasons playoff contenders. Speaking of Jordan’s game, Moncrief added, “Every time we’d try to trap him, he would split, go down the lane, make a really difficult shot. He was so explosive. I don’t think there’s anybody that could defend Michael.” 

“I kind of thought I knew his potential, because I had played against the best players in the NBA so far: the Magics and the Birds and the Dr. Js and Kareems. Some great players. Then all of a sudden, this rookie comes into the NBA and I watched the way he moved on the court and… pic.twitter.com/X83uvxpVgm

— The Jordan Rules (@Rules23Jordan) February 5, 2024

Jordan finished his rookie season 38-44 with the Bulls and was voted the Rookie of the Year. After Jordan’s arrival, the Bulls finally could claim themselves as a playoff-contending team as their numbers had risen drastically due to His Airness’ contribution during games.

Jordan and the team would next face Moncrief and the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of playoffs, only to find a quick exit in his first post-season campaign. However, Moncrief’s intuition was true, as several other players in the league could attest to Michael Jordan’s phenomenal prowess and skills right from his rookie year.

How did Michael Jordan compare to Sidney Moncrief?

Michael Jordan and Sidney Moncrief faced each other in 22 regular season games, with Jordan having a 15-7 edge over the Bucks star. While playing against Moncrief, Jordan averaged 31.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.9 assists, while Moncrief had a significantly lower average of 14.6 points, 3.7 assists, and 2.8 rebounds against Jordan.

The only time Jordan faced Moncrief in the post-season was during his rookie year when Chicago faced off against the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. Unfortunately, Jordan’s first playoff run was quite disappointing as the Bulls exited their post-season campaign after encountering a 3-1 series loss against the Bucks.

Interestingly, this is the only stat where Moncrief edges Jordan. Otherwise, Jordan has always been ahead of Moncrief in all aspects of his career. Much like the GOAT does with almost his every opponent.