Michael Jordan couldn’t care less who suited up against him, he was there to win. Widely regarded as one of the most competitive athletes, Jordan would tend to “take things personally” and play with the intention of humiliating his opponents. Rex Chapman, who was one of Jordan’s extremely close friends, learned this the hard way. Weeks after dropping 39 points on the Chicago Bulls, Chapman, who once blew away $31,000,000, faced the wrath of a revenge-seeking MJ.
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Rex Chapman wasn’t one of the more established superstars in the league. However, the 6-foot-4 guard had a respectable 12-year tenure as a pro. During his stint in the NBA, the Kentucky alum managed to collect about $31 million as earnings. But, giving in to his drug addiction and robbing an Apple store, Chapman lost all his career earnings as well as the reputation during the mid-2010s he built for himself.
Michael Jordan got back at Rex Chapman
The Miami Heat were one of the few teams that defeated the Chicago Bulls during their 72-10 1995-1996 season. Rex Chapman was the star of the Heat on 23rd February 1996. Chapman outplayed MJ and led the Florida side to a commanding 113-104 win with a 39-point outburst.
As we all know, Jordan wasn’t going to let Chapman get away with it. Only a matter of weeks later, in the next Bulls-Heat clash, Jordan responded in the most MJ manner. Right when the ball was tipped-off, the 6-foot-6 Shooting guard elbowed a smaller Chapman on the chest. And for the 41 minutes that he took on the hardwood, His Airness was unstoppable. The former UNC Tar Heel recorded a 32-point performance on an efficient 47.8/66.6/100 shooting split.
Rex spoke about this incident on his appearance on The Stephen A Smith Show.
“I got a bunch of points and we beat ‘em the year they went 72-10. And Michael’s my guy. I had damn near 40 points in the game… we played them at home two weeks later and we’re at jump circle, and he elbowed me in the sternum right away.”
Mike didn’t stop just yet. The Bulls had back-to-back games against the Heat. This time, Air Jordan erupted for a stellar 40-point outing. As for Chapman, the 6-foot-4 combo guard merely recorded 28 points in both contests combined.
Jordan once ‘tried’ to bribe Charles Barkley with a $20,000 gift
This wasn’t the only time that Michael Jordan went all-out against his friend. During the 1993 NBA Finals against the Phoenix Suns, Jordan tried a unique way of gaining a physiological advantage over Charles Barkley. Prior to Game 4 of the series, the athletic guard decided to gift his best friend a $20,000-worth earring.
“He won’t get in my way the rest of the series, what’s $20,000 to me? Charles thinks we’re great friends. I hate that fat f**k.”
The very next game, MJ went on to stuff the stat line with a 55-point performance. And as hoped, Barkley or any other defender wasn’t able to get in his way.
