Michael Jordan had some tough years before finally winning his first-ever championship with the Chicago Bulls in 1990-1991. In his first seven seasons since his debut in 1984, Jordan led the Bulls to the playoffs on every occasion. However, MJ needed more support from his team to have a real chance of winning a championship. During the last three seasons before winning the championship ring in 1991, Michael Jordan’s Bulls faced the ‘Bad Boys’ Detroit Pistons led by Isiah Thomas in the playoffs and lost on all three occasions. Jordan was so dedicated to beating Isiah Thomas and the Pistons that he kept coming harder each season with one goal. MJ despised the Detroit Pistons legend so much that a clever reality check from billionaire Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf ‘stopped him in his tracks.’

The Detroit Pistons beat the Jordan-led Chicago Bulls for three straight seasons in the playoffs between 1988-1990. MJ was hell-bent on conquering the Pistons in 1991. However, he wanted more from his teammates and the trade negotiations that were going on. Jordan tried to use his influence, but the Bulls owner coerced him to back off with an Isiah Thomas reference.

Reinsdorf used a clever tactic to convince Michael Jordan to back off

As per Sam Smith’s 1991 book The Jordan Rules, in 1990-1991, Michael Jordan was not happy about his teammates, and he made it known to the Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf. The six-time NBA champ felt that Grant Horace could not be trusted, and he was not too sure about Scottie Pippen either after his former Bulls teammate suffered a migraine during the Eastern Conference Finals in 1990. In addition, Jordan was not too pleased by the trade deals former Bulls manager Jerry Krause was trying to make.

After Jordan expressed his concerns, Reinsdorf assured MJ that the front office was working on several deals. Further, he urged the Bulls legend to stop undermining Jerry Krause in public. Reinsdorf told Jordan, “People start thinking we’re desperate and want to take advantage of us.”

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READ MORE: “Trade Me. This Is It. It’s Got to Stop Here”: Michael Jordan’s Public Beration Forced Billionaire Bulls Owner to Handle Things “His Own Way”

A few years before, Jordan threatened the Bulls owner to go public about his complaints about the team’s play and trade deals. As per the book, Reinsdorf quickly shut MJ down by giving the example of Isiah Thomas. 

“Do you want people to start thinking of you like they do Isiah Thomas?” Reinsdorf said. It stopped Jordan in his tracks. Thomas had recently been blamed for getting Adrian Dantley traded for Mark Aguirre.”

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Due to Thomas’ tactic of trying to control the trades, he had a reputation for being a ‘spoiled’ and ‘meddling player’ in the media. Reinsdorf was aware of how much Jordan despised Isiah Thomas. Thus, the clever move from the Bulls owner prompted Michael Jordan to calm down and eventually back off.