NBA legend Michael Jordan was a dominant force ever since he stepped into the league. However, team success was hard to come by in his early years in the league despite his dominance on both ends of the court. The Chicago Bulls knew from the very start that they have a superstar at their hands who could be the cornerstone of the franchise. But other major pieces of the team were either missing or were not particularly a good fit. Including the role of the head coach.

After Jordan was drafted in 1984, the Bulls had two head coaches in two years despite him racking up huge numbers. In 1986, former All-Star Doug Collins was hired for the head coach role. He immediately helped the team and showed an improvement of ten more wins for two straight years. However, he was under huge pressure to deliver.

Michael Jordan on Doug Collins

Author Sam Smith’s book The Jordan Rules chronicles several seasons of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. The book reveals a lot of interesting details that had happened over the years. In one instance, the author talked about the issues of head coach Doug Collins. The former Philadelphia 76ers star did not see eye to eye with General Manager Jerry Krause. Smith noted Collins was under huge pressure to deliver and was a nervous wreck.

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The author then talked about Jordan’s comments about the head coach during a charity event with other superstars in 1988. NBA legends like Dominique Wilkins and Isiah Thomas joked about their head coaches and the stars were having a good time until MJ shared about his. Smith noted, “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.”

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Despite his issues with the front office and the players, Collins helped the Bulls reach the Eastern Conference Finals in 1989. However, they could not get past the Detroit Pistons who were the eventual champions.

Phil Jackson was made head coach

Jerry Krause did not have huge confidence in the abilities of Doug Collins. One after Collins’ arrival, Krause brought in legendary head coach Phil Jackson who was working as a head coach in Puerto Rico. The former NBA champion with the New York Knicks was doing a great job in the country that had impressed Krause.

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So the GM hired Jackson as an assistant coach in 1987. After the Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Pistons in 1989, the Bulls parted ways with Collins and Jackson was given the head coach role. A decision that had a significant role in winning six NBA titles.