The Last Dance documentary created a rift between former Chicago Bulls teammates Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Now, what if there was a documentary during his final stint with the Washington Wizards? Colin Cowherd made it clear that there were issues.

The debate started when Colin Cowherd claimed on his podcast that Jordan had a better “aura” than LeBron James because there was no social media during his prime. His co-host added, “The crazy part is LeBron has had his entire like age 38, 39, 40, 41 seasons be micro-analyzed on a possession-to-possession basis through clips on Twitter,” said Jason Timpf. “I can only imagine if I micro-analyzed every possession of Michael’s Wizards tenure, how ugly it would have been at times.”

Cowherd added, “There’s one great sports documentary left, and it’s Michael Jordan with the Wizards. His teammates hated him. The coaches hated him.” He continued, “I watched him play twice live with the wizards and you could see the body language of his teammates; everybody hated him.” The veteran broadcaster was not wrong; there have been reported instances of Wizards teammates not liking MJ.

First, there was a report of Jordan, who selected and vouched for the #1 pick, and apparently made Kwame Brown cry in front of the team. This seems debatable because Brown denied the incident. Another teammate, two-time All-Star Jerry Stackhouse, stated he regretted playing with Jordan in Washington. Once His Airness retired, the sentiment did not change. Stackhouse said that he lost some of the “reverence I had for him.”

Even Chris Broussard, who covered the Wizards, claimed Jordan’s teammates “were sick of him” during the 2020 The Odd Couple podcast. The abrasive style of leadership was always in the headlines, even when the Bulls legend won 6 championships. Clearly, he was not in his prime during his Wizards reign, and yet he produced more than 20 points per season and was an All-Star in both seasons before finally retiring.

Timpf on the podcast was clear that the Wizards run with reduced stats would have tainted Jordan’s legacy. Because social media often overreacts to the situation, which puts superstars and athletes in an awkward position.

A month ago, MJ was celebrating his NASCAR race win, but a clip went viral where MJ appeared to be pinching Tyler Reddick’s son’s lower back and brushing his leg. Another report revealed that Beau’s shirt became soaked after his father dumped ice water on him during the celebration, and Jordan was simply trying to brush the ice off the six-year-old.

It was intensely debated, where even Steven A. Smith and later even MJ’s camp had to clarify their stance. Similarly, on court issues, even the smallest of fights would have been scrutinized. This could have changed the GOAT stance for many, as Cowherd and Jason Timpf stated.

Michael Jordan squashed the GOAT debate

While the broadcasters were debating how the issues would have affected the GOAT status, the Bulls legend never cared for it in the first place. His Airness recently made it clear that he has never embraced the ‘greatest of all time’ label. “The whole GOAT term is never going to be something that I ever get high or low about,” Jordan said. “It just doesn’t exist with me.”

Logically, it never made sense for Michael Jordan since players from different eras never competed directly. He would have loved to face players from the previous generation, but he couldn’t. “I never played against Oscar Robertson or Jerry West. I would have loved to — absolutely loved to — just as competitive as I am. And I actually learned from them.”

Similarly, Jordan was very respectful in appreciating the stars of the league who are the current faces. While some may claim he has problems with LeBron James and others, MJ claimed it was never the case. “I have no animosity against today’s players.”