There’s a book titled “When Nothing Else Matters” by Michael Leahy, which is all about Michael Jordan’s years with the Wizards. It was so bad that none of his teammates would buy him a retirement gift and Doug Collins was an effing tool.
A lot of people seem to forget how much of a solid defensive player Etan Thomas was back in the day. He was lot like Emeka Okafor back in the Uconn days. I remember those MJ era Wizards team back in the day. Larry Hughes, Etan Thomas & Juan Dixon were the only solid players aside from MJ, RIP & Stackhouse.
Y'all forget he injured jordan with the thorn meniscus?????? As the wizards were in 5th in the east jordan averging 25.8 ppg 5 and 6. Smh . That dude is an idiot!
This video aged very well considering the Kwame Brown situation. Kwame probably would have been an absolute stud if he was drafted into a better organization.
@@christopherporter3477 sorta like when a dog is beaten so much, it jumps in fear at any sound it hears. KB was beaten down those first few years so badly that he never recovered...
I hear Kwame didn't add up to the hype of being Drafted. What did the organization expect from him off the Back?? Leaving High School now go be a show stopper on Jordan's Wizards. I'm glad Kwame made $$$$ and Fine. loves his field and tractor. Lol fresh air.
That coach vendetta shit is real, I played D1 football in college and I had a coach that hated my guts for no logical reason, he'd lie about playing time to my face, treated me like I was a scrub, luckily he was only my coach for 1 season tho
Yes sports is very political ... when i played high school football there was the best player in middle school was clearly still the best player in high school by far .got zero playing time because of the coach pettiness. He eventual just ended up quitting .
Can you imagine how much talent is out there stuck because of politics and pettiness. I’ve heard so many stories from so many good hearted families with talented kids that had the opportunity to play high level sports and they talked about how great these other kids were but because of the families history and reputation the amazingly talented kids were just shrugged off? And that’s coming from the family that had the kid that made it far into D1 playing time and ended up overseas making millions. Some scary shit and even more...... heartbreaking.🙏🏼🥺
The thing that makes MJ unstoppable is his mid range from anywhere in any position, off the dribble or off the catch. The finishing ability is just icing on the cake.
Who would you challenge, rookie KwamE Brown or a grizzled 1/2 owner 🐐 MJ? MJ told an airline attendant not to feed Horace Grant. Sorry...rookie hazing at its best.
His "leadership" expired ? The shelf life of "his ability to make those around him better" got moldy? True leaders get better and more effective as they age.
Imagine yourself at work and a rookie comes to site but you dont want to show him anything. Out of all this Kwame stuff....no one wants to say that Michael Jordan is an ass. No vet person on a job treats new workers llike that if they did we would never advance
People have been calling MJ an ass for years lol. And if you seen that documentary you would understand. Rookies generally get treated bad in sports. Kwame just got a bad deal. Jordan and then Kobe. Two of the biggest A-holes. It didn't help his game but it definitely seemed to help him grow up
@@parrishharris3008 Do you know Etan? Why don't you tell us the truth then, Since Etan is lying you must be personally connected and have the real inside scoop right?
Kwame told no lies... And I like how he says Kwame and MJ were ultimately cool, that's why he doesn't attack MJ today. Just makes Kwame look so real.... Those workouts before games is extreme bs too.
Kwame is a beast!!, but he had a horrible caoch with handcuffs on him that constantly said kwame the whole damn game. I'm surprised he didn't do a latrell sprewell. We got luv for you KB.
I think with Kwame, he was young... and I'm pretty sure Doug Collins wasn't used to coaching a high school kid. Prior to that Doug Collins is coaching MJ (3 yrs in college) and Grant Hill (4 yrs in college). I mean it's like trust me Kukoc and Longley were the scapegoats too at Bulls (Phil Jackson) , but they were more mature and were able to excel through all that. Especially Longley who blossomed amazingly at Chicago.
@@meg-k-waldren I agree to a point. The younger guys have a lot of talent skills and strength. Sometimes you have to manage them instead of constantly annoying the hell out of them. Ride to certain points of the game and then mold them into learning how to win. He would call KB as soon as he get out there. Let the kid play don't berate him he just got out of HIGH SCHOOL DAYUM.... HIGH SCHOOL 🤔😂 👍.
MJ's competitive nature is to test opponents and even teammates. He did it with Cartwright, Scotty, Horace Grant, pretty much everybody. In Kwame case it was not the best approach. In Chicago there were strong teammates like Scotty and Craig Hodges to balance it out, plus Phil Jackson, Tex Winter, and Johnny Bach, some of the greatest leaders ever.
MJ the GOAT who's "actions speak louder than words" compare to others active in social media and just riding with the flow to be relevant without doing anything at all to help 🐐🐐🐐
@@michaelmcmillan1425 there are lots of report testifying MJ donating here and there without making a russ compare to other s who help and post stuff in social media and even making videos of them helping. 9 11 attack MJ donated his 1year Washington Wizard's salary to the victims and never did MJ post stuffs in social media, his teammates knew what he did and one of the interviews his teammates revealed that. There are also private videos of him in charity basketball game were no media is involved..
@@T..1147 you know Jordan fans don't like the truth. So lebron can lead a bunch of nobodies to the finals and Jordan can't without help. Lol bias. @parch lol he doesn't like Jordan being expose. He doesn't know the difference and thats been Jordan fans in all debates.
People who think today is tougher know NOTHING about ball and I'm glad Eton some some truth. Guys shoot so well today bc they get to the basket so easily which opens up the perimeter. And they get the green light to shoot unlimited attempts today whereas back in the day, your coach would bench your ass chucking unapproved tres because you give up transition buckets when you miss. The reality is nobody could stop him today let alone with the congested paint and physical play of yesterday. The only reason this subject even gets discussed is because media tries desperately to push the narrative today and kids eat it up. Make no mistake, MJ and countless others would crush it today. The reality is, today's players would get crushed in yesterday's physical NBA - not vice versa.
It’s good to hear from someone on the inside and who was close to Kwame too. People have these perceptions of MJ that either raise him up like a god or denigrate him like a devil. The truth is that he was an exceptionally driven and talented human but he was human. Good interview.
Knowing what I know now, I wish Kwame would've been traded to Chicago.... he would've been allowed to grow and I think would've been more than a solid player
Not Chicago - Krause supposedly asked Eddy Curry in his tryout interview what would Curry do if he was instructed to cut off his braids. Scott Skills was not good with rookies, Fred Hoiberg didn't have the bandwidth/opportunity to develop rookies. Tyson Chandler and Jamal Crawford had to leave the Bulls to develop into pros. Best teams to develop young players: Toronto, Miami, San Antonio, Memphis
@@axucaroso I dig what you're saying, but Chandler and Curry did eventually develop and were actually able to contribute while still with Chicago. While he might not have meshed with Skiles and other Bulls coaches @ the time... it would have been nice to see how Kwame would've developed without getting treated the way he was and having Michael Jordan straight destroy his confidence in Washington.
Love Etan. Him, Popeye Jones, Jahidi White and maybe Larry Hughes were the only Wizards other than MJ that I felt brought their competitiveness and effort every game.
hahaha so funny. I'm sorry but MJ was special, there just can't be another basketball player like him. The man was just built for the game, from his height, athleticism, hands, speed, IQ, competitiveness etc
Glad ET shared these stories of MJ. This really helps humanize the false narratives being put out on MJ that he's basically a self-centered narcissist who only cares about winning games and selling shoes
This man said, all this stuff about the way he treated Kwame Brown. Then, I see this interview and he says, He doesn't have a bad thing to say about him. WTF?...
@@mikey-domagala - That's not what I got. He's playing the game. He WON'T say anything bad about MJ. He put the bad behavior on Doug Collins. Etan is making his way in the media and WON'T say anything bad. If MJ is the leader folks claim he is, Kwame probably is in the HOF. He's definitely not the "bust" he's perceived to be. MJ's the Godfather and Etan is kissing the ring.
@@T..1147, Thank you. Some people always try to place limitations on others. If you treat a person like garbage before he develops his confidence, his growth is going to be impeded.
5:00 .. I didn't think about it, if MJ needed to shoot more 3's.. he would have downloaded more 3's Portland arm shrug style. . Cool to hear he was doing nice deeds under the radar. Some things are best done above the radar some below. I don't think African Americans care too much about the Golf Club stuff though, but would quickly be thankful for some shoe discounts.
myize914 lol shiid i have , and??? He dont hold no candle to what MJ represented so..... u can go elsewhere with that Lebron talk bro! I'll take KD anyday over lebrick
Who the phk says mj couldn't play in this era? Sounds like Collins was not the least bit interested in developing a young guy with all that potential, ie Brown. Great interview and insight.
Why does every time someone mention defense from the 80’s-90’s they bring up only ONE team?! The pistons! Did anyone else play defense then? It’s like y’all destroy your own narrative and don’t even know it. The defense wasn’t as good as y’all say it. Yes the Pistons played bully ball. And got 2 rings not 20.. so that style didn’t work as long as people trying to hype it. And Early 2000’s played the best defense and was the best product the NBA ever had. 2000-2010 to be exact.
Why are you all defending Jordan? If the Doug was such a yes man Jordan called the shots. A good leader would have not allowed kwame to be treated that way. I admired Jordan's basketball skills, now I see him as selfish and fearful of someone taking his spotlight. If you want the truth told tell the whole truth concerning Michael Jordan stop down low defending him. We saw some of his true colors on the last dance. I've heard people who met him talk about his arrogance.
You've heard huh, so it must be facts?, you question what Etan is saying so you must have some 1st hand experience to add right? If not you're just repeating stories told by other individuals that you don't know either. What should we believe the 1000 good things we've heard about Mj over the yrs or the handful of less than flattering things?
Jordan dominated in a very non athletic era and was 90 percent of the time guarded by smaller opponents in stature and height. So sure there's no hand checking now, but MJ would be faced with far more resistance from an athletic perspective. Every team now has several great athletes and taller as well, to guard a MJ.
@@GMCworldwide1979 so Bird, magic and those guy's were athletic? Watch a few all star games from mids 80s early to mid 90s. Then check out all star games now, then get back with me.
Ppl glorify ppl who aren’t no diff than you! Just talent and some luck! Cry? Wtf do ppl care abt folks that are human! Cry abt ppl that save lives! Not folks that play a fn sport that doesn’t do nothing but entertain ppl! I’ve seen famous folks that others may go crazy for and I just nod,that’s all!
Pretty much the story for a lot of people of notoriety they’re not who you really think they are we’re all human beings it’s crazy how much some are praised and then how others are crapped on
Go watch older nba clips the game was more physical it's that simple but it's obviously harder to play defense in today's game cause you can't be as physical
Despite everything, at the end of the day, MJ is a decent human being with a good heart. He took good care of his inner circle. He was a great son. He gave Chicago, the team and the city more than they could ever repay him. As far as MJ's time in Washington, the circumstances were complicated. It was no place for a teen aged rookie as all of the vets were grown men. The coach was not in a position
Cont.Doug Collins was not in a position to implement any long range plans - it was win NOW. Ownership had made some promises to Mike that were constantly being broken. Historically , the Bulls did not do well in the draft. Most of the players that mattered were acquired through trades.
Interesting interview, Thomas seems to have remembered a lot of bad stuff about Jordan's treatment of Kwame after Kwame's rise to internet fame smh. It's also pretty interesting how Thomas spoke about all the good Jordan was doing back then, but people's narrow narrative that he is a sell out who does nothing for anyone remains the most popular. Even now as the only black controlling owner who donates tens and tens of millions to numerous causes, idiots still sit around and ignore reality. As for Thomas's spill about his "Best friend" Kwame being treated bad those two years, and how it saddled the rest of his 13 year career... That's ridiculous. He wasn't even 21 when Jordan and Collins left Washington, and he still never reached his potential. I know this is the age of the chatty Pattys who love to get in front of microphones and push their narratives, but there are always two sides to a story, and I would love to hear Jordan's perspective on Kwame Brown's work ethic, heart and desire.
Etan also said in the very beginning that if you bring this question to 10 people you will probably get 10 different answers. He then stated that this is his experience. People have good and bad days.
Touching people and fainting is not normal. They literally got energy jacked. Another thing he said "black tar goo stuff" came out his knee. Knee drainage is either yellow or red if it's blood not dark red either. What is MJ? 🤔
Thank you. He did not show that before a championship. Jordan fans over exaggerate Jordan because of shoes. His first championship. A shoe deal after the dunk contest.
@@thecoolestone4935 please. 37.1% and still couldn't get pass the first round so what that tells you about Jordan. He wasn't a leader. He just wanted to win but with other players just as good as him but take all the credit like he did with the last dance. Crazy lol.
Theo Burden the roster MJ had in 87 was trash. He was playing against Larry Bird and one of the greatest teams in NBA history. (THE CELTICS WERE ALSO DEFENDING CHAMPS THAT YEAR.) Mike had Charles Oakley, Dave Corzine, Brad Sellers, Grandville Waiters, a rookie Scottie And Horace. So how were the Bulls supposed to beat a team with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parrish, Bill Walton, along with Dennis Johnson. Which by the way if you were counting. That's 5 hall of fame players. MJ didn't even have another all- star player with him. But he was supposed to beat that team? Yeah aight.
The MJ "activism" still seemed weak. Not playing at a whites-only golf course & wanting to donate to 9/11 families isn't "incredible" or "amazing".... kinda still fits the narrative!
No he would actually be very efficient, because his bread and butter was his mid range game and since players neglect the mid range in today's game Mj would be even more dominant. Today's players don't understand how to defense the mid range game to cause Mike any issues.