"I would like to thank Michael Jordan for kicking my butt" | TONI KUKOC Hall of Fame Speech 

Maybe just polishing his image. Who knows still,but things are different what they look many time.

@@jonsinkkonen9393 he is regarded by most as the goat, is a billionaire, his shoes still outsell any nba players shoes to this day so I don’t know what honestly needs polishing. Everyone knows he was a hard ass and wanted to win above anything else. We all saw what Pippen did when the spotlight wasn’t given to him. He sat his ass down and refused to play so there is that🤷🏿‍♂️🤷🏿‍♂️

@@jonsinkkonen9393 im pretty sure that made no sense. He is actually friends with Toni.

I think Jordan became more self-aware during the 2nd 3-peat run. It's no coincidence a majority of his closest teammates were from '96-98. He became a better, more patient leader those years. The '91-93 run felt more business-like. Almost like MJ was above everyone else on the team, which made sense as that was the height of his popularity and athletic prime.

@Vanilla Nice LeBron James is the best ever, the king and GOAT

what time?

@@alkhojames7504 6:45

@@alkhojames7504 GAME TIME!!!

Mc Hale said the same thing in the middle of the 80s

@@roqueiii645The Celtics were incredible then. Wouldn't surprise me if they worked like maniacs.

Unlike someone who is seen as the GOAT (Lebron)who's walked out on his team constantly... Chavez understands the meaning of the word pals, dont you Chavez!

Pippen being a Grade A Busta these days

@@2KILLAVILLE 😂😂

and that means MJ will not be like that if not bcos of his team mates,

​@@gibververgib1235 he motivated his team mates to be better that's what it is

Well said. Absolute Champion

That's the finest thing you can choose from the menu!

Even though I could feel MJ's heart skip a beat when he thanked Jerry Kraus lol

Yes it is . Especially when Michael and Scottie MADE him show how great he was by punishing him. He rose to the occasion and kicked some ass on his own.

@@laythadrian5705 not really. MJ, Pippen and Phil, despite the animosity, had always thanked Jerry Krauss for the team's success.

they have very Good friendship and respecto each other Both play golf some times ..

That went right over the crowds head. Great humility

Yeah that line was fire! Put that on my gravestone pls

hahahahahahahaaha

Toni had it figured out

Play for the name in front,not back

I was wondering how that happened as soon as I saw them sitting behind him. But maybe it was as simple as asking both of them to be there and they said yes because they are fond of Toni and have a great relationship with him. I do wonder however if MJ and Reindsorf talked or if they shook hands.

I could be wrong, but I'm not sure MJ particularly hated Reinsdorf. I think the bulk of his anger was directed towards Krause.

he hated krause more. he's probably okay with reinsdorf.

Yea but MJ looks so relax while Reindorf looks frozen.

Mike didn't hate reinstorf he hated krause

My idols I looked up to when I fell in love with basketball are all much older now. Makes me sad 😥. Time passes at a blink of an eye

Toni comes across such a nice guy. His teammates on the Bulls loved him!

Agreed you guys have some of the greatest players of all time Tony - Drazen - Dino - Vrancovits and more you have an awesome school of basketball cheers.!

What region? Is a region a country? I don’t think so.

As an American and basketball 🏀 fan, THANK YOU for being passionate and producing many talented players. Also, RIP Drazen Petrovič. Gone too soon. We'll miss you forever, brother.

I was thinking about Drazen it was too soon for him...RIP

Yes

8 thought Mike didn't have a super team 🤔

@@lavarriley4855 you’re right, that was a super team. Didn’t think about it until now. All the way down to Steve Kerr was a force to reckon with. By theirselves Dennis Rodman, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen are a super team by themselves but you have some other people that could really play, Toni Kukoc, Luc Longley, Bill Wenningtin, Randy Brown. And maybe they weren’t superstars on their own but they still produced some good minutes constantly.

@@bbennyj he had 3 rings before, prior to everyone you mentioned besides pippen. two hater

But hall of fame???i can name a lot of European players better then him smh ok sure HOF in europe but not in nba

@@marvinjohnson4118 Exactly people tend to forget that Jordan 3peated before 95,96, 97

For me, he's always the best 6th man ever . 😁

@@jakkametkraiwong6508 best 6th man ever, wit the best 3 point shooter, wit 2 mvp caliver players... how is that not a superteam?

Can see why, he was europes best player and wasn't good enough to start

The prototype for KD and other players of today.

Yugoslavia in 1996 Olympics final proved otherwise

On this time He was the best European Player.

This time it's luka and giannis

Jerry Krause fought like hell to get him. Turned out to be a real coup. Without players like Kukoc, Detlef Schrempf, Drazen Petrovic, Vlade Divac, Dino Radja etc, there wouldn't be the Lukas and Giannises of today. The first wave of European players gave rise to what there is today

@@danieljong8442 amen💯

Toni Is a guy, great heart

@Reemo Williams wouldn't be a youtube comment without needlessly shitting on women. when will men also realize that so many men are equally at fault and have many of their own bad habits. if we as men don't want to be generalized, we shouldn't generalize women either. and i know you're going to be like "im talking about thots, not women" but its very clear what your intentions are

Loyal to his wife? I think Toni got caught with a hooker 10 years ago

@Reemo Williams when a woman cheats, she’s a “thot” though right? but when a man cheats it’s okay because they have different standards lmfao you people never fail to amuse me with your double standards

@@ryank2465 men have sex with who they are allowed. Women have sex with who they give permission. That's the difference

he would be a champion in today's game too... he started playing basketball at age of 15, guy was pure talent AND a hard and humble worker. he was fucking Michael Jordan of Europe when he came to NBA and he never cried and whined and made drama about not playing in the first and so on...absolute legend and deserves a lot of respect. Listen to what Scottie says in the beginning - we don't win it all without Toni

SO PROUD OF TONI!!!!!! I REMEMBER BEING UPSET WITH HIM DURING THE DREAM TEAM YEARS AND WHEN HE FIRST PLAYED WITH THE BULLS: HE WON US OVER WITH HIS PLAY AND HIS HIS GOOD NATURE AND NOW HE IS A GOAT HERE IN CHICAGO!!!!! GOD BLESS AND KEEP TONI KUKOC. AND HIS FAMILY IN JESUS' NAME!!!!!!!

toni is so suited for todays style of game

Toni was an all star level player in his day also. He showed that when Michael and Scottie left.

Because there is no shame when great players like MJ beat you.

Like they said, everybody had their role and knew their role and played it to a T. From Kerr to Longly. That’s what made The Bulls team so great!

Don’t forget BJ Armstrong

I would love to see the 85 Lakers, the 86 Celtics, the 94 Rockets and the 96 Bulls in a final 4 playoff series.

of course people would remember Michael, he was there brought the Bulls into the playoff since his debut. Toni and other guys joined the Bulls much later

Yeah and they would've won without him‼️

I am sure in your childhood, kobe and shaq when they were dominating, its often jordan and Co were mentioned everywhere because of the similar 3 peat. Am i right?

I'm so glad that i'm born '85 and watched '90s NBA🤗

@@darkosimic9890 man you lucky

@@darkosimic9890 I wish in the future we have time machines so we can get to see the past

@@goat2559 🤣

He won a good few of those PLayoff series in the 4th quarter

In the playoffs he carried a couple of those games

@@whenisdinner2137 Yeah one game in particular was the 1998 ECF against Indiana in Game 7. Toni lit it up in the 3rd quarter almost single-handling keeping the Bulls in the game. 21 points!

For the last two championship runs, i honestly think he contributed more than Pippen

Longley and Kerr. The whole team was BEASTLY!!! they were really the perfect team together.

Me: "who, never heard of him?" josecoba6998: "Ok, casual" Me: "your casual" josecoba6998: "ok, whatever lil kid"

The left handed Magic Johnson!! Once Phil Jackson and Tex got him to play defense side of the game he became a beast!!

He is not one of the greatest, he was only a 6th man on his team, he wasnt dominant in any way shape or form

@@jacobsalinas2362 He was very dominant in Europe and NBA scouts waited for him to sign a contract for years. Would not start instead of Pippen or Rodman, but was extra important and a clutch player. There is a reason he is in the HOF rather than some more dominant players.

@@LB14745 Europe means nothing, thats why mediocre American players dominate there and in other countries. He was just the 6th man thats it!

@@jacobsalinas2362 First, this is basketball Hall of Fame, not NBA Hall of Fame. Second, the NBA is full of Europeans for a reason. Third, Euroleague is very high level of basketball, that's why many ex-NBA players are mediocre there. Your basketball knowledge is lacking, so no sense to keep replying to you after this comment.

You don’t know basketball if you didn’t think Kukoc was great. He had to sacrifice and become the Bulls 6th man just like Manu Ginobili of the Spurs.

Kukoc was a bench player garbage was not needed

@@anthonylockhart4943 not true he did a lot and sacrifice alot like everyone else he's one of the greatest sixth man team ever!

@@cheezezlayer493 why reply to that 🤡? He don't know sh*t

@@gerardolopez4318 straight facts this chumps don't know anything about basketball.

@@anthonylockhart4943 you prolly can’t hit a damn free throw even if the basket is as big as an ocean. Sit your ass down girl!!!

I remember that from back in the day, that shot was a huge deal, Scottie was not happy bout that at all.

@@jermaineonealnumber7 yeah but phil was obviously right to pick toni

Amen Brother... Toni was a class act.

@@antoinebracy5718 Amen, brother, amen.

I thought I was the only one that got teared up....Humble and wonderful family man Toni is

@@etodd568 No, brother. I'm with you.

From @7:17 on, is when I had to reach for tissue. Then the smile when he talk about his friends.

More like Manu Ginobili

Stop it Luka IS different

@@calvinletigre7687 Toni was equally as good. The man has a pedigree Luka can only hope to achieve. Toni sacrificed more then any other player in that era only playing about 25 min a game & maybe getting 5 min a game as the #1 scoring option. He started at all 5 positions when guys were injured & the team never missed a beat. As a starter for the Bulls he was a 20/6/6 guy without having the offense go through him. He did all this in era where defense was tougher and hand checking/grabbing was allowed. If we had a time machine Toni would easily be a top 10 player in todays game.

Lol, stop it

@@calvinletigre7687 yeah. Luka is not a team player. More like a James Harden lmao.

The fact that he stayed with the same woman since his high school days says a lot about him too IMO

He could play 5 position

The Croatian Sensation, The Waiter, The Pink Panther Toni Kukoc

When he's on, he's ON! I MEAN HE'S REALLY ON!!

I remember when he made a fool out of that Seattle Supersonics team, the team I rooted for in that finals, he dunked in the face of Shawn Kemp and Detlef Schrempf

Not even a bulls fan and i felt like i needed to click

Mj look so proud bro

He is, to me, the best pure European basketball player, ever. The EU GOAT. NBA-wise, he was underrated. Few players had his skill set, back then.

He is a great person so humble and he was a tough matchup for opposing teams a six eleven guy who played like a guard who was tough off the dribble and could hit the threes Im glad Chicago were able to pick him up.

Then what WNBA? 🤭

Right? That says loads about his character. I’m sure beautiful woman came out of the woodwork once he got famous- but he loved his girl and stuck around. Webster dictionary’s definition of a class act

@@richchiaramonte5861 he cheated on her, so not really

Retire #7? 🤣😂😅

For me gasol is the european goat hus achievements in fiba europe says it all

I didn't watch the Bulls to see Jordan play I only watched to see Toni🤔

Speechless. SMFH

@@gdc6153 lol I think that was a toni burner or a family member commenting 😂

So true

Being a Chicago product and a bulls fan Toni sacrificed a lot he could have started on any nba team as a point guard. I’m glad in the end the league recognized how good he really is and how much of an important part he played with the bulls.

He was only 30 when he left Bulls. He was just not good enough to score 25-30 ppg, or do something else other than 10-15 ppg and clutch shots. Compare him to Eddie Jones. That guy had better ppg, he was an elite defender, led the league in steals, and he has no chance for the hof. There were too many good players to induct guys like Toni. Imo.

@@pharkasj it's the circumstances he was in that prevented his true success. 1 thing was it was a new thing to bring over Euro players. Secondly, it was unusual especially then for a 6'11" guy to play the ball handler which is what he was in the Euro leagues. Those 2 things combined prevented a Luka Doncic type situation. They put him as a forward and had him add size when on the Bulls . So that didn't help his movement. He also got used to his role and that probably shook his confidence a bit. So those 2 things combined sort of prevented him reverting back to ball handler after he left the Bulls nevermind that the league was still not ready for a foreign player at that size playing ball handler even if he didn't add weight. The weight added to his injuries as well which effected his playing of course too . Even on the Bulls and not playing his role and coming off the bench primarily he still had pretty good stats. So im saying especially if he played today but even back then if they would have had him as the ball handler like he was in the Euro leagues and especially if they put a team around him like they did luka and brought him over sooner you would have saw something phenomenal.

@@klitschkobrosfan Thats all true. But so many what ifs. I didnt say, he wasnt good, i just said some players with better career missed the hof, so it's a bit unfair.

Holy sh^# For real.

I have said that so many times he will be a All star in this league

Much like how Shaq says he IS playing in this era, his name is Giannis Antetokounmpo, Toni Kukoc does play in this era... His name is Nikola Jokic.

Definitely today but even back then if he had a role like doncic's he would have been an all star and a all time great imo.

@@klitschkobrosfan True enough... Ask a GM if they'd like to draft a 6'11" Luka nowadays and they'd sell their own grandmothers to get the 1st look.

@@blazemegatron919 lol true

Same here, watched live on German satellite TV living in Poland... what times considering things happening now :(

how did you watch it at night? it would have bee 3:30am when those games were played in Chicago or 5:30am when they were played in Seattle and utah.

Greetings from.croatia lot of bulls fans here

@@master-kq3nw Greetings from Hungary... lot of Toni fans here!

@@balazsholocsi8593 greetings hungary 👍 he was good player 3 time chamipon europe 89 90 91 with jugoplastika 96 97 98 3 titles with bulls

I was born in 98. How good was he? I wish I could see all these legends today live lol

@@ALCblackout24HD im croat and in europe he could play 1-5 position. He was clutch player, shooter and his pass and assist were thing of art. For me it was mistake that in nba they put lot of weight on him he lose speed and explosivness. He was not good defender. I think in todays nba he would be mvp multiple times he was that good . Off course this is only my opinion.

@@rejubarchgliasis1830 in my opinion they put him in the completely wrong position and utilized him incorrectly. And that mistake is why they had him gain weight etc which made it harder to transition back if he ever needed to to the ball handler and playmaker he was best at.i like luka doncic but in my opinion kukoc was better in every way except possibly some aspects of defense . But what he lacked he made up for in height so I'd say about even . But everything else. Clutch passing shooting free throws especially he was better than doncic. Doncic is young though so who knows he still has room to grow but as of now if say toni was better

@@ALCblackout24HD He was good, but he was the #3 option for Chicago so his numbers were never that great. He was ahead of his time as a perimeter-oriented big who could shoot, handle the ball, and find the open man. I was a fan, but I have to be honest. His NBA accomplishments alone were not great enough for him to get inducted into the Hall. He's in because, in addition to being a key member of three NBA title teams, he had a super successful international career, kind of like Manu Ginobili.

Me too. 100.0%

Maybe pre 1999

The team and social dynamics are quite different in US vs Europe! The Bulls were unique!

I don't think so, he was awarded as the best 6th-man because whenever he gets to play he made game changing shots/assists. He and Kerr were extra arsenals for Bulls for clutch time plays and both of them delivers.