Magic Johnson explains why Isiah Thomas was left off the Dream Team | First Take 

"If you can dodge a question - you can dodge a ball. " - Magic

I missed the part where he explains why he was left off the team.

He MAGICALLY danced all around that answer

That was MAGIC how he answered that question.

Interviewer: Did MJ keep Isiah off the Dream Team? Magic: Yesn't.

Magic talked around that question like he was on trial facing life in prison

It makes me feel amazing to hear Magic talking IT in a positive way.

Someone needs to show Magic the 4th quarter of game 6 1997 Western Conference finals Jazz v. Rockets. Stockton completely took over and scored relentlessly including the buzzer beater.

I respect Stockton. He chose Isiah to introduce him for his HOF induction.

Magic went around the question

I was still living in small town in Africa when we discover the Dream Team. Its the first time that i heard about Magic, MJ, Bird and all the players. But those players become very famous from the begining of the Olympic. It;s like 60% of the youth who know their name. Unfortunately, even now, i know very little about Isiah

Isiah was kept off the team because Magic felt like Isiah was spreading a viscous rumor about Magic around the league. The blame just happened to fall on Jordan, but Magic primarily pulled those strings to keep Isiah off the Dream Team.

Magic SHOWTiMED his way through these questions

Everybody: we need an answer. Majic: I'm 60, I ain't got time for that right now.

There are consequences for one’s actions. I’m not crying tears for Isiah. He did many, many people dirty, and he paid the price for his own actions.

When I first heard about this controversy in 1992, I, too, believed that Jordan was the cause for why Isiah was left off the dream team. Now, 30 years, I still believe Jordan was a huge part of it. But out of curiosity, I looked at Isiah's and Stockton's 1991 stats (Stockton was chosen shortly after the 1991 finals), I saw some basketball justifications for choosing Stockton over Isiah. It is all about timing, and 1991 was extremely bad for Isiah. To begin with, he was hurt and was kept to 48 games. Stockton played and started all 82. Isiah scored 776 points, had 446 assists and 160 rebounds. Stockton's was 1297 points, 1126 assists and 270 rebounds. Both were point guards and had to distribute the ball. Well, Stockton had an amazing 13.7 assists per game to Isiah's 9.3! That's almost 10 more points per game attributable to Stockton that year! Isiah's prime was behind him, while Stockton was on the ups. But most important (basketball-wise), Isiah had surgery on his shooting hand. That limited his ability to contribute on the court. Indeed, that was a serious reason why the Pistons lost that Eastern Finals Series to the Bulls. So there were other reasons beyond politics and popularity to keep Isiah out of the 1992 US team.

Magic saying that people should move on, is him avoiding the question. Just be honest that he had a voice in isiah being left out.

He talking like he didn’t have nothing to do with him not being on the team... so no one knows nothing🤣🤣

Here is the deal. Due to how he played in the NBA None of the other players wanted to be around him at that time. If Jordan, Magic, Pippen, and Bird didnt want to play with him. He is not going to be part of it. You can be the best at what you do but if others dont want to work with you who cares how good you are.

According to Charles Barkley “Isiah and Stockton were the two best “pure” point guards in NBA history “.

They didn’t need to choose between Stockton and Isaiah. Just get rid of Laettner, who really didn’t belong there at all, and take em both!

I knew Magic played Defense, but the deflection game at the age of 60..... I’m Impressed 🧐

I grew up in Indiana not far from the Illinois border and 45 minutes from Chicago. I was in college when the bulls drafted Jordan. My buddies and I got to see Jordan’s entire career and consider it a blessing to witness all that greatness in real time. Obviously we hate Thomas as kinda a punk but also respect him as a great player. On the flip side, the entire state of Indiana idolized Bobby Knight at that time - especially us HS basketball players. We all knew everything Bob Knight did or said and every player on his roster. We all knew about the players he ripped to pieces in practice - which was everyone- star and scrub alike. It was well known that Knight very rarely berated Thomas. The reason was well known too - he was just immune to mistakes - he made all the right decisions all the time in practice and in games. Knight had nothing to yell at. No conclusion from me - just offering that perspective to those who don’t know that.

As a 20 year basketball coach, and 30+ years of hoops under my belt, chemistry is important. Even when the deck is stacked like the dream team.

"I am 60, see we gotta move past that and move past that" Easy for you to say when you were in it!!!

MJ answered this like a boss "I never mentioned his name, if you need to blame someone, then blame me..I got no problem with that..." Or something along those lines

Max was right when he said "you guys didn't need that" meaning Isiah's scoring

If anyone who is to blame for Isiah being cut from the team, it is Magic... He's one of the people who recruited players for the team and he had issues with Isiah back at those times...

This didn't answer the question.

Dear Magic, Just answer the question!! Regards, A fan

The best comment imo came from max and was totally overlooked here: the didn't need another scorer/closer...they needed a guy to distribute the ball to all the other scorers.

Isaiah was left off the Dream Team not because of talent but because of team chemistry. Everyone still had it fresh in their minds about the Bad Boy Pistons dirty play and Isaiah's lack of class while refusing to shake the Bulls hands when they finally beat the Pistons. I don't think only Jordan but most of the Dream Teamers wanted Isaiah on the team because of the baggage, John Stockton on the other hand did not carry that same baggage and made for a better teammate than Isaiah.

More than 1 guy didn't want to play with him . Jordan just took it for everyone it wasn't just him

Poor Stockton, he didn’t ask for anything but everyone’s start to compare him to IT and almost question his place on the team 🤦🏿‍♂️

It’s all in the past and as a Piston fan I had to let it go too. I gave my heart to Isaiah, Joe Dumars, Salley, Rodman, Vinnie, Laimbeer, and the rest of the Bad Boys and it hurt the fans as well when they left Isaiah off the team. I don’t know many Pistons fans who watched the dream team in 1992, the 2012 documentary or the Last Dance. However it’s water under the bridge now. I miss those NBA glory days!

I was courtside for Isiah first pro game. Pontiac silver dome. It was the first time I saw a player crack a huge smile after a bad call.

SO TECHNICALLY MAGIC NEVER ANSWERED THE QUESTION OR GAVE THE REAL REASON

he's saying it's not about talent, it's about how you fit in a team.

Isaiah was the one of the reasons of his being left off. When the idea of NBA players was first announced Isaiah popped off in the Detroit Free Press that he would prefer to take the summer off after an NBA season and allow the college players to continue. Once it became the dream team he wanted to play and he should have been on the team

There's a lot of players that could have been on the Dream Team, Dominique Wilkins, Isaiah Thomas, Shaquille O'Neal over Christian Laettner, Clyde Drexler was almost left off, Hakeem Olajuwon, who was on the 1996 team etc.

Poor John Stockton, getting dragged into this discussion. He’s over there just minding his own business, haha!

Well, magic dodged that question. 🤦‍♂️

He answered very briefly about how he did not want tension on that team. Namely between Isaih and Michael. Which it probably would have been. There was( and still is) bad blood between the two because of how dirty The Pistons played. Magic wanted to make history because the USA college teams were getting destroyed in the Olympics. To win The Dream Team had to get along as a unit.

Bottom line is that these were Pros having to live with eachother every day and none of them wanted it to be a miserable experience. Its NOT just about who is best in a situation like this. Nearly everyone on the dream team had bad issues with IT and no one wanted to play on a team with him. He wasnt done dirty, he just reaped what he sowed.

Title: explains why Thomas was left off. Result: things are finally clear as mud

We all know he was left off because he was a part of the Bad boy Detroit team which was hated by other players including MJ & Pip.

As a teen in Boston in the 80's, I bled Celtics green, and I HATED the "Bad Boys". But even I thought it was wrong to keep Isiah off the Dream Team.

John Stockton is underestimated here. He was very tough and a great shooter who could score but that wasn’t his main assignment. Man was injured and never missed a game thereafter. He was strong in assists just before the Dream Team. He deserved it. Thomas is a great player. But, the unsportsmanlike conduct in his young days cost him a prestigious seat on the Dream Team. It had to be that. If it was about his merit and skill, no one could stop him! The days were different then and unfortunately it has to be his conduct which is really sad and maybe unfair to an extent but understandable. I don’t believe one player could have influenced the decision to keep Thomas out, especially since he was great.

I missed the part where Magic explains why Isaiah was left off the dream team 🤔

It's so weird hearing media talk about the Pistons. I love it though.

Stockton averaged 13.1 ppg, 10.5 apg, and 2.2 spg vs. Thomas at 19.2 ppg, 9.3 apg, and 1.9 spg . So not double assists like Max said.

The best argument is what Max said at the end..... "but you didn't need that". Didn't 50 a game. You needed someone to just distribute the ball to all those scorers.

Nino Brown: What happened?... Huh? Don't nobody know nothin'!? LMAO

Stockton is the all time leader in Assists and Steals. Show the man some respect

All I want to say is Thank you Magic!°°°°Truth Hurts

Max should NOT argue with a legend like Magic.

Magic Johnson would be an amazing lesbian boxer because he just beating around the bush

In the book When the Game Was Ours, Magic Johnson relates that he, Jordan and other players conspired to keep Thomas off the Dream Team.

I'm sure ALL the other players selected for the team thought that Isiah was the better player but personal feelings were probably key in choosing Stockton over him. Let's face it, both Michael Jordan and Larry Bird hated the Detroit Pistons and their playing tactics. Both MJ and Bird had physical battles with Isiah so there was no way he was going to be picked.

Sorry Magic but you are wrong about John Stockton not being able to take over games. I watched almost every single game John Stockton played in and there were plenty of games that he took over. Just off the top of my head, there was Game 6 of the 1997 Western Conference Finals against Houston where the Jazz were down by 13 points with 6:30 minutes left and Stockton was responsible for ALL 25 comeback points either directly scoring or assisting every shot, including making the game-winning 3. Then you have Game 4 of the 1997 NBA Finals where Stockton again took over the game at the end, making an enormous 3, stealing the ball from Michael Jordan, assisting on a full-court pass to Karl Malone to take the lead in the final seconds of the game. etc. So to act like Isiah was so much better at being able to take over games than Stockton is not correct. John Stockton hit a lot of game-winning shots too. He was very clutch in the end of games.

Would rather have seen them leave off Laettner and keep Stockton and Isaiah. Sure Laettner was a college star, but he’s the most replaceable by far.

Magic is lying everyone knows magic didn’t want him on the team either

Both Isiah Thomas and Dominique Wilkins belonged on the original Dream Team. USA Basketball did make up for it by placing both players on the Dream Team 2 in 1994 for the FIBA World Championship. Wilkins played, but Isiah got hurt and was unable to compete. Unfortunately, though the 2nd Dream Team was entirely forgotten in comparison to the original 1992 team.

Once again, this comes down to 2 people - Michael Jordan and Isiah Thomas. It isn't a question of who was better between Stockton and Thomas, it was about some players not wanting Thomas on the team.

This video is a waste of everyone's time.

Max's so-called 'questions' take an eternity for him to ask.

When Magic tells “ his ability “ , he means , his character and personality

Isiah Thomas and John Stockton were very different players. It’s to compare an efficient hammer with an efficient screwdriver. Both were very excellent players. It’s a 50/50.

Magic played a BIG role in that too. He and Isaiah had a beef concerning Magic contracting HIV.

Title of the video: "Magic Johnson explains why Isaiah Thomas was left off the Dream Team". The one thing not talked about in this video: Why Isaiah Thomas was left off the Dream Team.

"Was he going to be a better teammate...?" That's the question. Team chemistry matters. It's obvious, Thomas would not have been welcomed with open arms in that locker room.

Thank you Magic!!

I remember an interview when I was a kid in which MJ said Stockton and Miller were among the best clutch players.

Simple, Jordan didn’t want him there

"Years upon years later when you hear Isiah say that's the one thing that's missing from his resume, and how hurt he still is by that..." And years upon years later hearing Isiah say how much it hurts him is _still_ sweet music to my ears. And ALWAYS. WILL. BE.

Bottom line is that the bad boy and dirty image of Isiah which resulted in to MJ ,Pippen and Bird hating the Pistons, was the reason he was not the part of dream team. Adding Isiah in the team would certainly would have damaged the team chemistry.

What Magic really meant: Isiah is a better shooter and can take over a game but we needed a pure point guard to pass us the ball. We needed the All Time Leader in Assists.

Magic: You see, there's a limited number of spots and we already have Laettner so ...

Wow! Never once answered the question. After all of these years, Magic’s refusal to answer THAT question to me, clearly makes him complicit. Now, Jordan has made it perfectly clear that he did not like Isaiah and didn’t won’t him on that team, but we now know after all these years, that it was Magic who also blocked Isaiah.

Jordan didn't want Isaiah on the team and that's the end of the discussion. Jordan got back his revenge on Isaiah for the freeze out he did to Jordan in his very first all star game. The conversation was recorded. They asked Jordan to be on the Dream Team and Jordan said, he's out if Isaiah is in. The world wanted to see Jordan and if they wanted Jordan they had to cater to his demand.

Is it me or the jerseys were just better back then..the Phoenix Suns Jersey was 1 of my favorites

In the “Miracle” movie it described the USA hockey team selection process. Olympic coach Herbal Brooks said “I’m not looking for the best players, Craig. I’m looking for the right ones.”

They talking about 1992 IT vs 1992 Stockston. We know who the better player was at that point in their career.

Thought he was gonna answer the question Great Politician

Shut up Max Stockton earned it and Ike did too. Christian Latiner was the guy that shouldn't have been on the team.

It took Magic and Isiah 25 years to make up as friends and brothers. I dont blame him for matadoring that question.

Magic. Well said. Wisdom

Stockton and Thomas were both LEGENDARY players!!!!!! They should have found a way to get them on that team 2gether

They need to have a round table discussion and or slap boxing match

He passed that question up like magic

Magic gets the question, dribbles and passes!

Zek just got the rings Stockton deserve his respect

Headline should have said "Magic does NOT explain why Isiah was left off the Dream Team" - lol

"I'm never going to take nothing away from John Stockton".... as I take away his spot on the 92 Dream Team.

Magic ✨ & Thomas lovers 4Life!!!

In 19 seasons in the NBA, Stockton averaged 13 points 10.5 assists, and 2.7 rebounds on 51% shooting. In 13 seasons Thomas averaged 19 points 9.3 assists and 3.6 rebounds on 45.2% shooting. This is what seals the deal for me: Wilt Chamberlain: "I Would Start My Franchise With John Stockton." Over.

Magic didn't want Isiah on the team because Isiah spread rumors that Magic is bisexual. He admitted it in Jackie MacMullan's book

What a disappointment. C'mon, Magic. You know you didn't want Isiah on the Dream Team because he was spreading rumors about your sexuality. But I'm not surprised by all this.

On a team of all star scorers, you need a point guard that can distribute the ball and let the all stars score. - I still think Stockton was the guy for that role.

Nuff Said!