Michael Jordan Irritated Bulls GM Jerry Krause All The Time On Purpose By Telling Him ‘You Didn’t Draft Me’: ‘He Always Knew Which Of Jerry’s Buttons To Push’

NBA legend Scottie Pippen wrote in his book that Michael Jordan irritated Chicago Bulls general manager Jerry Krause on purpose by telling him, “You didn’t draft me.”

The Bulls drafted Jordan with the third overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft. Although Krause was with Chicago in 1984, Rod Thorn was the guy who selected Jordan. 

“Scottie, Horace (Grant), those are your kids, Michael used to tell Jerry,” Pippen wrote in his book. “You didn’t draft me. That would irritate Jerry to no end. Which only encouraged Michael to keep saying it. He always knew which of Jerry’s buttons to push, and there were many.”

Jordan and Krause did not have a good relationship. During his legendary run with the Bulls, Jordan watched Krause do several things that annoyed him.

However, Jordan stopped trusting Krause after what happened during his second NBA season.

Jordan was put on a strict time limit in 1985-86 after he broke his foot in the season’s third game. Krause and Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf wanted their superstar guard to sit out the season, but Jordan rehabbed his foot quickly and returned to the lineup on March 15.

Krause told Bulls head coach Stan Albeck not to disobey Jordan’s time restriction if he wanted to keep his job. That put the coach in a tough spot, especially during an April 3 game against the Indiana Pacers.

Jordan had 26 points in 28 minutes, but he was pulled from the game on the Bulls’ final possession with the team down one because of Krause’s time restriction.

An angry Jordan sat on the bench and watched John Paxson hit a game-winning shot. While he was happy Chicago won, Jordan was frustrated because Krause violated a fundamental aspect of sports and how he conducted his life: Jordan wanted to win every game and felt Krause wasn’t aligned with him.

After the Bulls defeated the Pacers, Krause tried to enter the locker room, but Albeck locked the door. To no one’s surprise, Albeck was fired in the offseason and replaced by Doug Collins.

Jordan never forgot what Krause did on April 3, 1986. From that moment on, Jordan made it a point to embarrass Krause.

During the 1992 Olympics, Jordan and Pippen attacked Toni Kukoc when Team USA faced Croatia because Krause drafted Kukoc. Krause was enamored with bringing Kukoc to Chicago despite having two of the best players in the world, Jordan and Pippen.

The Bulls stars wanted to make their GM look bad on a worldwide stage.

Another example of Jordan’s hatred for Krause was when he went after Phoenix Suns swingman Dan Majerle in the 1993 NBA Finals. Krause loved Majerle, which was enough for Jordan to destroy the Phoenix small forward.

Jordan averaged 41.0 points in the 1993 NBA Finals and led the Bulls to their third straight championship.

The final straw for Jordan was when Krause said Phil Jackson wouldn’t return as head coach in 1998-99 even if the Bulls went 82-0 and won the championship in 1997-98.

Chicago won the 1998 title in six games over the Utah Jazz, but the team was broken up in the offseason.