Michael Jordan admitted Isiah Thomas would have ruined the ‘environment and camaraderie’ on The Dream Team: ‘Would Isiah have made a different feeling on that team? Yes’

NBA icon Michael Jordan admitted Isiah Thomas would have ruined the “environment and camaraderie” on The Dream Team.

Thomas wasn’t on The Dream Team despite being one of the best players in the NBA when the team was put together. 

“The Dream Team, based on the environment and the camaraderie that happened on that team, it was the best harmony,” Jordan said in The Last Dance doc, which came out in 2020. “Would Isiah have made a different feeling on that team? Yes.”

The Dream Team was the 1992 United States basketball team. The roster featured Jordan, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, Chris Mullin, Clyde Drexler, Patrick Ewing, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Christian Laettner and John Stockton.

The Dream Team went undefeated in the 1992 Olympics.

The United States beat Toni Kukoc and Croatia in the gold medal game. 

Jordan hates Thomas. However, the Chicago Bulls legend believes the Detroit Pistons great is the second-best point guard in NBA history. 

“I respect Isiah Thomas’ talent,” Jordan said in The Last Dance doc. “To me, the best point guard of all time is Magic Johnson and right behind him is Isiah Thomas. No matter how much I hate him, I respect his game.”

Thomas finished his career with averages of 19.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, 9.3 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.3 blocks with the Pistons. He made 12 All-Star teams and five All-NBA teams and won the 1990 Finals MVP Award. 

Meanwhile, Jordan averaged 30.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.3 steals and 0.8 blocks with the Bulls and Washington Wizards. He won five MVPs, one Defensive Player of the Year Award, six Finals MVPs, three steals titles and 10 scoring titles with Chicago. 

Thomas and Jordan are in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team. 

During the 75th Anniversary Team ceremony in Cleveland in 2022, Jordan and Thomas didn’t talk to each other. They will never be friends.