Isiah Thomas Says He Replaced Vince Carter In All-Star Starting Lineup To Appease Michael Jordan
Former Detroit Pistons guard Isiah Thomas claims he at least tried to do something nice for rival Michael Jordan.
The two players have feuded since they were opponents for the Pistons and Chicago Bulls in the 1980s and early 1990s. But Thomas thought he would give a nice gesture during the 2003 NBA All-Star game, Jordan's last.
Thomas, who was the coach of the Eastern Conference All-Stars, said he made a special effort to appease Jordan. He gave the details on a recent appearance on the Draymond Green podcast.
"I coached his last All-Star game," Thomas said. "Vince Carter had won the starting spot. I took Vince Carter aside and convinced him to give his spot to Michael Jordan."
Thomas said he would have thought otherwise had he known how Jordan felt about him. There was already the conceived belief about Jordan keeping Thomas off the 1992 Olympics team.
And Thomas is still steaming about Jordan calling him an "asshole" during an episode of the 2020 The Last Dance documentary. It has since changed Thomas' outlook, causing him to criticize Jordan at every chance.
"I didn't know how this dude felt until The Last Dance," Thomas said. "All these years you've been standing between a tree throwing stones and letting somebody else take the fall for it. Had I known you felt that way I definitely would've treated you differently."
And there is the latest chapter in this everlasting quarrel.
Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day NBA. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com
