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Former Chicago Bulls GM Reveals Philadelphia 76ers Tried to Trade for Michael Jordan

Rod Thorn, the former General Manager of the Chicago Bulls, recently revealed the Philadelphia 76ers had made a 'strong offer' for the draft pick that became Michael Jordan back in 1984.
Justin Grasso|
Former Chicago Bulls GM Reveals Philadelphia 76ers Tried to Trade for Michael Jordan
Former Chicago Bulls GM Reveals Philadelphia 76ers Tried to Trade for Michael Jordan

With the 2019-2020 NBA season on hold, basketball fans are only left with so much to discuss. Last week, the fans only had a players-only NBA 2K20 tournament, and a HORSE competition to talk about. This week, ESPN and the NBA offered up the highly-anticipated Michael Jordan documentary titled 'The Last Dance.'

Although the docuseries was initially set to air in June, the suspension of sports called for producers to fast-track the editing process, so basketball fans have something to watch and discuss as we wait for the return of sports in America.

As you can expect, Michael Jordan and the old Chicago Bulls have been all anybody has talked about since the series debuted on Sunday night. And recently, the Bulls' former General Manager, Rod Thorn, revealed an interesting tidbit regarding Jordan and the Philadelphia 76ers.

Back in 1984, before the Bulls acquired the UNC standout that was Michael Jordan, Chicago's General Manager at the time, Rod Thorn, heard a few offers from inquiring franchises. It was clear that Jordan was going to become the No. Three overall pick in the draft, but Thorn had to weigh out his options as most GM's would. 

While there were tons of "lesser" offers on the table, Thorn recently told David Kaplan on ESPN 1000 in Chicago that Philly and Dallas proposed "really strong offers," to try and trade up for Michael Jordan. Obviously, the deals weren't strong enough. In hindsight, Thorn would've looked like a fool trading the pick that became Michael Jordan away. Fortunately for him, that's not the case. 

The Sixers ended up with Charles Barkley that season and still had themselves a solid team at the time. Therefore, missing out on Jordan wasn't a huge blow. Looking back on it now, however, I'm sure nobody would've complained about landing a player who is recognized as arguably one of the greatest players of all time. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s Philadelphia 76ers On SI Network. Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia Threads: @JGrassoMedia

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