Former Bulls forward Tim Thomas recalls meeting Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen at Mickey Mantle's

Thomas was in awe of MJ's secret-service-like security that followed him out of the restaurant.

Most youngsters looking up to Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen witnessed their greatness on TV. But the former Chicago Bulls forward Tim Thomas had the honor of meeting the two even before he got to the NBA.

Meeting Michael Jordan for the first time 

A Paterson, New Jersey native, Thomas appeared on the ‘Scoop B Radio’ podcast and shared how he visited Jordan and Pippen at their hotel.

Thomas, a standout at Paterson Catholic High School in New Jersey, was a big fan of the 90s Bulls. He used to go to their games at Madison Square Garden and Meadowlands Arena, looking to soak up knowledge from two all-time greats in the making. Only this time, he got to do it firsthand.

“I never really hung with them other than this one time Pip invited me to dinner and they were staying at the Crowne Plaza and Mickey Mantle’s place is right up the street in Central Park. They’re up in Mickey Mantle’s so I walk up in there and they got the entire restaurant shut down,” Thomas said.

According to Thomas, one of Pippen’s agents came to him outside of Mickey Mantle’s, where around 2,000 and 2,500 people were hoping to see the Bulls’ players.

“So I get there right before dinner is over and this is my first time ever meeting Mike. So I met Mike, and Pip and the rest of the team and they were getting ready to walk out and I didn’t even see where security came from for Michael Jordan. But he had about ten guys that came out of nowhere like they were secret service. And that’s a quick walk back and forth to the hotel and they rushed him down the street so fast it was unbelievable," Thomas said.

"I thought he was the president or something. But that was like my first time meeting Mike eye to eye, shaking hands, and meeting the GOAT and as a youngster, I’ll always remember that,” he added.

NBA matchups

Thomas played against Jordan and Pippen as a rookie in the 1997-98 season. His best performance against the two came in a 106-96 win on January 15, 1998, when he put up 12 points and 6 rebounds for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Thomas also played with the Bulls on two different occasions. He was traded to Chicago in 2006 but only played three games with the organization. In 2009, the Bulls once again traded for the forward. This time, he played in 19 games, averaging 5.8 points and 2.3 rebounds in 14.1 minutes on the floor.

The Villanova product played in the NBA for 13 seasons, averaging 11.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 25.9 minutes over 824 games with the 76ers, Bucks, Knicks, Bulls, Suns, Clippers, and Mavericks.