When Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan clashed in practice

It is pretty much common knowledge that Michael Jordan was almost as intense during Chicago Bulls' practices as he was during games. There are plenty of stories that confirm this, but it is always great to hear something new in that context as it seemingly keeps adding to the legend of MJ.

MJ would not slow down

Former Bulls player Craig Hodges shared a story with The Washington Post about how Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan brought out the best out of each other.

“I can remember this time in, I think, 1990 when Scottie decided to challenge Michael one day in practice,” Hodges said. “Michael kind of backed up for a half-second. Then he proceeded, literally, to score on Scottie at will. It was incredible. I mean, Scottie Pippen even then was one of the best players in the league and Michael just rained points on him. Scottie had to step back and say, ‘Slow up, man.'”

Hodges helped the Bulls win their first two NBA championships in 1991 and 1992, and him and Larry Bird are the only players that have won three consecutive three-point contests at the NBA All-Star weekend.

Jordan’s intensity in practice was the key to his success

“Practicing against him [Jordan] go heads up, I knew what he was and who he was and as far as him being perhaps the greatest player to play the game. And to know that what I saw in practice was the same stuff that I faced in a game but now I saw it in practice, so I knew what he was about,” Hodges told VladTV.

Jordan is a combined 11-0 in the NBA Finals, gold medal games at the Olympics, FIBA competitions, and the NCAA Tournament Final. He is the only player in league history to score at least 22 points in all his NBA Finals games, and win the NBA MVP, NBA Finals MVP, NBA All-Star Game MVP, NBA Defensive Player of The Year, and NBA Rookie of the Year awards.

The way Jordan practiced had a lot to do with his success. He never backed down from a challenge, and he replicated his intensity in practice against the rest of the NBA.

“Man let me tell you, man we thought this guy was just the devil,” former Bulls forward Horace Grant said in an episode of the ‘Scoop B Radio’ podcast.

“In terms of the way he practiced, we thought that we were the Detroit Pistons or the New York Knicks,” Grant explained. “This guy practiced so hard and if you weren’t on his team in practice you were his enemy. And that’s how driven this man was and that’s why you can say that he was the best player that ever played this game.”