20 years on, the controversy regarding Isaiah Thomas and the Dream Team continues – NBA News
20 years after the NBA “Dream Team” won the Gold Medal at the Barcelona Olympics, the NBA has aired a special documentary celebrating the 20th anniversary of arguably the greatest team ever compiled in any sport.
NBA Hall of Famer Isaiah was one of the people who did not make it to the Dream Team, even though he was at his prime at that time and was one of the best players in the league. However, Thomas seems to have moved on from the whole
issue and said via twitter:
"Today, like all Americans, I congratulate the Dream Team on their anniversary. I am proud of my career in the NBA and have fond memories of going head-to-head with all the members of the team. I can't speak to the selection process
as I wasn't involved.”
Thomas being left out of the Olympic team for the 1992 Summer Games was one of the most controversial decisions of that time. Now at a time when the US Team is about to start preparations for the 2012 London Olympics, Hall of Famer
and Bulls forward Scottie Pippen admitted in the documentary that he did not want Thomas on the Olympic team.
Pippen played for the Chicago Bulls at that time while Thomas was the leader of the Detroit Pistons, the arc rivals of the Bulls in the Eastern Conference.
“He was the guy who would yap at his teammates and say 'Kick them on their a*s. Do whatever you have to do.' No, I didn't want him on the Dream Team. ... I despised how he played the game,'” said Pippen in an interview for the
documentary.
Michael Jordan was also asked if he did not want Thomas to be part of the team in an interview for the documentary. Jordan replied:
“That was one of the stipulations put to me that Isiah wasn't part of the team.”
A few months before the 1992 Olympics, Isaiah Thomas led the Detroit Pistons to the Eastern Conference Finals where they faced Jordan, Pippen and the Chicago Bulls. After a charged up series, the Bulls were able to defeat the Pistons
and become Eastern Conference Champions.
Thomas led his team off the floor and into the locker room before the final buzzer rang, and did not offer the traditional handshake and congratulations to the Bulls team as they walked past them. That incident did not go down
well with many in the NBA.
Former NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik said that the walk off by Thomas and his teammates was a major reason why he was not selected in the squad. He said that everyone had the picture of Thomas walking off the court in their
mind when it came time to pick the team.
The Dream Team was unbeaten in the Olympics and cruised to a gold medal. They defeated all their opponents by an average margin of 44 points, as is still celebrated as arguably the best team to have been formed in any sport.
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