Michael Jordan said he wouldn't have tried to pull a LeBron and unite with Bird or Magic because he'd rather beat them than play with them. Yet when Michael was at his peak, Bird was a bad-back shell of his dominant self. Michael only beat Magic once in the Finals before the Laker great's first retirement.
The Bulls' greatest nemesis and contemporary challengers were the Bad Boys of the Detroit Pistons. Isiah Thomas, who Michael banished from the Dream Team. Bill Laimbeer, the king of dirty. And 2 time Defensive Player of the Year Dennis Rodman.
The Bulls struggled mightily to get past the Pistons in the playoffs during the '80s. The Pistons used physical and sometimes dirty tactics to knock the Bulls off balance and keep them out of rhythm. Dennis Rodman once launched Scottie Pippen into the stands giving him 6 stitches in his chin. When Chicago finally beat the Pistons, the Bad Boys left the court without congratulating them. No love. Isiah, Laimbeer & Rodman were all unliked undesirables to the Chicago Bulls.
While the Bulls were winning their first 3 championships with Jordan, Pippen and Horace Grant, Dennis Rodman became the most dominant rebounder in basketball. He'd led the league in boards for 4 straight seasons, including 2 years with the Spurs while Jordan bailed on the Bulls and basketball to take his talents to the Birmingham Barons of baseball.
When Jordan finally returned to the Bulls, they were sorely lacking paint presence due to Horace Grant's departure for Orlando. With MJ's approval, coach Phil Jackson and general manager Jerry Krauss arranged a trade for Rodman. The key was getting Pippen's approval since Scottie still wore a scar on his chin from Rodman's dirty work. Scottie went right along with the plan, trying to get another ring.
One of the main guys that Michael & Scottie had poured sweat and blood to beat was welcomed as a member of the Bulls. The Big 3 of the mid 90s.
Admittedly, the circumstances with LeBron, Wade & Bosh are different from Michael, Scottie and Dennis. Yet it still rings hollow to have past greats claiming that they'd never have done what today's players are doing when in some ways, they made or encouraged similar moves to unite with other dominant rivals in order to facilitate getting rings.
Michael Jordan never won a ring without a dominant power forward. He never even won a playoff series without a strong paint beast like Charles Oakley, Grant or Rodman. MJ was most definitely one of the all-time greats, but he needed help as much as LeBron does.
LeBron's move to Miami is cheesy and calculated. But it's really just a player putting himself in a front office mentality to help make a better team. If Jordan wouldn't have had the hated Crumbs Krauss doing front office dirty work to get the likes of former foe Rodman in Chicago, he may have been forced to do the same.
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