Clyde Drexler has hit back at Michael Jordan following the former Chicago Bulls star’s comments on taking offense to his being compared to the Portland Trail Blazers legend during a certain point in his career.
Drexler, also one of the best shooting guards in NBA history, had some memorable battles with MJ and his raw athleticism made it so he drew comparisons with the six-time NBA champ in his heyday. During an interview in The Last Dance, however, Michael indicated he wasn’t happy with the juxtaposition.
“I’m not saying [Clyde] wasn’t a threat. But me being compared to him, I took offense to that,” Jordan explained.
Drexler fired back at Jordan this week, suggesting he should be showing some more love and respect to his former opponents right now as that’s the way it usually happens with former rivals even if they disliked each other when they played.
“That’s Michael’s documentary so obviously it’s going to be from his perspective,” Drexler told SportsTalk 790. “Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. A lot of times guys didn’t like each other from other teams, but as you get older, you’ve got to get beyond all of that and show some love and some respect for the people you played with and against.
“This is a team game, it’s not one guy. You can have 50 points and 40 rebounds, but if you lose, are you less of a player than anybody on the other team? No, it’s a team game. So I hate when people act like it’s an individual competition. I didn’t take 35 shots and get 20 free throws a night, so I wasn’t going to score 40 points a night.”
Drexler was part of the Blazers team that lost to the Bulls in the 1992 NBA Finals but he went on to win a championship with the Houston Rockets three years later.
Meanwhile NBA TV is set to release a documentary on the Trail Blazers at the end of May.
