No one ever lives up to the billing of “The next Michael Jordan.” The six-time NBA champion is arguably the best player to ever lace ‘em up and comparing anyone with him side-by-side is an unfair exercise.
What made Jordan so special? Was there any way to slow him?
On the latest episode of the Purple Talk podcast, two former outstanding NBA defenders in Mitch Richmond and Doug Christie talked about what it was like to face Jordan and what approach they took in attempting to slow him.
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“He was such a talent that if you didn’t come and play on the defensive end, he could get 60 on you,” Hall of Fame guard Mitch Richmond said of Jordan. “If you did come and play hard and play aggressive and made him fight for everything he did or everything he tried to get, he’d get 30. It was very hard to stop him, but what I would do was be physical with him.”
Richmond was known as one of the better two-way players in the game during his 14-year NBA career. Jordan even told media members during the 1990s that Richmond was the toughest matchup for him in the league.
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The two shooting guards did battle plenty of times, but Richmond pointed out the development of Jordan’s game from a young player to the one that became more than just a pure scorer.
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“We talk about Michael Jordan when he first came into the league, how difficult it was to guard him because he was at such a different pace than everyone was,” Richmond said. “He was coming at you 24/7 and really not using a pick, really not playing with the other guys, he was just so dominant with the ball. He could do so many different things.”
Known for his strength and toughness, Richmond had no choice but to get physical and hope to push Jordan around. That changed as Jordan evolved as a player.
“When he first came in, he was fast, he was quick, he was all those things, but he wasn’t strong,” Richmond said. “Everything early on was just at flight. Later on, when he started playing with the team, when he started doing everything down low, bodying you, he started lifting weights, posting more, he tinkered off his game a bit with his speed.”
In addition to being physical, Richmond also went about his business in a workmanlike fashion. He showed respect and let his play speak for him.
“I never really talked to him, I really just tried to play him each and every night hard,” Richmond said. “He still got his 30 points. I still got my 30 points, but it was just a great battle.”
While Christie wasn’t built like Richmond, he had the length, size and agility to at least challenge Jordan. He, too, found that getting handsy with the five-time MVP was the best approach.
“When I played against him, and that was the 72-win year, I tried to be extremely physical with him,” Christie said. “One thing I always appreciated about Mike was he never cried. He would just handle his business. If you were physical, he was going to be physical.”
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Outside of being physical, Christie would try to take little things away from Jordan in hopes of making life just a little bit difficult for the 10-time scoring champ.
“I would try to force him off of his spot, make him shoot a jump shot -- the point is, you’ve got to pick your poison,” Christie said. “If you let him get in the air, if you let him get to the basket, it’s pretty much a wrap. Not only will he get fouled, but he’ll finish.”
Regardless of how Richmond and Christie defended Jordan, he usually found a way to put up big numbers. The only hope that any player had against Jordan and his Bulls, especially in the 1990s, was that you did enough to slow him down to make the game competitive.