Magic Johnson: I helped to keep Isiah off 1992 Dream Team

[stuart]

http://www.interbasket.net/news/2009/10/22/magic-isiah-feud-over-gay-rumors-dream-team/

Pretty amazing stuff here....

Stuart

[SwaggaLikeThat]

Wow who would have thought? The dream team might now have been the same so maybe it was for the best

[stuart]

As a child of the 1980s, I am eating all this stuff up... somewhere in all this, is the truth.

http://www.interbasket.net/news/2009/10/22/magic-isiah-feud-over-gay-rumors-dream-team/

Stuart

In a new book When The Game Was Ours, which was co-written by NBA legends Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, offers up interesting tidbits and insight from the main players during the golden age of NBA basketball, the 1980s.

Much of the book and drama centers around Isiah Thomas.

Despite appearances that Isiah Thomas and Magic Johnson were good friends, Magic details that appearances are certainly not as they seem.

Magic would admit in the book that he was part of the reason why Isiah Thomas was not selected for the 1992 US Olympic Team, otherwise known as the Dream Team.

(Discuss the Magic-Isiah feud in our forum)

Magic also goes on to blame Isiah for spreading rumors during his controversial retirement from basketball because he had contracted the HIV virus. And Isiah Thomas would respond to all the new tantalizing information.

Magic joined Jordan, others in keeping Isiah off ‘92 Team
Magic admits in the book, which was also co-authored by Sports Illustrated’s Jackie MacMullan, that he joined Michael Jordan in blackballing Thomas:

“Isiah killed his own chances when it came to the Olympics. Nobody on that team wanted to play with him. … Michael didn’t want to play with him. Scottie [Pippen] wanted no part of him. Bird wasn’t pushing for him. Karl Malone didn’t want him. Who was saying, ‘We need this guy?’ Nobody.’

Isiah Thomas responded to SI.com: “I’m glad that he’s finally had the nerve and the courage to stand up and say it was him, as opposed to letting Michael Jordan take the blame for it all these years,” Thomas said.

“I wish (Magic) would have had the courage to say this stuff to me face to face, as opposed to writing it in some damn book to sell and he can make money off it.”

Gay Rumors at the core
What seems to have irked Magic Johnson, and was likely the reason the NBA Hall-of-Famer joined other Dream Team members in blackballing Isiah from the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, was his belief that the 6-1 guard was the source of rumors questioning Magic’s sexuality.

“Isiah kept questioning people about it,” Magic says. “I couldn’t believe that. The one guy I thought I could count on had all these doubts. It was like he kicked me in the stomach.”

Isiah also had a response, denying his involvement in the rumor-mongering: “What most people don’t know is, before Magic had HIV, my brother had HIV,” Thomas said. “My brother died of HIV, AIDS, drug abuse. So I knew way more about the disease, because I was living with it in my house.”

“I don’t discriminate,” Thomas continued. “I don’t believe any race or ethnic group or social group should be discriminated against, because I have been discrimated against, and I know it would be wrong for me to discriminate.”

“I think Magic has been misled on a lot of things, and unfortunately this has been another one of them. I am hurt and disappointed that he has chosen to believe others as opposed to his closest friends.”

1988 Finals: Beginning of the End
“When we got to the ['88] Finals, our relationship became very different,” Thomas admitted. “It was OK for us to be friends when we weren’t competing with the Lakers, but when we started competing with the Lakers, our friendship changed. I remember my son was born in ‘88 during the NBA Finals and Magic wouldn’t even come to the hospital.”

After Thomas suffered a severe ankle sprain in Game 6 of that series — he set an NBA Finals record with 25 points in the third quarter despite the injury — the Lakers refused to let him use their training facilities, he said. “I tried calling Magic on the phone and he wouldn’t take my phone calls,” said Thomas, who got help from an unlikely source, the Los Angeles Raiders.

Isiah Thomas feels blindsided and said that he was never confronted about allegedly spreading the rumors that hurt Magic so much.

“If he was feeling this way, why was he shaking my hand and kissing me and acting like he and I were such buddies?” Thomas said. “Why do you do that?

“People who know me and my family and what I stand for will laugh at Magic and his beliefs. I’m tired of getting punched and people using me because they think I’m not going to say anything. Those days are over. Game on.”

To read the whole article, go to CNN/SI.com

[glho1964]

Isiah is certainly no saint, but this stuff seems like it is only in there to sell books. While I was never an Isiah fan, I also never believed the guy was spreading rumors, and if Magic really believed it, why did he remain friends?

[Dtown]

Wow shocking stuff. The truth is probably somewhere in between, still just like Isiah mentioned I always assumed it was Jordan.

[J-Mart]

Thanks Magic!!

[Czarkazem13]

Wow shocking stuff. The truth is probably somewhere in between, still just like Isiah mentioned I always assumed it was Jordan.

Yeah, all these years I've always heard it was Jordan with no mention of other players (like Pippen, Malone, Bird and of course Magic).

[stuart]

Yeah, all these years I've always heard it was Jordan with no mention of other players (like Pippen, Malone, Bird and of course Magic).

I think Pippen was the only one to come out publicly against Isiah - the others (Jordan, Bird, Malone) all were against him, but behind closed doors.

Scottie Pippen didn't help to quell any of the rumors by labeling Zeke a cheap-shot artist and saying that he wouldn't play on the Olympic team if Thomas was one of the two players added to fill out the squad.

http://www.interbasket.net/players/usa/dreamteam.htm

Stuart

[damelo]

Nowing how Bird loved Isiah Thomas, I would've thought he was the main guy behind it. Jordan and the Bad Boys may not have been great friends.

But, Magic and Isiah were known to be in good terms, and Magic was the universal friend, no?

[HIGHLANDER]

Weird stuff

[Czarkazem13]

Despite feelings against Isiah (and his post-playing career full of disasters), I still feel he belonged on the team (robbed). He is one of the peers (and lose Laettner), but players and execs didn't want him (you would think Daly would of), what can you do?

[Khalid80]

Poor Isiah . how much sh*t does this guy need to take in his life.

[VI_Baller]

Magic didn't need to air this dirty laundry, after so many years. If he had a problem with Isiah, it should have been handled privately.

It looks to me like Magic is just piling on a very unpopular public figure in order to sell books. Charles Barkely said as much in a radio interview I just listened to.

[Lebron23]

Despite feelings against Isiah (and his post-playing career full of disasters), I still feel he belonged on the team (robbed). He is one of the peers (and lose Laettner), but players and execs didn't want him (you would think Daly would of), what can you do?

Yeah,

Dominique Wilkins and Isiah Thomas belonged on the 1992 Dream Team.