Jim Jackson truly loves Jordan. Not the one you’re thinking of, but the brand – Air Jordan. Jackson revealed that he owns more than 300 pairs of Air Jordans. His love for the Jordan sneakers is only matched by his respect and admiration for the man after whom the brand is named. Michael Jordan and Jim Jackson had some great on-court duels throughout the 90s. The pair was also involved in a funny incident after Jordan’s Bulls had defeated Jackson’s Nets. After the match, Jackson, who had scored more points than MJ in the game, was humorously trolled by the latter for wearing his shoes during the game.
This was yet another example of one of MJ’s famous trash-talks. His ability to trash-talk his way inside an opponent’s head to break their concentration was second to none. He also used it as fuel to elevate his own game. Pairing his trash-talking abilities with his god-like talent and relentless hard work made him the toughest opponent for many players. Not for Jim Jackson, though. When asked about his toughest opponent on-court, Jackson gave a very quirky answer.
Recently appearing on the Dan Patrick Show, Jackson was asked who his most annoying opponent and he promptly replied, “Muggsy Bogues. It’s not even close.” Even Dan Patrick looked surprised at Jackson’s pick. The former star explained that because of Muggsy’s short stature, it was very difficult to defend against him.
“In my second year, I am playing for Dallas. I am playing point guard when we play Charlotte, and you know Muggsy is like 5’2 with some insoles. Even though he did not have the height, his advantage was – the further you were away from the basket, he would use his speed and quickness, and his size was not a liability anymore,” said Jackson, “and that annoyed the heck out of me.”
For context, standing at 5’3, Muggsy Bogues is the shortest player to have ever played in the NBA. He defied all odds by playing for 14 years in a league where the average height of a player is 6’6. And he wasn’t a bench-warmer either, spending most of his career as a starter.
Bogues was truly a one-of-a-kind player, and in a largely successful career, was also involved in an incident with Michael Jordan. His Airness reportedly called him ‘Midget,’ which supposedly had an effect on the rest of his career.
Did MJ really call Muggsy Bogues a ‘Midget’?
In the 1995 NBA playoffs, MJ’s Bulls came up against Muggsy’s Hornets. The Hornets were down one in the fourth quarter when Bogues got the ball and had a pretty clear shot at the basket. As Muggsy was about to pull up for an unchallenged midrange jumper, MJ shouted, “Shoot it, you f—— midget,” which resulted in Muggsy missing the shot. After this miss, a myth developed that this moment started the downfall of Muggsy Bogues.
But Muggsy has publicly debunked any claims that Jordan called him that nasty word. Muggsy asserts that this story is fictional and made up on the internet. “It was some stuff that was going around the internet where they say he called me a midget, which is not true. They felt like he had some kind of impact, which is not true. He always called me ‘Short lil fella’,” Muggsy said on the All the Smoke podcast.
Muggsy revealed that he and Michael Jordan have immense respect for each other and have a very amicable relationship. Even after all these years, the pair continue with their friendly banter. “He always liked to f—– with me. Even till this day, he’ll put his hand up high for me to give him a high-five, and I’ll put my hand down low, you come down to give me a low-five. So it’s just the way we compete against one another,” Muggsy added.
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The post Unlike Michael Jordan, 5ft 3 “Midget” Was a Nightmare as Jim Jackson Recounts Annoying Encounter appeared first on EssentiallySports.
