“Michael and Magic went opposite teams, they would have a go at each other” - Chris Mullin on Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson’s trash talk during practice sessions for the ‘Dream Team’
Michael Jordan led Team USA to a gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The "Dream Team" consisted of legendary players and is often considered the greatest team ever assembled. The team's legendary final scrimmage in Monte Carlo, Monaco took place days before the Olympics.
In the latest episode of The Icons Club podcast of The Ringer, Jackie MacMullan featured several quotes from members of the "Dream Team" regarding the scrimmage in Monaco. Chris Mullin remembered the trash talk between Jordan and Magic Johnson during the most famous practice game in basketball history.
"Michael and Magic went opposite teams and know they would have a go at each other and and then hype up whoever they were playing with. I think, especially Money Carlo, that scrimmage was a huge trash-talking event with Michael and Magic," Mullin said.
The Dream Team was the greatest collection of basketball talent ever, but the team symbolized much more.
Their dominance in the ’92 Olympics transformed basketball into a global phenomenon.
This is #IconsClub with Jackie MacMullan: open.spotify.com/episode/2R6vPY…
The legendary scrimmage was between the white team and blue team. The white team was captained by Michael Jordan. His teammates were Larry Bird, Karl Malone, Scottie Pippen and Patrick Ewing.
Meanwhile, the blue team was led by Magic Johnson, with Charles Barkley, David Robinson, Chris Mullin and Christian Laettner. John Stockton and Clyde Drexler, who were also members of the "Dream Team," were out due to nagging injuries.
The scrimmage was held in an empty gym in Monte Carlo with no fans or media. There were no game officials, so there were no written records or box scores for the game. According to ESPN, Jordan's team won the game 40-36, coming back from a nine-point deficit.
Michael Jordan on the greatest game he's ever played in
Michael Jordan has played 1,251 total games in his NBA career, 1,072 in the regular season and 179 in the playoffs. But out of those games, Jordan chose a scrimmage as the greatest he's ever played in. It was the final practice game in Monte Carlo back in 1992.
In an interview with Michael Wilbon of ESPN, Jordan was asked about the legendary scrimmage. "His Airness" called it the greatest game he's ever played in and praised it for showing the beauty of basketball.
"Greatest game I've ever played in. All the beautiful things about the game of basketball were illustrated in that one particular game. If you culminate everybody in the Hall of Fame and every game they played in, and you envision a game being played, that’s how that game was played," Jordan said.
In the white team's 40-36 win over the blue team, Michael Jordan scored 17 points, while Karl Malone and Scottie Pippen had nine and eight points, respectively. Charles Barkley led the blue team with 11 points and Christian Laettner added 10 points.
The "Dream Team" went on to dominate the 1992 Olympics en route to the gold medal. They were 8-0 during the tournament, outscoring their opponents by an absurd average margin of 43.8 points.