Revisited: "He's still a great player; not a Hall of Famer yet, though" - Michael Jordan refuses to select Steph Curry for all-time pickup game team
In the latest edition of Revisited, we look at Michael Jordan's controversial comments regarding Steph Curry in an interview back in October 2019. Jordan believed back then that Curry, the greatest shooter of all-time, was not yet a Hall of Famer.
"His Airness" was interviewed by Craig Melvin of NBC News and one of their topics was Jordan's selection of teammates for a pickup game several years ago. The Chicago Bulls legend chose Scottie Pippen, Magic Johnson, Hakeem Olajuwon and James Worthy.
Jordan explained that he's still picking the same four players, saying:
"I'm going in the trenches. I played against and with all these guys. I'm going with who I know. Every single night, their responsibility to go out there and represent greatness, every single night."
Craig Melvin then asked Michael Jordan:
"So Steph Curry shouldn't be offended when he watches this?"
MJ replied:
"I hope not. He's still a great player. Not a Hall of Famer yet, though."
MJ says Steph Curry isn’t a Hall of Famer. https://t.co/diQyNi75dk
It was definitely a controversial comment made by Michael Jordan regarding the legacy of Steph Curry. At that point, Curry already had a Hall of Fame resume, so MJ might be joking around with Craig Melvin given his reaction. Nevertheless, Steph is a future first ballot Hall of Famer.
In addition to being the greatest shooter in basketball history, Curry is a three-time NBA champion and two-time NBA MVP. He is also an eight-time NBA All-Star and an All-Star Game MVP, and has eight All-NBA selections. The 34-year-old superstar could still add more accolades to his resume.
Curry and the Golden State Warriors are looking to win their fourth NBA championship together. The Warriors will take on the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals. Golden State are in their sixth NBA Finals since Steve Kerr became head coach in 2014.
What did Steph Curry say about Michael Jordan's comments?
Just a few days after Michael Jordan made his comments about Steph Curry, the Warriors superstar immediately responded. In an interview on SiriusXM NBA Radio, Curry was good with MJ's thoughts about him before calling Jordan the GOAT.
"I love MJ. That's my guy. He's obviously... he's the GOAT, but I don't know if it was a wordsmith thing or if he just kinda got in his own way. But I'm sure if you ask him that question now, like straight-up, does he think I'm getting in there, he probably would have a different answer. If you put the 'yet,' then I'm cool with that," Curry said.
Stephen Curry responds to Michael Jordan saying he's not yet a Hall of Famer. 👀 Stephen Curry responds to Michael Jordan saying he's not yet a Hall of Famer. 👀
#DubNation @GregAnthony50 @TermineRadio https://t.co/gGILy94KQB
The two legends of the NBA would later sit down together and talk about their love for golf and basketball. Their conversation took place last September at the 2021 Ryder Cup, a golf competition between the United States and Europe. Michael Jordan and Steph Curry even talked about the former's comments, but those were edited out.
Here's what Steph said about it on the "Hoops, Adjacent" podcast with David Aldridge and Marcus Thompson III of The Athletic:
"That was the first question, and they just edited it out. He said, 'First-ballot, Hall of Fame, no problem.'"
Winning the 2022 Finals will make Curry's case to become a Hall-of-Famer even greater.