"Stop that s**t man" - Former NBA champion reminds Ja Morant that he doesn’t want to face prime Michael Jordan
Ja Morant made headlines last month when he claimed that he could take on a prime Michael Jordan. Morant is never short on confidence, but a former NBA champion wants to remind the Memphis Grizzlies star how good MJ was during his prime.
In an interview with Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report last month, Morant discussed how he would "cook" Jordan if they played one-on-one. The soon-to-be 23-year-old guard did praise "His Airness" before making his headline-grabbing comments.
"I wish I played in his generation," Morant said. "I heard he was, like how high he go about the game, just that mindset. I would have liked to play against him. I would have cooked him, too. Nobody got more confidence than 12."
"I would've cooked him too" 😂
@JaMorant is confident he would've beat Michael Jordan in his era https://t.co/TEKJtcgqJC
Some praised Morant for his confidence, while others were critical of his comments. Former NBA champion Vernon Maxwell, who knows a thing or two about defending Jordan, has a reminder for Morant and other young players in the league.
"All these kids talk a lot of s**t," Maxwell said on the "No Chill" podcast. "Ja, you know I love you and your dad, but hey man, stop that s**t man. You ain't want them problems. I'm telling you, Ja. I'm looking at all these damn cameras, yeah, you don't want them problems."
Maxwell, a major part of the Houston Rockets' championship run in 1994, also recalled playing against a prime Jordan. The eccentric "Mad Max" had sleepless nights whenever he had to face the Chicago Bulls.
"You put that damn mark on Chicago and the night before, it's sleepless nights man," Maxwell said. "That s**t be rough. I mean think about the s**t what you got to do tomorrow and you don't wanna get embarrassed. And you know this motherf***er don't know how to stop coming at you. He'll just keep coming and coming, keep that damn foot on your throat and he just keep coming, man."
"I mean you just have to try and do some s**t to him that nobody else ever did to try to get him off his square. But you can't touch him, you can't do nothing him, man. I just tried to do s**t that nobody else would do to him, but Mike is Mike, man. The best player ever man I ever played because I never thought I'd see nothing like that, man."
.@VernonMaxwell11 is here to remind these young players (e.g. @JaMorant) that they don't want no part of prime Michael Jordan
😂😂😂
@KingJosiah54 x Agent Zero x Mad Max: youtu.be/-w5lTG5KYeY https://t.co/SD3siW8Lg2
Michael Jordan against Vernon Maxwell during his career
Michael Jordan has faced Vernon Maxwell 17 times during his career, with a 10-7 record. In those 17 games, Jordan averaged 30.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.2 steals. He shot 49.8% from the field and 42.6% from beyond the arc, per StatMuse.
Jordan and Maxwell never faced each other in the postseason. For many, the Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets were a dream matchup, but it never materialized in the 1990s. The Bulls won six championships in that decade, while the Rockets won two in between Chicago's three-peats.