ESPN’s preview of next week is a peek at the Michael Jordan v Steve Kerr practice fight pic.twitter.com/SNXdFQTqEA
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) May 4, 2020
We all know the story of the practice fight between Steve Kerr and Michael Jordan in the fall of 1995, but a clip from an upcoming episode of ESPN’s “The Last Dance” has given us new details.
Here’s it told by the parties in question:
MJ: “So one day at practice, Phil [Jackson] puts Steve Kerr guarding me.”
Kerr: “We’re on opposite sides of a scrimmage and he’s talking all kinds of trash. I’m pissed because we’re getting our ass kicked.”
MJ: “Phil sensed my aggression, but he was trying to tone me down, and he starts calling these ticky-tack fouls. Now I’m getting mad because for you to be protecting this guy, it’s not going to help us when we play New York. It’s not going to help us when we play teams that are very physical.
“Next time he did it I just hauled off and…when I fouled Steve Kerr I said that’s a f—ing foul.”
Kerr: “I have a lot of patience as a human being but I tend to snap at some point because I’m extremely competitive too. I’m just not really good enough to back it up usually, but I’m going. I’m going to fight.”
MJ: “He hauls off and hits me in the chest, and I just haul off and hit him right in the f—ing eye. And Phil throws me out of practice.”
If there is footage of this incident, the next episode of “The Last Dance” will be the best one.