Zeke revealed the only positive of being left out of the 1992 Dream Team.
A pivotal moment in basketball history unfolded during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics when the American Olympic Basketball Team introduced, for the first time, a roster exclusively comprised of active NBA players. Despite all deserving stars getting a place, there was a notable omission, Isiah Thomas, despite averaging 18.5 PPG in the concluded season.
Amidst numerous speculations surrounding the Detroit Pistons’ guard’s exclusion from the Dream Team over the years and multiple players allegedly being against having him on the roster, Zeke found a silver lining in his snub.
Thomas was hurt
During his appearance on the ‘All The Smoke’ podcast, Isiah didn’t hold back as he expressed the profound sense of dejection he felt when he was snubbed from the Dream Team, especially when he believed he rightfully deserved a spot. However, the 12-time All-Star recognized the need to move past this setback for his own well-being.
“Did I wanna be on the team? Absolutely! But I didn’t make it. Now was I mad? Was I upset? I probably went through all those ranges of emotion. But then I’m from the west side of Chicago, so it’s like, ‘Hey, you didn’t make it. What are you gonna do? You can cry about it, or you can move on with your life,'” Thomas said.
“So I just kept moving on. I watched every game and rooted for the USA to win. I had won the gold medal in 1979, and I made the Olympic team in ’80 that was boycotted. Was hoping I’d make this one. I didn’t make it. I don’t know why I didn’t make it. Do I feel like I should’ve been on it? Absolutely.”
Isiah on the only positive of being snubbed from the Dream Team
On the flip side, taking a lighthearted approach to his snub, the two-time NBA Champ humorously pointed out that had he made the team, he would have been just another superstar among many. Instead, being left out brought him more publicity and attention.
“Me not making it has given me more pub than if I would’ve made it,” Thomas hilariously remarked. “There’s always some good and some bad with it. I like the fact that people acknowledge it even if the institutions didn’t acknowledge it. The people acknowledge that I should’ve been on the team, so I’m good with that.”
Safe to say, he might not have been a part of the greatest team ever assembled in basketball history, but he remains the most notable snub of it.