NBA legend Michael Jordan rarely made friends on the court.
He had one job: dominate the opposition. It was part of his persona that led to a Hall of Fame career with six championships and many fans calling him the greatest ever.
There was one opponent, however, who Jordan had nothing but love for. That distinction belonged to Detroit Pistons guard Joe Dumars.
“I will say this,” Dumars said during an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show. “He and I matched up against each other for 14 straight years. In those 14 years, never once did he try to trash talk me and never once did I try to trash talk him.”
The respect was weird because Dumars played for Jordan’s biggest rival. Jordan lost to the Pistons three straight seasons before finally breaking through in 1991. He wasn’t too fond of any Detroit players except for Dumars.
Dumars was the only player to shake Jordan’s hand when the Pistons infamously walked off the court in the closing seconds after they were swept in the conference finals.
“It was toe to toe, nose to nose for 14 straight years and we never said a negative word to each other on the court,” Dumars said. “I respected him and so we ended up having a real, real mutual respect for each other. Those years that we beat them there, he’d walk over every single time, shake my hand and go, `Good luck in the Finals, man.’ I could see he was devastated with the loss.