Where Isiah Thomas goes, scandal follows. Even if it comes from out of the past and is thrust upon him by two of the game's most beloved legends. In this case, Magic Johnson calls out Zeke for a litany of things in the forthcoming When the Game Was Ours, a book co-authored with Larry Bird and Jackie MacMullan. From Sports Illustrated:
Much of their story involves Thomas, who as captain of the Detroit Pistons served as a primary threat to the championship ambitions of Bird's Celtics and Magic's Lakers.
The book offers revelations that have stunned Thomas. Magic addresses years of rumors by finally accusing Thomas of questioning his sexuality after Johnson was diagnosed with HIV in 1991. Magic also admits that he joined with Michael Jordan and other players in blackballing Thomas from the 1992 Olympic Dream Team, saying, "Isiah killed his own chances when it came to the Olympics. Nobody on that team wanted to play with him. ... Michael didn't want to play with him. Scottie [Pippen] wanted no part of him. Bird wasn't pushing for him. Karl Malone didn't want him. Who was saying, 'We need this guy?' Nobody.''
I like that "much of their story" has to do with Isiah, as if they've either been waiting years to settle the score or the NBA's glory days couldn't have happened without that rascally Piston. Anyway, Ian Thomsen got Zeke's side of the story in abundance:
"I'm glad that he's finally had the nerve and the courage to stand up and say it was him, as opposed to letting Michael Jordan take the blame for it all these years. I wish he would have had the courage to say this stuff to me face to face, as opposed to writing it in some damn book to sell and he can make money off it.''
Isiah and Magic were great friends during their playing days and have remained on good terms, so it's not surprising to see him cut Johnson a little slack. But things get really hairy really fast when it comes to Thomas's supposed gossiping about Magic's sexuality.
As Zeke says, "What most people don't know is, before Magic had HIV, my brother had HIV. My brother died of HIV, AIDS, drug abuse. So I knew way more about the disease, because I was living with it in my house.'' That's also where you get the sense that, for real, it's on.
As much of a laughingstock as Thomas has become, you have to feel for him here. Not only does he feel betrayed, but he's getting accused of spreading rumors on a subject that, based on personal experience, he'd never be so ignorant about. What remains to be seen is if he's got enough credibility left to launch the meme that "There's this public person and then there's this b.s. person. There's Earvin and then there's Magic."
In a way, that already happened with the HIV announcement, but Magic was still never outted as a jerk in the way Jordan was. Who knows if that will end up being an unexpected upshot of this book
Much of their story involves Thomas, who as captain of the Detroit Pistons served as a primary threat to the championship ambitions of Bird's Celtics and Magic's Lakers.
The book offers revelations that have stunned Thomas. Magic addresses years of rumors by finally accusing Thomas of questioning his sexuality after Johnson was diagnosed with HIV in 1991. Magic also admits that he joined with Michael Jordan and other players in blackballing Thomas from the 1992 Olympic Dream Team, saying, "Isiah killed his own chances when it came to the Olympics. Nobody on that team wanted to play with him. ... Michael didn't want to play with him. Scottie [Pippen] wanted no part of him. Bird wasn't pushing for him. Karl Malone didn't want him. Who was saying, 'We need this guy?' Nobody.''
I like that "much of their story" has to do with Isiah, as if they've either been waiting years to settle the score or the NBA's glory days couldn't have happened without that rascally Piston. Anyway, Ian Thomsen got Zeke's side of the story in abundance:
"I'm glad that he's finally had the nerve and the courage to stand up and say it was him, as opposed to letting Michael Jordan take the blame for it all these years. I wish he would have had the courage to say this stuff to me face to face, as opposed to writing it in some damn book to sell and he can make money off it.''
Isiah and Magic were great friends during their playing days and have remained on good terms, so it's not surprising to see him cut Johnson a little slack. But things get really hairy really fast when it comes to Thomas's supposed gossiping about Magic's sexuality.
As Zeke says, "What most people don't know is, before Magic had HIV, my brother had HIV. My brother died of HIV, AIDS, drug abuse. So I knew way more about the disease, because I was living with it in my house.'' That's also where you get the sense that, for real, it's on.
As much of a laughingstock as Thomas has become, you have to feel for him here. Not only does he feel betrayed, but he's getting accused of spreading rumors on a subject that, based on personal experience, he'd never be so ignorant about. What remains to be seen is if he's got enough credibility left to launch the meme that "There's this public person and then there's this b.s. person. There's Earvin and then there's Magic."
In a way, that already happened with the HIV announcement, but Magic was still never outted as a jerk in the way Jordan was. Who knows if that will end up being an unexpected upshot of this book
