NBA legend reveals who Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley were as tyrants, revealing dark details about the 1992 Dream Team

Like many other professional sports leagues, bullying of rookies is an age-old practice in the NBA. No matter how many accolades come out of college basketball, people can’t shake that off easily. Two-time NCAA champion Christian Laettner appeared on an episode of “The Rich Eisen Show” and recalled his time as a rookie on the 1992 U.S. Men’s Olympic Basketball Team (Dream Team). Laettner revealed how he faced senior players at the time. Especially Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley, even though, as he claimed, they both had a good sense of humor.

Laettner said he faced some bullying during the first practice session. But once the senior players realized he could handle it athletically, he stayed out of trouble. “Once they see that I’m not doing that and that I know my position, and I realize that I’m a rookie or a freshman, I’m willing to bring them donuts and cigars after practice and pick up their dirty laundry. “They nice to me,”

Duke Legend said. He further mentioned that Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley were among the players who assigned him the most tasks.

He further mentioned that Jordan liked to tell him what to do and called him “Dukee.” “So they were all having fun at my expense. I loved every second of it,” Christian Leitner said. The former Minnesota Timberwolves big man recalls the experience as one he could relive just for the memories. “You know, there are a lot of pictures in books and photo albums where I’m sitting next to Jordan talking to him, or he’s teasing me about the Carolina-Duke rivalry,” He said.

However, for all the rookie players, the experience was more than just a good memory. There are also many cases where rookie bullying gets out of hand.

Some Extreme Rookie Bullying Stories in the NBA

Rookie hazing in the NBA can range from simply doing laundry to NBA stars to ending up in some unique scenarios. One such story, written by Chris Webber and Jason Williams, walks the line between humor and extreme extremes. Weber recalled the story during a 2020 NBA broadcast on TNT. He admitted to having J-Will take his luggage on a bus chassis from the airport to the team hotel.

However, “White Chocolate” himself doesn’t think this is an extreme story, as he witnessed it firsthand with Gordan Jilicek with the Memphis Grizzlies. According to Williams, there was one time when Giricek refused to bring donuts to the vet, even after being asked multiple times. Apparently, Jiricek didn’t consider himself a rookie due to his professional basketball experience in Croatia and Russia.

“So at the end of practice, they put a dumpster… they dumped everything in there. The pipe taped his legs… with hands behind his back, butt naked, and put him in Laundry bin, fill it with ice, roll him in the shower… leave his ass in there for like three hours, bro…”

Jason Williams recalls.

However, the most disgusting rookie bullying story was told by Gary Payton on VLAD TV. Shaquille O’Neal has Shaquille O’Neal written all over it. “If one of the rookies was in the stall, then he (Shaq) would get a bucket and use the bathroom inside for about a week. Then all of a sudden he would pour it on them, so we started joking,” Payton said. What’s the craziest rookie bullying story you remember hearing? Let us know your favorite one in the comments.