A little more has come to light in the controversy of the unamicable Detroit Pistons walk-off vs. the Chicago Bulls reignited by the ESPN Michael Jordan documentary, “The Last Dance”.
Former Boston Celtics big man legend Kevin McHale spoke with the Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett about what happened at the end of the series the Pistons beat Boston in 1988, used to explain the Pistons’ behavior towards the Bulls, who left the court in the loss refusing to shake hands with Chicago.
McHale disagrees with some — but not all — of Pistons point guard Isiah Thomas, noting that the longtime Boston foe was actually not inaccurate about the culture of the game in that era.
NEW in the Sunday Herald:
Kevin McHale takes you inside the walk-out against the Pistons and discusses what it was like to try to beat Michael Jordan as both a player and GM.He also has sympathy for Jerry Krause, while explaining how Red was different. https://t.co/l5LX68AjNp
— Steve Bulpett (@SteveBHoop) May 10, 2020
“I’m going to tell you this: of all the series that I played in all through the ’80s, after a close-out game, unless you were walking with somebody you knew, you almost never said anything,” he began.
“You might congratulate them if you saw them later, but there wasn’t a lot of talk, I mean, congratulatory or [smack]-talking or anything … You just kind of went in the locker room. Ninety percent of the series we won, I didn’t talk to anybody.”
“They didn’t come up to me, and I didn’t think they should,” added the three-time NBA champion.
He also didn’t mind the physical play, suggesting the Bulls “complained all the time,” noting ” their physicality never bothered us. I thought their physicality made us play better.”
But, on the issue of how that Detroit-Boston playoff series in 1988 ended, McHale related a version true to the refutations of Thomas’ version of events.
Scottie Pippen was almost traded to the Boston Celtics in 1997 https://t.co/KlhPR3zIuT via @thecelticswire
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) May 4, 2020
“Someone told us to get out of there before they stormed the court,” he explained.
“Security people guided the Celts off, as fans began invading the floor with three seconds left and the Pistons going to the free throw line. You had a really long walk to get out of there … It wasn’t like the Garden or other places. You had a hundred yards probably before you got to the entryway to the locker rooms.”
This largely corroborates the version of events given by a Celtics staffer in contrast to Thomas’ take after he reiterated those old claims in the ESPN documentary.
McHale did have a conversation with the Pistons point guard, who he considers a friend to this day despite those tough battles.
WATCH: Larry Bird's top-10 moments of his Boston Celtics career https://t.co/HClk9demcg via @thecelticswire
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) May 6, 2020
“I knew Isiah from the Pan-Am Games, and Zeke and I have always been friends,” said the seven-time All-Star.
“He said something to me, and I said, ‘Hey, man, look, it feels just as bad to lose in The Finals as it does to lose in the Eastern Conference finals.’ I said, ‘This [expletive]’s not over with. You guys got another series to play, so don’t celebrate too much.’ I said that, then I walked off.”
“That was just my advice to him as a friend,” McHale finished.
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