"I told Jordan he was overrated, I rooted against him his whole career" - Jalen Rose opens up about hating Michael Jordan and the Bulls

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"I told Jordan he was overrated, I rooted against him his whole career" - Jalen Rose opens up about hating Michael Jordan and the Bulls originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Growing up supporting a particular NBA franchise means you're married to its history. It means the highs and lows of the organization are ingrained in your memory, and the good times pulsate through your veins as if you were on the court yourself. For Detroit native Jalen Rose, that was his reality. Rose grew up a diehard Detroit Pistons fan and rode the waves of their struggles and success.
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Throughout his childhood and into his teenage years, Detroit basketball was his everything. He was lucky enough to witness their back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990, as well as their heated rivalry with Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. So when the Pistons famously decided to leave the court early and not shake the Bulls' hands in 1991, Rose personally felt part of that walk-off.
The Pistons' hatred towards the Bulls continued to manifest itself within Rose even as a professional himself, so much so that he made it his mission to root against Jordan his whole career.
Dissing Mike
It's one thing to dislike MJ, but it's an entirely different story to insult him to his face. Rose grew up during the toughest, most ruthless era in NBA history, meaning that even someone with the stature of Jordan didn't intimidate him in the slightest. Given his history against his hometown team, squaring up with "His Airness" actually invigorated Rose by lighting a competitive fire inside him.
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Now, it's important to highlight that even Rose himself knew he wasn't close to Jordan's level during his NBA career, but that didn't stop him from verbally berating the Bulls icon during their meetings, questioning his greatness, and wishing for his failure.
"I told Jordan he was overrated," Rose said. "Part of my ego makes me want to think I was a part of the Bad Boys Pistons team, but I actually didn't get a uniform, so when they walked off and didn't shake the Bulls hands, I felt that that was everything to me. I rooted against him his whole career, hoping that I made it to the NBA, and now I'm in the league, and there he goes."
Humble pie
Of course, the great ones are sought out by everyone because they're just that — great. No one is personally coming after role players, and Rose isn't making it his personal agenda to affront the likes of Craig Hodges, Bill Cartwright, or BJ Armstrong. He despised Jordan because he ended the most successful period in Pistons franchise history, and the distaste between the two teams was enough to fester for Jalen in the years that followed.
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But there comes a point in every athlete's life where they have to tip their hat to greatness and acknowledge that they are competing against arguably the best that's ever lived.
Rose and MJ faced off 21 times in their respective careers, with Jordan coming away victorious on 13 occasions to Rose's 8. They won three games apiece against each other in the postseason, which is a nice record on Rose's part. Still, "His Airness" did averaged over 25 points and five rebounds when they went head-to-head, including a 41-point explosion in May of 1998.
While Rose was a serviceable and respected player in the league, there was a vast distance between them as players, and eventually, Rose had to swallow some humble pie and admit MJ was the greatest player of all time.
"He won two separate three-peats and he won finals MVP every single time. I could give you all kinds of stats, but what I just said will never be duplicated. Yeah, he is the GOAT," he admitted.
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Related: Jermaine O'Neal recalls the moment he realized Klay Thompson and Steph Curry were special: "If it hit the rim, it don't count"
Growth and maturity
In more ways than one, Rose's admission perfectly represents what young players go through in the Association.
They enter as wide-eyed, raw talents with no experience and must find their place in the league. They battle the unknowns and bring their past trauma and feelings about certain teams and players along for the ride.
Whether players idolize or despised a player matters in their ultimate makeup and plays a role in shaping how they view the league and approach their careers.
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Rose used his hatred for the Bulls and Jordan as motivation and never forgot where he came from. As he matured throughout the years, he understood that those feelings would always come to the surface, but humility was also an important ingredient in his success.
Unfortunately, for some, this maturation process comes far too late. Often, they've since left the league and can only look back on their time and mull over what they could have done differently. Every season, we see media and podcast appearances from former players who openly admit the mistakes they made on and off the court during their career.
The roles they couldn't accept, the fights they should've avoided, the choices they wish they could take back, and all the regrets that come with playing a professional sport and trying to juggle your ego.
In Rose's case, he still has no regrets about what he said to Jordan in the heat of battle, but to his credit, he also recognizes he was up against the best to ever do it.
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Related: "That's something that I can't say really can be established" - Why Michael Jordan refused to accept being put above other all-time greats
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.