20-07-2025
"I think he had 100 points that day" - Ex-Bull Randy Brown recalls Michael Jordan's epic Thanksgiving Day practice performance
"I think he had 100 points that day" - Ex-Bull Randy Brown recalls Michael Jordan's epic Thanksgiving Day practice performance originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Michael Jordan earned his Chicago Bulls teammates' respect not just by being an exceptionally talented player. More importantly, he led by example. By that, Jordan meant playing his guts out even in team scrimmages.
According to former Bulls guard Randy Brown, unlike other NBA players of his caliber, Jordan didn't need any extra motivation to go hard in practice. That being said, when the Bulls played their annual Thanksgiving Day practice game tradition, where the big men matched up against the guards, MJ unsurprisingly went berserk.
"Ask any [Bulls] teammate what 'Turkey Trot' is. Turkey Trot was a Thanksgiving Day practice, smalls against the bigs," Brown revealed during an interview with The Chicago Tribune for Jordan's 50th birthday in 2013. "It was the best practice performance I've seen in my life in a scrimmage. I think he had 100 points that day."
Practices and Game 7s were just the same for Jordan
Knowing how great Jordan was as a player, it wasn't that hard to imagine how he dominated that Thanksgiving Day scrimmage. Fortunately for Brown, he was a guard and happened to be on the same side as MJ that day. That wasn't what former Washington Wizards shooting guard Hubert Davis experienced.
Initially, Davis was playing on the same team as Jordan and was getting hot. However, Davis noted that the nearly 40-year-old legend might have taken it as a challenge and decided to switch sides.
What happened next was something Davis would never forget. Jordan locked him down like he was playing in a playoff series. As it turned out, MJ really took every practice game like a do-or-die playoff match.
"I was practicing really well; I was hitting everything. So Michael switched jerseys and went to the other team, and he guarded me," Davis told Slam in 2020. "For the rest of the practice, not only did I not score, I didn't even get a shot off. I just was like, 'What is wrong with you? We're on the same team! You're that competitive that you want to compete against me? I'm a role player. You're the best that's ever played.' He said, 'This is no different than playing in Game 7 of the NBA Finals—competing is competing.'"
"Some people turn it off and turn it on. For him, he never turned it off," he GOAT work ethic
There were many aspects in Jordan's overall game that made him such an admirable player. From a fan's point of view, MJ stood out because of his otherworldly abilities and iconic highlight plays. But from his teammates' perspective, not just the on-court performances earned him his GOAT status.
For them, Jordan's outstanding work ethic was what they truly admired about him. In the NBA, most superstars tend to relax and rest, but that was never the case with MJ. Instead, Jordan took pride in giving it all he got in practice, regardless of the team's situation. In the regular season or playoffs, Jordan put in the same amount of effort in every team practice session.
As a leader, Jordan also expected his teammates to do the same. He had zero tolerance for laziness and nonchalance. Back then, it was unsurprisingly not a good experience for Jordan's teammates. Still, looking back at it, they now understand why there's no other player quite like story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
