Just a few days back, Isiah Thomas stirred up a storm—and this one didn’t come from anything on the court. Instead, it was LeBron James’ pregame routine that lit a fire under the two-time champ. During the Lakers-Rockets NBA TV broadcast, Zeke didn’t hold back. “I totally 100% object to this,” he said about LeBron’s shirtless warm-up. Then came the kicker: “If I was the GM or the coach, I would never let one of my players walk out on the floor looking like this.”
Zeke didn’t stop there. He went straight for the league’s changing culture. “We are professional NBA league; we ain’t summer league,” he fired off, clearly not feeling the new school vibes. And just when viewers thought that was it, he doubled down on the heat—aiming straight at the commissioner. “Now, Adam Silver, if you want to fine somebody, fine that. Put a fine on that.” Meanwhile, co-host Steve Smith chimed in, suggesting coaches should go back to wearing suits—and yep, Zeke was all in for that too.
Still, while LeBron’s bare-chested moment wasn’t during actual gameplay, Thomas wanted to make a bigger point. So when asked if the league needs a visual standard, he said, “Abso-f——-lutely.” But not everyone bought into that. Some fans found it a bit too much—and one even dug up a moment from Zeke’s past to call out the hypocrisy.
So what did the fan post? A clip from the 1991 playoffs. “He [Isiah Thomas] left the Eastern Conference finals with 7 seconds left and didn’t shake one Bulls player hand talking about class these OGs getting outta hand,” the caption read.
And he left the Eastern Conference finals with 7 seconds left and didn’t shake one Bulls player hand talking about class these OGs getting outta hand pic.twitter.com/9d61amjsOh
— Nosleeptana (@nosleeptana) April 13, 2025
Of course, Pistons coach Bill Laimbeer never apologized. “They were just whiners,” he told ESPN in 2020. “They won the series. Give him credit… But OK, move on.” However, unlike his coach, Thomas regretted how it went down.
Why does Isiah Thomas really regret that Michael Jordan snub?
Back in 2020, just a day after Michael Jordan’s The Last Dance aired its deep dive into the Pistons-Bulls rivalry, Zeke sat down on ESPN’s Get Up and got real about the fallout. “I’ve paid a heavy price,” he admitted, reflecting on the moment he and his teammates ditched post-game handshakes after the 1991 sweep by Chicago.
Naturally, the tension back then was sky-high. “We were coming down, Michael Jordan was coming up,” Thomas explained. “And in coming up, you have certain emotions, and in coming down as champions, you have certain emotions.”
It wasn’t just about competition—it was pride, legacy, and frustration all wrapped in one. But he didn’t dodge responsibility, either. “Had we had the opportunity to do it all over again, I think all of us would make a different decision.”
Now, if we rewind the clock, it wasn’t just any loss. The Pistons had bounced Jordan from the playoffs three years in a row. But in ‘91, the Bulls finally got their revenge—sweeping Detroit in the East Finals. With just 7.9 seconds left and down 21, the Pistons walked off the court, heads high, but hands not extended—allegedly at Bill Laimbeer’s urging.
Even so, Thomas doesn’t sugarcoat it. “We actually gave the world the opportunity to look at us in a way that we never really tried to position ourselves in,” he said. “So it’s unfortunate that it happened.”
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