During his nearly two-decades playing in the NBA, who are the most underrated teammates that former Chicago Bulls great Michael Jordan had?
When Chicago Bulls fans, and just general basketball fans, think about the most notable teammates of all-time great shooting guard Michael Jordan most names that come to mind are the likes of Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, Dennis Rodman, etc. Most also would forget about any of the teammates he would’ve been with during his two season run at the very end of his playing days with the Washington Wizards.
But there are often forgotten teammates of Jordan that actually posted some really solid numbers, especially looking at the advanced metrics, that are worth noting in this discussion. Advanced stats weren’t noted as much during the 1980’s and 1990, and even in the early 2000’s, but it presents an interesting way to look back at the most efficient Jordan teammates of his NBA career.
Jordan played in the NBA starting in the 1984-85 season, and going to the conclusion of the 2002-03 regular season. He began his career with the Bulls after they selected him out of the North Carolina Tar Heels basketball program in the first round of the 1984 NBA Draft. He would have two different retirements during his playing days before he officially hung ’em up at the conclusion of the 2002-03 seasons with the Wizards.
Over the course of nearly two decades of playing days in the NBA, Jordan won six NBA Championships, five MVP’s was an All-Star selection 14 times, and won 10 scoring titles. He is one of the very best to ever do it and brought a lot of his teammates to new heights.
Here’s a look back at three of the most underrated teammates of Jordan during his NBA career.
3. Orlando Woolridge, Small Forward
There are a number of often forgotten teammates of Jordan from his early playing days with the Bulls. During the 1980’s, the Bulls were still coached up by either Doug Collins or Stan Albeck (also Kevin Loughery for a bit of time in the mid 1980’s). And the most notable sidekick alongside Jordan for most of the 1980’s in the Windy City was Charles Oakley.
However, former Bulls general manager Jerry Krause started the process of retooling the team around Jordan in the late 1980’s, including the drafting of other stars like Pippen and big man Horace Grant. But one notable teammate or Jordan in his very early years with the Bulls that doesn’t get enough credit is the 6-foot-9 and 215 pound former Notre Dame Fighting Irish small forward Orlando Woolridge.
As the sixth overall pick in the first round of the Bulls in the 1981 NBA Draft, Woolridge actually had some quality contributions at the three spot in the early-to-mid 1980’s in the Windy City. He was Jordan’s teammate with the Bulls for the first two years of his career, and averaged around 22.0 points per game in that span of time.
Moreover, Wooldridge had the most efficient years of his NBA career in a Bulls uniform. Woolridge registered a 0.7 box plus/minus rating, around a 58.5 true shooting percentage, .117 win shares per 48 minutes, and 17.6 player efficiency rating in five seasons with the Bulls.
He did also spend a few different seasons with the likes of the New Jersey Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, and the Bulls divisional foe Detroit Pistons. He was just one season off getting a title alongside either the Pistons or the Lakers.
2. Christian Laettner, Forward
During his two years playing with the Wizards, about the most notable teammate that Jordan had was the two-time NBA All-Star selection, 1995-96 All-Rookie Team selection, and fellow former UNC product Jerry Stackhouse. But another teammate of Jordan’s with the Wizards, former Duke Blue Devils national title-winning big man Christian Laettner, had some quality years of service in the nation’s capital.
While Laettner was an honoree of another All-Rookie Team and did have one NBA All-Star selection, he doesn’t get near as much credit and recognition from his lengthy career as Stackhouse does. The sole season that Laettner had as an All-Star selection came back during the 1996-97 season, as a member of the Atlanta Hawks.
Moreover, Laettner did spend about four seasons with the Wizards just after the turn of the century. Jordan was his teammate in the nation’s capital in the middle of his four years playing in a Wizards uniform. During his run with the Wizards, Laettner posted a 108 offensive rating, 103 defensive rating, and 16.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per 100 possessions.
The advanced metrics also favored the efficiency that Laettner brought to the table in the early 2000’s with the Wizards He registered a box plus/minus rating of 1.1, 4.2 value over replacement player rating, 13.2 total win shares, 15.4 player efficiency rating, and a 53.8 true shooting percentage.
1. Trent Tucker, Shooting Guard
The definition of a quality teammate of Jordan during his run with the Bulls and one that is very much often forgotten is the long-time New York Knicks shooting guard Trent Tucker. For much of Tucker’s NBA career, he was actually a rival of Jordan playing alongside the likes of Patrick Ewing and Bernard King with the Knicks.
Coming out of the Minnesota Golden Gophers basketball program, Tucker was the first round pick (sixth overall) of the Knicks in the 1982 NBA Draft. He was a part of an NBA Draft class that also featured the likes of Dominique Wilkins, James Worthy, and Terry Cummings. And he is a Tarboro, NC, native so there’s a valid connection with Jordan in that regard.
Moreover, Tucker spent nine seasons in a Knicks uniform before he landed with the San Antonio Spurs during the 1991-92 season. He never got a title with the Spurs or the Knicks. But he would finally reach that ultimate goal with the Bulls, during one season playing in the Windy City during the 1992-93 campaign.
Tucker played in 69 regular season games with the Bulls during the 1992-93 season. He registered 5.2 points per game to go along with a box plus/minus rating of 0.2, .127 win shares per 48 minutes, and around a 56.5 true shooting percentage. He also posted a positive box plus/minus rating and a true shooting percentage around 55.0 during the 1992-93 playoff run with the Bulls.