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Jerry Krause has emerged as the early super villain of The Last Dance documentary, with his Little Man Complex totally overshadowing his supreme ability to evaluate talent and construct a roster.
But let’s give the man the credit he deserves: He avoided many of the pitfalls the majority of GMs trip over to play a role in the Chicago Bulls’ dynasty. Height be damned.
Krause’s perceptive eye in talent evaluation nearly shifted the entire NBA landscape in the late 90s, with Krause fighting to trade Scottie Pippen (who was outwardly livid with his egregious contract) for a young Tracy McGrady during the 1997 NBA Draft.
https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1252069911477788678?s=20
“What a lot of people don’t know about that night is that Jerry Kraus was actually trying to make a trade for me and Scottie Pippen, and MJ called and axed that whole deal.
They brought me in for a secret meeting. Yes, they did.”
McGrady entered the NBA draft fresh out of high school and it took him a few seasons to get his sea legs under him. T-Mac strung together a Hall of Fame 15-year NBA career—seven-time All NBA, two-time NBA scoring champ, and NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2001.
Still, even in 15 years with seven different NBA teams, McGrady never won a title.
In 2016, Tracy McGrady said he was nearly traded to the Bulls for Scottie Pippen during the 1997 draft 🤯
MJ stepped in and “axed that whole deal.”
(via 'The Jump’) pic.twitter.com/xSNVKV10Cb
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 20, 2020
What could have been.