"The man is dead ... you can't do that. I can't respect that" - When Isiah Thomas slammed Michael Jordan for disrespecting Jerry Krause

“The man is dead … you can’t do that. I can’t respect that” – When Isiah Thomas slammed Michael Jordan for disrespecting Jerry Krause originally appeared on Basketball Network.

The image painted of certain names in “The Last Dance” has lingered like smoke over a candle long blown out. The ESPN docuseries, which gave an inside access to the legendary 1990s Chicago Bulls, came under fire again — this time from NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas, over its treatment of Jerry Krause, the late Bulls general manager.

Krause, who passed away in 2017, was posthumously cast as the villain, a man allegedly too obsessed with credit and control to appreciate the generational talent he had assembled.

Thomas criticism

Pistons legend, no stranger to Bulls lore or league politics, strongly resisted the framing of Krause and criticized the way the former Bulls GM’s legacy was handled on-screen.

“The man is dead. His kids, his family, people are watching that. You ain’t got to do that,” Thomas said. “I can respect that, for the fans and everybody else, Jerry was this, Jerry was that. In the basketball world, Jerry won six championships.”

This was a deeper reckoning about legacy and respect for the Detroit Pistons legend — two currencies that matter more in retirement than championship rings ever could. In The Last Dance, Krause’s image is frequently undercut by archival footage of Michael Jordan mocking his stature or dismissing his contributions.

Phil Jackson also offered little grace, recounting his strained relationship with Krause as he prepared for the team’s final title run in 1998. But history remembers results, not locker room gossip. And Krause’s results are impossible to ignore: six titles between 1991 and 1998, a team that went 72–10 in the regular season and a lineup that redefined the global appeal of the NBA.

He drafted Scottie Pippen, traded for Dennis Rodman and hired Jackson when no one else was looking at the former CBA coach. Krause architected the Bulls’ dynasty brick by brick in every sense — even if he was never allowed to live in the house.

And yet, in The Last Dance, all of that is overshadowed by an editorial framing that isolates Krause as the one who “broke up the band.”

The documentary’s emotional core follows Jordan’s narrative, and Krause becomes a convenient target for unresolved tension and retrospective grief. But for Thomas, the cost of that portrayal was more than bad optics — it was an erasure of a man’s professional dignity.

Krause’s controversy

For all its ego and infighting, the NBA has often been a league of unspoken codes. Respect for the dead, especially those who contributed so deeply to the sport’s history, ranks near the top.

“Nowhere in the history of the game have I ever seen such disrespect for a president or a general manager — even if you don’t like him,” Thomas said.

Krause’s tenure wasn’t without flaws. He had famously tense relationships with his stars and could be defensive about his role in the Bulls’ success. Many saw his decision to rebuild the team after 1998 as a betrayal of greatness.

But those decisions were made within a business framework, not out of malice. General managers are paid to think long-term, not to preserve fairytales.

After the Bulls secured their sixth title in 1998, Krause made the controversial decision to dismantle the team. It was part of his long-term vision to rebuild before decline set in.

Krause believed the dynasty had reached its natural end and feared the risk of holding on too long. That meant parting ways with the head coach, signaling Jordan’s exit, and ultimately allowing the core roster to break apart.

One of the most visible fractures was Krause’s ongoing tension with Pippen. Their relationship had soured over contract disputes, with Pippen feeling severely underpaid and undervalued. Krause, known for being direct and unflinching, refused to restructure Pippen’s deal, creating years of friction between the star forward and the front office.

Despite the backlash, Krause stood by his choices. He drafted Elton Brand, Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry in the following seasons in an attempt to retool.

While the post-Jordan Bulls never recaptured the same magic under his watch, Krause’s intent was his strategy.

This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 22, 2025, where it first appeared.

“The man is dead … you can’t do that. I can’t respect that” – When Isiah Thomas slammed Michael Jordan for disrespecting Jerry Krause

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