The 1992 Olympic Dream Team is one of the most celebrated star-studded teams in sports history.
They dominated the tournament, winning gold in Barcelona, the first time the U.S. had fielded professional players and were once again able to dominate since winning bronze in 1988.
Behind these big wins was some internal drama that Charles Barkley revealed in a conversation with former NBA player Stephen Jackson, when he said that players were filled with egos and that violent fights broke out during practice.
“It was crazy,” Barkley said. “It was magical. [Johnson] Scotty was angry [Pippen] I had just shut him down in the final and I wanted revenge.”
Pippen guarded Johnson when the Chicago Bulls defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1991 NBA Finals. Johnson averaged 18.6 points, 12.4 assists and 8.0 rebounds in the series, but many felt Pippen's defense was the deciding factor.
Then there were Michael Jordan and Clyde Drexler, the best shooting guards in the league at the time, and Jordan's Bulls had just defeated Drexler's Portland Trail Blazers in the 1992 Finals.
“Clyde Drexler kept saying, 'I'm as good as Michael Jordan,'” Barkley said, “and Mike got pissed.”
1992 Dream Team's crazy scrimmage. #NBA #fbreels #reelsvideo #reelsfb #reelsviral #reelusa
Posted by Fast Break Briefings on Wednesday, June 26, 2024
Not only that, Barkley himself had been feuding with Karl Malone during those weeks.
“So the matchup between the two is me and Karl Malone,” Barkley said. “We're the two best power forwards in the world. Two of the best, but No. 1 is me.”
Finally, Patrick Ewing and David Robinson battled for the center spot before Hakeem Olajuwon emerged as a champion in the mid-90s.
“Then Patrick and David were trying to prove who was the best center in the world,” Barkley said. “Everybody was competing like that. Karl is one of my best friends, so I wanted him to know that I was the best power forward in the world.”
Barkley said the atmosphere on the road was like the playoffs.
“Every day felt like Game 7,” Barkley said. “I'd never played a game that tense. Everybody had to prove something.”
Shandell Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day NBA and can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com.
Follow us on Facebook for the latest news and articles
Twitter: @BackInTheDayNBA
