Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were the legends.
Michael Jordan was taking over the NBA, but MJ was still the new guy compared to veterans and future Hall of Famers.
But when head coach Chuck Daly was trying to figure out how to make the first and only Dream Team work, the Detroit Pistons leader knew he needed to blend in Jordan with Johnson and Bird.
One idea kept sticking out to Daly.
Make Jordan a co-captain, along with the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics greats.
With MJ already opposed to having Isiah Thomas on the 1992 Team USA men’s basketball Olympics squad, Daly had a lot of delicate space to navigate in a short period of time.
In ’92, Jordan was a back-to-back MVP and NBA champion.
But there was only one problem in making MJ a captain.
He respected the legacies of Johnson and Bird.
And while Daly was open to the idea, one player was against it.
Jordan.
Air Jordan knew that he’d be the leader when it really mattered — on the court and with the ball in his hand.
Understanding all the dynamics at play, Jordan deferred to Johnson and Bird, and the Dream Team avoided what could have been a nasty power struggle.
In turn, the best basketball team of all time obliterated the opposition.
With Jordan, Johnson and Bird carrying leadership weight on the hardwood, Team USA went 8-0 during Olympic play and secured a 117-85 blowout win over Croatia for the gold medal in Barcelona.
Daly also got a big when vs Jordan when it mattered.
He beat MJ on the golf course.
Of course, the super-competitive Jordan demanded a rematch and evened the score with the USA coach who once wanted to make him a co-captain along with Johnson and Bird.