Big Pat taught MJ a lesson when the latter started trash-talking him during their first meet.
Michael Jordan dominated the basketball scene throughout his career and was the biggest bully on the block. Mike constantly showcased his superiority over his peers, but there were some rare cases where he was on the receiving end of a beating
One of them was during his first encounter with Patrick Ewing. The 7'0" center apparently taught Mike a lesson after young "Mr. Air" provoked former Hoya with his antics. "Big Pat" reminded the UNC standout to be cautious about whom he chose to trash-talk.
Ewing on dunking on a young MJ
Most fans believe that Pat met Mike on the court for the first time during the 1982 NCAA Championship game. However, that is not correct. During his appearance on the Dubs Talk podcast, the New York Knicks legend talked about an earlier encounter in which he humbled MJ while he was a freshman.
At this point in their careers, Jordan had only started to make a name for himself. At the same time, Hoya Destroya had already emerged as one of the top recruits after leading his high school team to three consecutive Massachusetts Division I State Championships. As top college programs were eager to get Ewing on board, he visited his top choice at a time.
During his visit to the University of North Carolina campus in Chapel Hill, "Hoya Destroya" encountered MJ, who, despite knowing the center for only five minutes, began trash-talking him. With Jordan in full gear and Ewing in his street clothes and unprepared for the occasion, he was still able to ground the legendary guard.
"Everyone who knows Michael knows he is the biggest trash talker. So this is my first time meeting him, and he's talking so much trash to me. You know, like, 'You can't dunk on me, or blah, blah," Ewing said. "I'm in street clothes; he's in his gym clothes. I'm like, 'OK.' So I get the ball, and I go up, and I dunked on him. I said, 'Now you can shut the ***** up.'"
The incident motivated Jordan against Ewing
Though Big Pat might have delivered a statement on that occasion, it only motivated Mike to avenge. In the 1982 championship game, the future six-time NBA champion hit the game-winning jumper, overshadowing Ewing's valiant 23-point and 11-rebound performance for Georgetown.
If that were not enough, the New York native led his Chicago Bulls to beat Ewing's Knicks in five postseasons throughout the '80s and '90s. Safe to say, after being hung on a poster, Jordan wasn't willing to allow Pat ever win a silverware in his presence, be it in the collegiate circuit or the NBA.
