Isiah Thomas’ latest all-time five comes with a familiar twist: Michael Jordan is in, LeBron James is out.
The Hall of Fame guard took part in a rapid-fire Q&A with Black Enterprise and was asked to name his all-time starting five without using himself. Thomas went with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Tim Duncan.
He also had a few other quick answers ready. When asked who the funniest NBA player he ever met was, Thomas said, “Funniest NBA player I ever met, John Sally.”
On rule changes, Thomas said he would cap the number of three-point attempts in a game. “I would limit the amount of three-point shots you can take during the game.
I would have a maximum and a minimum. Each quarter, you could only shoot a certain amount of three-point shots, and total for a game, maybe 25.
And I think that would make the game much more interesting. We won’t have so many people taking bad shots.
But I would have a maximum and a minimum of three-point shots that you had to shoot each quarter. And you couldn’t go over that.”
Then came the one-on-one question, with Thomas asked whether his prime self or Steph Curry would win. His answer was pure Isiah: “The guy who plays defense. Now, I’m just saying.”
Thomas won two NBA titles, one Finals MVP and one assists title, so confidence was never going to be in short supply. Still, leaving James off the five stood out, especially because Thomas has previously said he views James as the GOAT over Jordan and Kobe Bryant.
Earlier this year in May, Thomas included Jordan on his Dream Team, alongside Larry Bird, Tim Duncan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He was allowed to pick himself then, which meant Magic Johnson was the odd man out, and James was not included there either.
That omission feels even more notable because Thomas has been clear about his admiration for James. He has said he has never seen a player like him, and he has called him the greatest over Jordan and Bryant.
James’ résumé is as stacked as they come: four NBA titles, four Finals MVPs, four MVPs, one scoring title and one assists title. He is also the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and ranks fourth in assists. That body of work has put him right in the middle of the GOAT debate, with more and more people making the case for him.
Jordan is still the more common pick, though. His career includes six NBA titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, one DPOY and 10 scoring titles. Thomas’ Pistons were a major part of that story, knocking Jordan’s Bulls out of the playoffs in 1988, 1989 and 1990 before Chicago finally broke through in 1991 and went on to dominate.
Those battles were fierce and physical, with Detroit’s “Jordan Rules” designed to make life miserable for Jordan. The 1991 handshakes-or lack of them-left lasting resentment, and Jordan and Thomas have never really moved past it.
In Other News...
Pistons Opener Hinted At A Change Fans Have Wanted For Years
The Pistons entered the 2026 offseason determined to modernize an offense that too often settled for too few threes, and their regular-season opener against the Celtics offered the clearest sign yet that the message may have landed. Detroit launched 40 three-pointers in a 121-113 win, a sharp jump from last seasons 30.8 per game, and the shot profile alone looked different enough to catch the eye even before the comeback from a 22-point hole.
Duncan Robinson, Javonte Green, Isaiah Joe and Kevin Huerter all factored into the spread-the-floor approach, giving Detroit the kind of perimeter volume fans have wanted to see for years. One game does not make a season, of course, but after spending the offseason talking about the need to improve from deep, the Pistons at least gave themselves a template worth watching closely as the schedule moves on. [Read more 🡒]
John Collins Already Has The Pistons Facing A Tough Defensive Question
John Collins first night in a Pistons uniform offered an early glimpse of both the upside and the problems Detroit will have to sort through. He gave the team some useful minutes with a block and a few offensive rebounds, the kind of activity that can matter in a game where every possession counts. But the bigger takeaway came on the other end, where Collins had a rough time holding up defensively in his new setting.
Detroit tried to work around it by shifting Collins to center, hoping the matchup would settle in, but the adjustment did not really solve the issue. Paul George found room to score against him, and the problem only looked more complicated when bigger opponents came into play, including Mitchell Robinson. For a Pistons group trying to piece together lineups early, Collins fit may end up being defined less by what he can add and more by how they hide what he gives up. [Read more 🡒]
Pistons Just Turned Bostons Big Debut Into A Celtics Problem
Bostons season opener quickly turned into a reminder that early NBA games can still say plenty about where a team is headed. The Celtics built a 22-point lead against Detroit, only to let it slip away in a loss that had Jayson Tatum finishing with 13 points on rough shooting while Paul George carried the offensive load with 38 points and also made his presence felt on the defensive end.
Social media did what it always does after a collapse like that, with fans split between frustration at the coaching and player execution and calls to remember how long the season is. From Detroits perspective, it was the kind of result that can travel well beyond one night, because handing Boston an opener like that immediately changes the tone around the Celtics and gives the Pistons an early jolt of attention. [Read more 🡒]