Isiah Thomas blames Michael Jordan on decision to decline role in Celtics documentary

The Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons had a lot of history during the 1980s. HBO wanted to cover that history the best they could in their documentary called Celtics City. From the Pistons’ side, nobody could’ve explained that rivalry better than Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas.

He faced off against the Celtics five times in the playoffs from 1985-91, including back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals matchups in 1987 and 1988. But when HBO approached him to share his side of the story, he declined.

Isiah Thomas refused to be part of Celtics City due to The Last Dance portrayal

During an interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio, Thomas revealed why he simply declined to participate in another NBA-related documentary.

“I decided not to do the Boston documentary because of what Jordan and The Last Dance did. They totally set me up and blindsided me. And I wasn’t gonna get fooled twice,” Thomas said.

“So, I just decided not to participate in the documentary and be able to talk about it. But I wasn’t gonna go on film and be set up again like in The Last Dance.”

It’s been five years since Netflix first aired The Last Dance, and it’s clear Thomas hasn’t moved on.

He didn’t appreciate how the documentary negatively portrayed him for his sportsmanship, and how he was shown as the villain. Thomas was so surprised that he even revealed in 2023 that he didn’t know about any beef with Jordan until The Last Dance aired.

Thomas wants Michael Jordan to apologize

In a guest appearance on Draymond Green’s podcast in March 2024, Thomas had this to say when Green asked him if Thomas’ relationship with Jordan was still salvageable.

“This dude got on national television, international television, and called me an a**hole,” Thomas said. “Until he apologizes on international television, no conversation. You can’t apologize and have a private dinner when you embarrassed me publicly.”

You can understand why Thomas played it safe and chose not to appear in the Celtics documentary to preserve his legacy. And because of it, we’ll miss out on Thomas’ inside thoughts on one of the most intense rivalries in NBA history.