【The Last Dance導賞（4之3）】底特律英雄貧苦童年只想要個大雪櫃 Isiah Thomas超強爭勝心憎足Michael Jordan一世
我看《The Last Dance》幾次，其中一次和老友一齊睇，當播出Isiah Thomas的片段時，我以此形容：「當時活塞好仆街，而Bill Lamibeer和Dennis Rodman是擺明仆街，但Isiah Thoams卻是扮成好人的仆街（完全偏見）。」就算談到拒絕握手事件，也好像全是Bill Lamibeer的責任。每次在鏡頭前都西裝骨骨，但在我眼中，他和流氓沒有分別。
可能因為打波時被對手的茅招整到右腳重創過兩次，所以特別憎這種以爭勝為藉口，然後場上大打茅波的對手，年輕時更試過不止一次和人「講手」。每次有人談到活塞的Bad Boys，我會承認他們的團結和爭勝心的確值得敬佩，但那些會令人收山的犯規和擒抱，非看過比賽的人不會明白。比較起來，之後的紐約人、熱火和溜馬雖同樣體力化，但起碼他們有底線，不似Bill Lamibeer的那種犯規。當年公牛無人因此收山，只是好彩，否則落地只要有點點不穩，球員生命就可能完結。
打茅波已經乞人憎，還要扮到若無其事，好像這是贏波的唯一方法，那嘴臉就更令人討厭。難怪多年之後，Michael Jordan看到Isiah Thomas的影片，面上憎惡之情仍然不減，至於有「微笑刺客」稱號的湯馬士，想必在心中仍有不共戴天之仇，三十年後不減。
“That was the only time that I think I’d ever been swept in a series. I was normally the one doing the sweeping,” Thomas said. “Their time had arrived, and ours was over. As we’re coming out of the game, Laimbeer said: ‘We’re not shaking their hands.’ … Knowing what we now now, in the aftermath of what took place, I think all of us would’ve stopped and said congratulations like they do now. But in that period of time, that’s just not how it was passed. When you lost you left the floor. That was it.”
之後記者想把Isiah Thomas談及的握手片讓佐敦觀看，他一面不屑，強調湯馬士而家講乜都得，也清楚地說，對他的討厭不會有絲毫改變。
“I know it’s all bullshit,” Jordan said before he even looked at the iPad. “Whatever [Isiah] says now, you know it wasn’t his true actions then. [He’s had] time enough to think about it, or the reaction of the public that’s changed his perspective. … You can show me anything you want. There’s no way you can convince me he wasn’t an asshole.
幾十年後，MJ厭惡之情絲毫不減，有傳兩人自85年明星賽結怨，當時MJ鋒芒太露，結果被Isiah Thomas、Magic Johnson等一班老鬼聯手杯葛，從此結下樑子；後枇Sam Smith在他的著作中平反，指因為MJ不理禁令，穿上了Nike波鞋，被其他球員認為作法不當，結果是湯馬士和魔術手決定不讓佐敦成為焦點。
“On Saturday during the workouts, Michael wore his Nike warmups in violation of the NBA protocol. He was promoting Nike. So the veteran guys got upset, saying, ‘Who the heck is this rookie; he’s not acting the way he should.’ And so on. No question they were mad at him, and it wasn’t just my guys. Then what happened is Isiah and Magic said, ‘Let’s just guard eachother and not really play defense on eachother.’ Because if you remember when they were against one another in the All-Star games, they were good games, competitive but entertaining. They knew how to run those types of games with the fast break and passing and still keep it real basketball and exciting.”
在明星賽被冷落後，是佐敦和湯馬士的「第一滴血」；本身同處一分區，每年交手次數多，加上活塞打法粗野，自然越來越多仇恨。聯盟其實早有心捧MJ上位，可是活塞偏偏擋路，也令壞孩子之名不逕而走。我其實相當佩服Isiah Thomas，他在88年大拗後仍能單節攻入 25分，簡直是季後賽最神奇的表現，可是他心胸狹窄，笑裏藏刀，實在令人討厭。
MJ對他的不屑之情，溢於言表，一方面是因為活塞和公牛的積怨，我相信背後也有不少私人恩怨，以致多年後仍沒有改變。其實Isiah Thomas也是來自芝加哥，之後在底特律威風八面，可是有次他的外甥卻穿上了MJ的球衣，認定對方才是風城的英雄，這成了湯馬士心中的一根刺，從此每次對戰，都要證明底特律才是更好的球隊，家中更永遠都不應該有人穿上MJ的球衣。
“Isiah goes home, and his nephew is wearing a Bulls jersey, a Michael Jordan Bulls jersey. He said, ‘Hey, what you doing?’ ‘We in Chicago. That’s my team.’
It’s his nephew. He was not really understanding that the great Isiah Thomas plays for Detroit, we don’t wear that. We wear this. ‘But I’m from Chicago. I’m down with the Bull movement.’
Isiah was mad at that. Not to Michael, personally. In his brain, ‘Every time I play against this dude, I’m gonna try to go off so my nephew sees this is the jersey you should wear.’ Never at Michael.”
無論是球技或意志力，Isiah Thomas都肯定是超級巨星，他自1981年選秀以第2籤加盟活塞後，13季都只效力一隊。生涯平均19.2分和9.3次助攻，有4季達到20/10，即平均獲20分及10次助攻以上，以當時防守的強悍程度，大約抵得上今日的30/13，可見他的威力。身高僅6呎1吋，生涯卻兩次贏得總冠軍，加上一座Final MVP，3次入選最佳一隊，並12次成為明星賽球員，從那個角度來看，都是榮譽滿身。
我記得當年有看過一餅他講運球技術的錄影帶，可能大家看得比較少，但單講運球，他肯定不比Killer crossover的Tim Hardaway遜色，那種如影隨形更是極度難學；今日Chris Paul有Point God的美譽，我認為這稱號更適合形容湯馬士，因為無論是技術層面或領導能力，他都更勝一籌。
Isiah Thomas童年亦毫不快樂，他來自一個7兄弟姊妹的大家庭，父親本來是農莊的主管，但後來倒閉後就只能成為清潔工人，他不堪壓力，離家而去，注定湯馬士過得極苦。可想而知，單靠他母親一人，難以養活8口之家，所以湯馬士從小就要為養活自己而過活，包括在空無一人的超市找尋未變壞的食物，和朋友擦鞋賺取微薄的收入，並要極其小心地回家，以免被人搶劫；他之後在自傳寫道，當時的夢想只是有個裝滿食物的大雪櫃。有興趣了解更多的，可以網上購買他在2001年出的自傳《The Fundamentals: 8 Plays for Winning the Games of Business and Life》，入面有更詳細的描述。
湯馬士和那年代大部份的黑人一樣，長於貧窮而對成功和財富極度飢渴，也對爭勝極為執着，他加入活塞後，自84年起連續9季打入季後賽，當中五度打入東岸決賽，並三次殺入總決賽，而在89及90年連霸成功。在1987–88球季，他領活塞領先3:2下，被湖人連贏兩場，終飲恨3:4失卻冠軍。活塞所以失冠，是因為他在第6戰拗柴重創，本來球隊已打定輸數，但湯馬士卻神奇回歸，並在第3節攻入NBA紀錄25分，助活塞反超前，不過Bill Lamibeer最後不慎犯規，讓湖人以一分險勝。第7戰湯馬士難以回天，仍未復元的他只能攻入10分，只能望住湖人慶祝。要是這屆能夠取勝，活塞很可能就可以做到Larry Bird及Magic Johnson都不成功的三連霸。
這種執着心，和Michael Jordan並無分別，所以兩人注定是死敵，尤其是湯馬士本身來自芝加哥，這種地緣關係令一對宿敵更添張力，而在之後的紀錄片，將更詳細去講兩人在92年巴塞奧運的恩怨。
可憐之人必有可恨之處。由小時候看公牛起，我就相當討厭活塞，直到這幾年多看了他的報導及其傳記，才覺得湯馬士相當可憐。贏過NCAA冠軍，也是NBA冠軍及50位最偉大球員，但他錯失了夢幻隊這千載難逢的機會，獎牌櫃永遠欠了一面奧運金牌。
重點：活塞賽後拒絕握手（Joe Dumars有留低握手，君子始終如一），以及MJ在贏波後，故意穿上活塞本來準備好三連霸的Three-Peat衛衣，招搖過市；這種宿敵互不放過對手的仇恨，實在吸引。
“All you have to do is go back to us losing in Game 7 [the previous year],” Jordan continued. “I shook everybody’s hand. Two years in a row, we shook their hands when they beat us. There’s a certain respect to the game, that we paid to them. That’s sportsmanship. No matter how much it hurts, and believe me it f — — -g hurt. But we didn’t have to shake their hands. We knew we whipped their ass already. We got past them. And to me, that was better in some ways than winning the championship.”
其實Larry Bird也講過，他在塞爾特人不敵湖人後，也同樣試過拒絕握手。我覺得有時不想握手，是輸波後的發洩，實在難以表受祝賀對手，雖然MJ強調，之前幾次輸給活塞，也一樣有風度去握手，但情況始終不同，這求三連霸的活塞被直落四場掃走，對極要面子的湯馬士來說，絕對是奇恥大辱。
有時雙方縱拚命爭鬥，但打得越耐，也就越能感受到惺惺相惜的尊重，例如上面提過的Magic Johnson和Larry Bird，又或Mj及老友Charles Barkley，但活塞和公牛已去到個人層面，所以才如此憎恨對方。不過無可否認，沒有一支球隊比活塞更明白如何擊敗佐敦，看看生涯在佐敦身上取得最多勝仗的球員，頭七名都是活塞兵，就可知一二。
我們慶幸的，是佐敦擁有一顆永不放棄的心。
冷知識：IT4也被牽連
Isiah Thomas已是多年前的球星，今日的年輕球迷提起IT，只會想起Isaiah Thomas。兩人名字相似，難怪當節目出街後，不少佐敦迷想到Isiah Thomas的twitter上留言，結果卻搵錯對象，攻擊了更矮小的IT4。他上載了和湯馬士的合照，並笑稱為甚麼人人都以為他傷害了佐敦，可算相當無辜。1997-98 Chicago Bulls Roster0 Randy Brown PG 6-2 190
5 Rusty LaRue PG 6-2 210
7 Toni Kukoč SF 6-10 192
8 Dickey Simpkins PF 6-9 248
9 Ron Harper PG 6-6 185
13 Luc Longley C 7-2 265
22 Keith Booth SF 6-6 226
23 Michael Jordan SG 6-6 195
25 Steve Kerr PG 6-3 175
24 Scott Burrell SF 6-7 218
30 Jud Buechler SF 6-6 220
33 Scottie Pippen SF 6-8 210
34 Bill Wennington C 7-0 245
35 Jason Caffey PF 6-8 255
42 David Vaughn PF 6-9 240
53 Joe Kleine C 6-11 255
91 Dennis Rodman PF 6-7 210Record: 62-20, Finished 1st in NBA Central Division
Coach: Phil Jackson (62-20)
Executive: Jerry Krause
PTS/G: 96.7 (9th of 29)
Opp PTS/G: 89.6 (3rd of 29)NBA 1998 Playoffs:
Won Eastern Conference First Round (3-0) vs New Jersey Nets
Won Eastern Conference Semifinals (4-1) vs Charlotte Hornets
Won NBA Eastern Conference Finals (4-3) vs Indiana Pacers
Won NBA Finals (4-2) vs Utah Jazz