Should Isiah Thomas Have Replaced John Stockton On The 1992 NBA Team?

The 1992 Olympic Team almost replaced point guard John Stockton right before going to Barcelona. Isiah Thomas missed out on the last roster spot allegedly due to a beef with Michael Jordan.

Jun 28, 1992; Portland, OR, USA: FILE PHOTO; USA dream team guard John Stockton (12) in action against Cuba during the 1992 Tournament of the Americas at Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports / USA TODAY Sports

John Stockton almost never made it to Barcelona. Isiah Thomas never had a chance,

Stockton had broken a bone in his leg that healed quickly. However, Team USA was almost sold on replacing Stockton with Joe Dumars of the Detroit Pistons. Some thought the replacement would have been Thomas.

It all became a non-issue when Stockton healed, but Thomas is still sore about being left off the team.

NBA columnist Jan Hubbard was a team liaison to Team USA executive Russ Granik. In an interview with GQ in 2012, Hubbard recalled the situation.

"Initially they were going to replace him, and it was going to be Joe Dumars," Hubbard said. "So, Isiah wasn't even going to be the first substitute."

It has been speculated Michael Jordan did not want Thomas on the team. However, Hubbard said otherwise.

There was a vote among the team for the last roster spot. It was between Clyde Drexler and Thomas for the last position on the team, Drexler won the vote.

"The last player, as I recall, was between Clyde Drexler and Isiah Thomas, and you had two pretty good resumes there," Granik said. "I don't know what the final vote was - I never asked - but when they counted, it came out Clyde."

Thomas would later admit on ESPN's Get Up, the snub would hurt him terribly.

The rumor is Michael Jordan had an argument with Thomas over a postgame handshake that never occurred after Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals in 1991.

"Looking back, if I'm not a part of the Dream Team because of a lapse in emotion in terms of not shaking someone's hand," Thomas said....."then I am more disappointed today, than I was back then."

.Scott Salomon is a contributor to Back In the Day Hoops. He can be reached at sas@southfloridamedianetwork.com.

Follow our updates and coverage on Facebook

X: @BackInTheDayNBA