How Michael Jordan destroyed the confidence of a former lottery pick

Poor Dennis Hopson never stood a chance.

Playing with the great Michael Jordan meant one of two things: you either lived up to his astronomical standards and gained his trust, or you were left in the dust. For former lottery draft pick Dennis Hopson—who was selected third overall in the 1987 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets—it was, unfortunately, the second outcome as his confidence eroded, and he was eventually out of the​​ NBA just a season after playing with His Airness for the Chicago Bulls.

The saddest thing

According to big man Scott Williams, who played with Jordan and Hopson on the NBA title-winning 1990-1991 Bulls squad, he saw firsthand how much the latter struggled with the fiery intensity that the former brought to every single practice.

"It was the saddest thing I ever saw during my 15 years in the NBA," said Williams. "The way MJ would guard a cat named Dennis Hopson. Hop was a great guy. They put him in front of Jordan every day in practice. Michael, he wouldn't even call him 'Hop.' He called him 'Dennis.' He was the only cat on the team who wouldn't call him 'Hop.'"

Williams went on to share how fiercely Jordan would battle him in every practice. From getting physical to verbally abusing the former Ohio State standout, Jordan was relentless in his approach.

"He was in his face, nose to nose. He talked trash to him. He get physical with him. He verbally and physically beat this man down 'til he was a shell of the player that he was. It was the worst thing that I ever saw," Williams added.

Took its toll

After winning a title with the Bulls, Hopson moved on to the Sacramento Kings, where he assumed an off-the-bench role and was actually solid, averaging 10.7 points in nearly 19 minutes of action. However, that was the last season Hopson had any real impact in the NBA, as he was out of the league by age 27, transitioning to a career overseas where he played in Spain, the Philippines, France, Israel, and Turkey.