The book shows just how tough life in the NBA can be, especially when you have a guy like MJ, a selfish ball-hog and control freak. After reading the book, any liking I had for MJ has since vanished. Behind the scenes, the guy is selfish, narcisistic, hyper-competitive person who must win at EVERYTHING he does, and have things HIS way all the time. He even went so far as to never lift weights in the same weight room as the team for fear that one of the players might be able to lift more weight than him. Boo hoo! Imagine that Michael! There might be someone actually stronger than you.

I was truly disgusted with this book.From the onset I read so many falsehoods I thought I was reading the national enquirer.As someone who has followed Michael Jordan throughtout his career I understand that this rag was wrote by someone with an awful agenda.Sam Smith is the first 300 pound white male golddigger I have ever heard of.I was amused at how he put Jordan's thought down like he was a mindreader as well as a hack writer.He actually praised Ed Neely (clearly a good friend or relative)like he was a good player.Neely didn't even average 6 minutes a game but was so valuable in Sammie Smith's mind.Smith even wrote that he was the smartest player on the team(was he good at scrabble or something?Because he wasn't smart enough to get more playing times).He said Bill Cartwright had the best footwork on the teams lol.I guess thats why the refs called him for the most travel calls on the team.John Paxson was also a favorite of his so much in fact he said that he was a good defensive player lol.Shall I believe Sam or my lying eyes.Sam said Horace Grant hated to be a second fiddle to Michael Jordan but dashed to Orlando to play behind Shaq and Penny.I could go on and on about this trainwreck but I have spent enough time on this idiot.So if you are thinking about reading this book do something more interesting watch paint dry.

This is one of the great books that I had a hard time putting down. Sam Smith plays with our intrigue and wins out, enticing us to keep reading as we ask, "Did Isaiah Thomas really say that?" or "How did the Bulls stand together when at least half the team was demanding trades in 1991?"


We see them as if we were a part of the team.

*Hopson weeping after the 1991 title due to a fleeting feeling of comradely.
* Michael Jordan's off-the-court feud with Isaiah Thomas.
*Pippen demanding to be traded due to contract negotiations.
* Jerry "Crums" Krause being ridiculed publicly by Jordan and his brown-nosing cronies.
* Alliances forged through empathetic teammates who viewed the team's other pockets of faction with distrusting, and sometimes vengeful eyes.
* Cliff Levingston's constant butt-kissing of "His Airness".
* Horace Grant physically standing up to Jordan in practice and bragging about it later.
* Scottie Pippen's inward fear of Dennis Rodman.
* Phil Jackson's craving to buy a gun after a private meeting with a then-psychotic Scott Williams.
* The Pistons' mental control of B.J. Armstrong, Scottie Pippen, and others.
* Stacey King and Michael Jordan's verbal wars.
* Literal fist fights between certain players in practice.
* Jordan's constant campaign to assume control of the team's decision-making processes and how Phil Jackson combated his egocentric, and often enigmatic star.

A priviledged look into the makings of one of sports' greatest teams ever, and a eye-opening look into the makings of sports' greatest hero.

Sam Smith does a very good job describing how the personalities clash on this team. Jordan is revealed as an extremely intense individualist in a team sport, who is quick to identify and pounce on weaknesses in opponents, and more often, teammates. I enjoyed this book as a chance to get a better perspective on a team at the beginning of a historic run of championships. This book also illuminates the fact that it isn't necessarily chemistry that leads to championships, but balance. It's also interesting to see Phil Jackson lay out the nuances of the triangle offense with quotes by Native Americans and Rudyard Kipling. All in all, a great look at the construction and molding of a collection of strong personalities into a functional, cohesive championship team.

This revealing narrative takes us inside the Chicago Bull's locker room during their initial 1990-1991 NBA championship season. Sportswriter Stan Smith gives readers a birds-eye view of the players, team dissension, the leadership of Coach Phil Jackson, even the political and religious beliefs of several key figures. Naturally, much focus falls on superstar Michael Jordan, who by 1991 was a national and international icon. An ultra-competitive player, Jordan's skills so surpassed those of most of his teammates that he often became frustrated and tried to do too much by himself. Some teammates resented Jordan's selfish play and preferential "star" treatment. Still, if Jordan wasn't real popular, his teammates didn't disdain him either, and with Jackson's prodding he played enough team ball to lead the Bulls to six NBA titles from 1991-1998. Of course, it helped that he had a superstar teammate in Scottie Pippen, along with capable journeymen such as Horace Grant, Bill Cartwright, John Paxson, etc. Ironically, "the Jordan rules" refers to the defensive style of play used by the rival Detroit Pistons against the Bulls.

After this book came out as the Bulls played in Washington, TV cameras repeatedly showed a fan just behind their bench taunting Jordan and Pippen by sternly reading aloud from this book. The fan had a reputation for heckling, but all he accomplished was to make Jordan and Pippen laugh uproariously.

In this book about Jordan I have always knew he was a role model to me ever since I was little. My father and I use to watch the games all the time, I was happy when they won. But as I got older I didn't watch the games that much, but I still liked him. For me I think I am similar to Jordan because we have the same mind because we like to score most of the points and keep the team on track. One thing that he hates the most is to lose and so do I because it makes me think I'm not doing a good enough job. Some of the other characters in the book seem to not care much about the games; they are Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant. During the playoffs, the Bulls were losing and they were screwing off during practice and Jordan didn't like that. I hate that too, but I say joke around at a certain time, but when it is time to stop and work, do so. I recommend everyone read this book because it tells you about how the ups and downs of a basketball star is and how it influences you to want to play.

About as image conscious as the typical Hollywood megastar, Jordan always seemed to be managed by a closet full of PR handlers. Easily being the worlds most recognizable athlete since Ali and Pele, he was clearly as much a jumpshooter as a marketing phenomenon. There's a reason sneakers bearing his name still line store shelves. "The Jordan Rules" gets beyond the carefully honed image and presents Jordan as another superstar player (arguably the best ever, although the Big O with all his triple doubles could make a convincing case) who can be both generous and backstabbing towards his teammates and coaches.

His relationship with his brilliant head coach, Phil Jackson, makes for some of the most interesting reading and Smith brings a lot of the fascinating details to the table. Catching Jordan's ultra-competitive nature throughout, Smith wrote the type of book sports fans can truly appreciate for its candid look into the locker room. From the comraderie to the petty squables, "The Jordan Rules" is a terrific read, as are most controversial sports books that tell the truth.

With "The Jordan Rules," Sam Smith proves why he is one of the very best sportswriters in America. The book follows Jordan and the Bulls during their first championship season (1990-1991), before Jordan established himself as the most successful NBA player (in terms of championships) since Bill Russell. What is largely forgotten today is that in his first six years in the NBA was thought of as a selfish ballplayer who would never win a championship because he was not a "team player." Enter coach Phil Jackson, who in his first year would manage to convince his star player that in order for his team to win the championship, he would need to rely more on his teammates.

Great sports books are usually the case of the right writer (Smith in this case) being in a position to cover the right story at just the right time (Jon Krakauer's "Into Thin Air" is another example). That is certainly the case here. As a sports reporter for The Chicago Tribune, Smith had plenty of access to the team during that first championship run, and he interviewed all of the principals extensively. Fortunately, Smith pulls no punches. The book's title refers to the preferential treatment afforded to Jordan that was a constant source of irritation to his teammmates. Then-Bulls Center Bill Cartwright, for example, is memorably qoted as saying that Jordan is, "Maybe the greatest athelete ever to play any sport...He's just not a basketball player."

Overall, "The Jordan Rules" is that rare sports book that transcends the particular sport it covers and can be enjoyed by any sports fan.

Fantastic book! I really enjoy these "insider" accounts of day-to-day life (especially in the NBA) and had an inkling that MJ may have been more than the nice-guy he's made out to be by the media...this book definetly confirms that! But this is much more than just a Jordan ego-trip portrayal...it expertly tells the story of the Bulls championship run and all the real time, day to day problems that they all had (Pippen, P. Jackson...). Highly recommended!

Michael Jordan has transcended from the ranks of a mere athlete to a cultural icon. Between the shoes and clothing line, all the commercials, the image, the accolades, the title of ultimate champion, one can sometimes forget that before he won his first title in 1991, people viewed Mr. Jordan in a different light. He was looked at a tremendous scorer, but not a winner. People questioned whether he would tone down his scoring and become more of a team player in order to breakthrough and win a title. The name of the book comes from the Detroit Piston's rules against playing Jordan. Sam Smith was a beat reporter for the Bulls and his insights into the innerworkings of the team during their first title run in 1990-91 are revealing and entertaining. Though his views of Mr. Jordan sometimes cast him in a less than favorable light (in reading the book you get the feeling that Mr. Smith is not a big Jordan fan), what he does show is that Mr. Jordan had an intense desire to be the best at everything he does. It is this intensity that made him the greatest ever. Every fan of Michael Jordan or fan of the game of basketball should read this book as it is an interesting chapter in the career of the best ever to lace up the sneakers.

To me, the Bulls will always be the champs. I'm sorry, I grew up watching the Bulls and they were always dominant. Sam Smith's book takes the reader behind the scenes and shows what the Champion Bulls went through in 1990-91. There were things in the book that were a surprise and I saw how Michael Jordan really controls not only the ball, but to some extent, the coach as well. To get a behind-the-scenes look at the '90-'91 Bulls, read Sam Smith's book and see how Jordan Ruled.