NBA Legends  Bulls Photos by Getty Images

You all spent a lot of great years in the NBA. Did you miss all of it when it was over? Luc, you moved all the way back to Perth. What was that like?

Luc: As far as the basketball was concerned, it was a long way from where I’d played. I did miss it, and I missed the guys. And I also missed the real-time winning and losing. Each day you’d have a mission: you’d succeed or fail. It’s fun, it’s interesting. Even those days you’d lose, you would’ve been out there trying with your mates to do something.Every day it was like that. And that’s what I missed. I don’t miss necessarily the practices, or the travel, or the first three quarters. But the fourth quarter, the game on the line, that’s what I loved.

Ron: The main thing I missed was being around my team-mates. They’re the guys you’re with for seven or eight months, working closely together. You’d have your highs and your lows, but it was really a great bunch we had [at the Bulls]. And you can’t take that away. We will always be able to talk about the great run we had.

Horace, when he was with the Bulls and they won those three championships, they became rock stars. And then when we came along, especially when Rodman came on board, it went crazy. It was like being rock stars times five.

Horace: I agree with that. Ron’s got it right; it was mad.

Luc: I don’t think any of us bought a beer in Chicago for about five years.

Ron: Hey, I still don’t have to buy one now.

Can you keep your network of friends when you finish playing basketball? Or does time away from your sport change those relationships?

Horace: That’s a good question.It’s okay to have that time away,and find your own space. But when you need to call one of the guys,it’s very important to have tried to keep some contact with them. When I leave Australia, of course,I’m going to make sure I have these guys’ numbers.

Ron: So when I get home, I’m going straight out and getting a new phone!

Luc: All I can add is the thing about a team is ... half of them are dicks, always. So you’ve really only got to try keeping in touch with half of them, anyway.

Ron: When you’re around guys you truly like to be around, it makes the experience, great as it is, even better. Now, there was a team [the Lakers] I’ve been on that won championships and the guys on that team all wanted their own thing.

I definitely stopped because the Lakers, I didn’t have fun playing for them. I’d be asking [my Lakers team-mates] all the time, “Why aren’t you happy? The team’s doing great.” And they’d be saying back to me, “I should be shooting more of the basketball.” Or complaining, “What’s that guy doing on court with me?” And I’d be back at them, “Hey, we’re winning, who cares? It’s a team game.” And the guys would still be mad.

Horace: I should’ve been the most upset guy in the league playing with guys who shot the ball all the time. I’d get two shots a game. The rest I’d get from offensive rebounds. But, for me, it was all about the team. And I think that’s what a lot of guys today have gotten away from.

Luc: It’s an amazing fact; when you win 72 games and lose ten, you like all your team-mates. When you win ten and lose 72, they’re all dicks. Those two things are inseparable.