Here are five key points from episodes 7 and 8 of “The Last Dance,” the documentary series about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls’ championship season in 1997-98:
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1. So that’s why he was a jerk
This wasn’t as much about getting a scoop, but more about deeply understanding Jordan’s mindset and drive. Yes, he pushed his Bulls teammates harder than most Marine drill instructors would with new recruits, and while this was partly for his own benefit, it was also to ensure that the Jordanaires were capable of securing championships.
However, it was also meant for them. We witnessed a level of “tough love” that was incredibly intense in Jordan’s expectations, ridicule, and clashes with his fellow players from Chicago.
Finally, we have Jordan pulling back the curtain on it.
“Winning comes at a cost,” Jordan stated in his recent interactions with the documentary crew. “So does leadership.”
“Once you became part of the team, you had to live up to the standard that I had set playing the game. I wasn’t willing to accept anything less than that.”
Bill Wennington, a center who joined the Bulls during Jordan’s first retirement, received a straightforward welcome when the star player came back. According to Wennington, Jordan instructed him, “I want you to jump on the cape. But you have to hold on.”
If that involved physically assaulting teammates like Will Perdue and Steve Kerr, verbally attacking Scott Burrell, or reducing Dennis Hopson to tears (which happened in 1990-91 but wasn’t included in the documentary), then that was a price to pay.
“B.J. Armstrong stated, “His mentality was such that he couldn’t be a nice guy.””
As popular podcast host Adam Carolla often mentions, dealing with Jordan was not about you performing at your best level, but about you matching his excellence. He was particular about not expecting anything from his teammates that he himself wouldn’t do.
He got very emotional too.
“I desired victory, but I also wished for their participation in the triumph,” expressed Jordan, his voice gaining intensity. “If you’re not inclined to play in such a manner, don’t do it.”
He paused at that point and declared, “Break,” essentially calling his own “cut” to the scene.
2. James Jordan never left his side
We were bound to revisit the summer of 1993, during which the father of Jordan, James, was tragically murdered in a random assault on a Carolina highway. However, Episode 7 revealed that Michael’s decision to retire was not a direct result of his father’s death. He had been considering retirement after winning the ’93 title, perhaps as early as the autumn of 1992.
His venture into baseball was primarily inspired by his father.
Michael's No. 1 fan from the beginning.#TheLastDance pic.twitter.com/nW4YeC1p7Y
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) May 11, 2020
Before his basketball career skyrocketed, Jordan had a love for baseball. He had observed elite athletes like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders successfully juggle two-sport careers. However, the encouragement from his family and the teachings from his father to pursue what brings him joy, led him to take a risk and expose himself to a doubtful sports world. He moved to Birmingham, Alabama to play for the Class AA Barons in the Chicago White Sox system.
During his 1993 retirement press conference, which took place 10 weeks following his father’s murder, Jordan made two notable comments. He first said, “The word ‘retire’ means you can do anything you want.” His second comment was: “He saw my last basketball game.”
The documentary then shifted its timeline back and forth, showing James Jordan consistently by his son’s side, a supportive figure comparable to Scottie Pippen. This was evident all the way up to Game 6 of the 1996 Finals against Seattle. Those of us who reported on the championship series, where Chicago initially had a 3-0 lead but lost Games 4 and 5, leading to a rematch at the United Center, retrospectively wondered if there was some unseen force creating a poetic narrative. The decisive game was played on Father’s Day and saw Jordan and the Bulls clinch their first championship without Michael’s father present.
We’ve witnessed NBA stars shedding tears and expressing intense emotion when the realization of championship victory sets in. However, seeing Jordan on the floor of the trainer’s room, weeping while embracing the basketball and attempting to shy away from the cameras instead of catering to them, was an entirely different and truly genuine degree of emotion.
3. Pippen’s star turn, minus 1.8 seconds
At the time of Jordan’s first retirement, he was working in Minneapolis, a situation that presented a cruel irony. The Timberwolves, who had been a mediocre team for their first four years, finally had the chance to make a big leap by hosting the 1994 NBA All-Star Game in February. Despite their historically poor performance, this event was an oddly amusing twist of fate.
And now, it was getting an All-Star Game, without Michael Jordan, (gulp).
Of course, that perspective was rather narrow-minded. Consider the emotions of Bulls fans, watching the game’s top player retire while at the peak of his career. However, both markets were pleasantly taken aback.
Pippen experienced the peak season of his career, guiding Chicago to an unexpected 55-27 season — especially since they had just lost Michael Jordan right before training camp. He was voted third in the MVP ballot, trailing Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson. He also delighted fans in the Twin Cities by filling Jordan’s shoes as the top star, winning the All-Star MVP trophy.
Pippen differed from Jordan, not just in his game, but also in his personality. This difference resonated well with his teammates. However, we have been so engrossed in Jordan’s aggressive and obsessive approach towards his teammates, that some of those Bulls appeared somewhat lenient for appreciating this change.
Regardless, the entire team’s dynamic shifted within 1.8 seconds when Pippen refused to play at the conclusion of Game 3 of the East semifinals series against New York. Coach Phil Jackson had formulated the strategy for Toni Kukoc to make the final shot, without even having Pippen on the court as a distraction. Instead, he had Pippen — the team’s top passer — throwing in the ball.
After years of playing second fiddle to Jordan and eventually rising in rank, Pippen perceived himself to be back in a supportive role to the newcomer, Kukoc. Kukoc was the European discovery of General Manager Jerry Krause, who was already getting under Pippen’s skin.
Despite how justifiable his reasons may seem now, he was completely incorrect. It was intriguing to witness both the footage from ’94 and the reflections from different Bulls players concerning the reactions of mature men who felt betrayed by a teammate. This happened after Kukoc had successfully made a buzzer-beating shot that momentarily held off the Knicks.
Steve Kerr stated, “He abandoned us. It was devastating.”
Bill Cartwright, the center, was so distraught when he confronted Pippen in the locker room that he shed tears.
Pippen immediately apologized and Kerr stated that the team accepted his apology. Despite his ferocity in the final three games of the series, the Bulls were still eliminated.
Pippen’s legacy is firmly established. He is a Hall of Fame inductee, was recognized as one of the Top 50 players in NBA history in 1997 (even though he still had seven seasons left in his career), and is generally considered the most significant second player in NBA team history.
Even today, there are replica jerseys in Chicago that display “Pippen 1.8” instead of his usual number 33.
4. Comparing Jordan’s ‘bodies’ of work
The NBA’s top player took a hiatus to play minor league baseball for a season and may have continued had it not been for the prolonged labor dispute in the sport which extended into the spring of 1995.
Jordan’s usual style of taunting through dunks was replaced with batting curveballs, which was a different sight. However, he maintained his old self throughout, reflecting on that diversion and re-watching the footage on Sunday.
However, he wasn’t. He had exchanged his basketball-conditioned body for one more compatible with baseball, and… was there significant talk about that back then?
Back in the day, the brief period from March 1995 through to the Bulls’ defeat against Orlando seemed to be primarily remembered for Jordan’s remarkable performances during his comeback. This was also when he briefly switched his iconic Bulls jersey number from 23 to 45. However, it became evident that Jordan’s performance was not simply a case of him being rusty or unfamiliar. Instead, he seamlessly integrated himself into the revised Chicago lineup.
Jordan had trained to become a baseball player instead of a basketball player, and he had to undergo a physical transformation to revert back.
Good Guys Wear Black (& Red) #TheLastDance pic.twitter.com/gi6LnaJL3W
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) May 11, 2020
“Reflecting on it, I didn’t have sufficient time to recondition my body for basketball,” said Jordan.
Not to disrespect the younger versions of Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway, or even the ex-Bull Horace Grant, but it might be difficult to get Jordan to express the same sentiment.
Tim Grover, Jordan’s personal trainer, and Chip Schaefer of the Bulls supported this explanation. The reflexes, strength, and agility required for one sport significantly differed from the other. The difference might not have been as noticeable as, for instance, giving Aaron Judge, the Yankees’ hitter who stands at 6-foot-7 and weighs 280 pounds, a body that could serve as an NBA power forward. But the difference was genuine.
The segment of the documentary revealed Jordan embracing his role in “Space Jam” in the summer of 1995 and his determination to get back in shape. He had the film studio build the “Jordan Dome” – a fully equipped court and gym for his daily two-hour workouts on its premises. In the evenings, he organized high-level pickup games with NBA players, not only refining his skills but also studying theirs.
5. Don’t look, talk or even breathe at Jordan
If you want to have a chance to beat him, don’t. Jordan’s tendency to turn perceived or fabricated slights into fiery motivation was fully exhibited on Sunday.
It’s often said in sports that players and teams may be able to tap into their hidden potential every now and then, exploit their talents at the right moments, and sometimes stretch their focus beyond the usual limits. However, they’re not expected to suddenly shift gears as if they’ve activated the nitrous oxide in a drag race.
Apparently, Jordan was the exception. He not only transformed immediate grudges into magnificent displays, but he also discovered methods to create them. At that point, he resembled Bruce Banner in full Hulk mode.
The LaBradford Smith story was early legend. That’s when Jordan got so incensed by the Washington guard’s big scoring night against him in Chicago that he torched Smith the very next night of a back-to-back. But the kicker was Smith’s alleged remark (“Nice game, Mike”) after the first game never happened. Somehow, Jordan convinced himself that it had and got his revenge.
The kind of things that caused a rift between Isiah Thomas and Jordan were quite evident on Sunday. A prime example was Nick Anderson’s comment after the Magic’s victory in Game 1 of their ’95 playoff series, when he said, “45 isn’t 23.”
Seattle coach George Karl’s restaurant failure, stuck in a no-win situation of whether to stop by Jordan’s table and pay respects or not, didn’t matter to Jordan. His affiliation with Carolina was irrelevant.
“That’s everything I required,” he stated. “It turned into something personal for me.”
Lastly, the series revisits Jordan’s previous reaction to a comment by Thomas, as he watches a video on a tablet passed to him. This time, it is Gary Payton speculating about the different outcome of the ’96 Finals had Karl deployed him to defend Jordan prior to Game 4.
Gary Payton thought he found a way to get to MJ … Mike wasn't sweating the Glove #TheLastDance pic.twitter.com/Z8NG7qN5hW
— ESPN (@espn) May 11, 2020
“Continuously striking and pounding him took a toll on Mike,” Payton said. “That’s when the series shifted.”
Ignore Jordan’s cackling. The real highlight was the patronizing way he said Payton’s nickname, “The Glove,” as he returned the tablet.
However, the cackling was also quite enjoyable.
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.
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