by From a Craig Saeger backstabbing question to Jerry Krause, to Michael Jordan weeping on the floor after winning his first NBA Championship without his dad, this episode series had everything! It was one powerful item after another. Here are just a few in a night of countless ones that jumped out to me.
The 1997-1998 NJ Nets were a mix of has beens and also college all-stars that underwhelmed in the pro’s. It was easy for the Bulls and media to take them lightly.
The college all stars but NBA flops consisted of Keith Van Horn and Kerry Kittles while the long past their prime threats were Sam Cassell, Chris Gatling, Kendall Gill and Rony Seiklay. Despite a close game one, the Nets never stood a chance.
James Jordan was Michael Jordan’s rock. Between losing his father and the endless drama from the media, and tireless schedule, Michael truly needed a break. After watching that episode it does seem far fetched that his father was murdered to pay off a gambling debt.
Also, I don’t think the NBA “David Stern” would tell their most marketable player to take a rest until things blew over. I used to subscribe to the conspiracy theory on this subject, but after this episode I see no reason to keep believing it.
The producers didn’t bother interviewing anyone who could prove it or expound on it either, so it was clear Jordan was okay that is was mentioned and moved on quickly.
I’ll say these two things about his first retirement. I thought it was incredible the entire team and coaching staff attended the press conference. That was great sign of unity, even if they weren’t at the pretend one held on Space Jam. (that’s a joke). He was their leader, and they respected and loved him despite how hard he was on his teammates.
Speaking of that, do you want to be a winner or do you want to be liked? I think Jordan felt bad years later but wouldn’t change it for anything. He expected the best out of his teammates and if that made him seen as an asshole, then who cares. Do you want to win or do you want to be liked? It’s why he challenged players in practice and it is why Steve Kerr took a swing at him. You play to win!
Number two, if Jordan doesn’t retire in 93, and doesn’t retire again in 98, I firmly believe they win nine straight titles. 91-99 without many issues. The Houston Rockets may have pushed them in 94 and 95, but the Bulls would have taken them.
I believe they would have gotten past the Spurs in 99. It would have been 9 straight titles until they passed the torch to Kobe and Shaq in 2000. How amazing would that have been? The Lakers would have beaten them. There is no doubt in my mind on that one. In 2000, but not before that. But then again, Phil Jackson couldn’t coach both teams at once?
Speaking of the Bulls first postseason without him. Just when we thought we knew everything about that team they continue to drop bombshells on us.
Down 2-0 in the series against the Knicks it was Phil Jackson calling for the final shot of a game to go to Toni Kukoc and not Scottie Pippen. While not shocking, what happened next was when Pippen refused to check into the game.
I love Scottie Pippen, I really do. I think he is one of the greatest players of all time, and one of the most, if not the most underrated, but this documentary has not painted him in a very kind light several times already.
That was a total selfish move on his part and he should be ashamed. The fact that 25 years later he said he would do it again, is not the best look either quite frankly. The Bill Cartwright post game emotional speech was incredible to hear about as well.
One last thing on that 94 Bulls team, I think it also speaks volumes that Phil Jacksons triangle offense still worked without Jordan. He proved it again years later with the Lakers.
Phil Jackson benefited from having great players his entire coaching career and no one will dispute that. But, you can’t take it away from the guy how good of a teacher and leader he was. The greatest in basketball history in my opinion.
Cleveland fans had to love seeing Terry Francona in so much of these episodes. Francona was Michael Jordan’s manager in Double AA. It’s funny to look back at it all and realize how young they both were.
I also found it extremely telling and interesting about the way the sports world can work sometimes too. Jordan was nowhere near ready to play AA ball right away, but that was the only facility even close to being able to host the large media demands. That jumped out to me.
The baseball strike allowed Jordan to rethink his choice, and eventually turn back to the NBA. It only took five games for him to flash that vintage Jordan brilliance as he put up 55 at MSG against the Knicks.
Jordan and the Bulls would eventually run out of gas as the Magic would end their playoff run that season. It was telling for Jordan as he knew he still had the skill set, he just needed to get his legs back as training for basketball and baseball are completely different.
Jordan had Space Jam to film that summer but he wasn’t going to let that stop him either. They built him his own court under a dome known as “Jordan Dome”. How amazing is that?
Then he invited Patrick Ewing, Barkley, Shawn Bradley, Reggie Miller and other NBA players to play pick up games with him when he wasn’t filming. He kept a rigorous schedule, but that is what winners do.
As I often tell people who question my own 18 workdays every single day, “you can sleep when you’re dead!”. I realize I’m not the Michael Jordan of sports media, but where do you think I got that mentality from? Do you want to rest or do you want to succeed?
The one thing I didn’t like about this episode was the continued narrative about him getting revenge on players and coaches. It didn’t matter if it was George Karl, BJ Armstrong, Bradford Smith or a sportswriter, if you crossed Jordan he was going to embarrass you the first chance he got.
While I completely AGREE with that mindset and swear by it myself, it wasn’t needed to be driven home yet again in these episodes. That is the kind of color that could have been filled weeks ago.
Finally, the 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls are the greatest team in the history of the NBA. Don’t even try to come at me with the 2016 Golden State Warriors. That Bulls team couldn’t be touched and won’t be touched ever! A 23-2 stretch through the first 25, and a 72-10 finish at a time when the NBA was at its best tells you all that you need to know.
It takes some very good television, cinema or writing for me to get choked up. And perhaps it was a good thing it was 1am and the family was long since asleep, because when Jordan weeped on the locker room floor so did I.
He was so emotional after winning his first championship since his Dad passed. The fact that it was on Father’s Day made it even more powerful.
I love this series, and it will be quite sad when it ends next week. ESPN should be applauded for the remarkable job that they have done! I give night 4 of the series 4 out of 5 stars. The fith star being taken away only because they didn’t expound nearly enough on the death of his father and the theories there.
If anything, they did everything they could to squash it. Why not at least take a look? Other than that, it was flawless once again and next week will continue to be brilliant.
