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So who’s ready for the next two episodes of The Last Dance?! Show of hands… Wow. Everybody. The first two episodes were pretty good, weren’t they?
Welp, based on a recent interview former Chicago Bulls guard and current Warriors head coach Steve Kerr did with ESPN’s Zach Lowe on his podcast The Lowe Post we’re in for even more treats about The GOAT Michael Jordan.
During his appearance, Kerr talked about how in 1998, during the Bulls and Jordan’s sixth and final run at a NBA championship, they almost didn’t even make it to the NBA Finals thanks to a very good Indiana Pacers team led by Reggie Miller and Rik Smits and coached by the legend Larry Bird.
Related: Kevin Durant’s Favorite Michael Jordan Moment, In A Shocker, Came When MJ Was On The Wizards
After jumping out to a quick two games to none lead in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals, the Bulls lost back to back games at Market Square Arena. Games 5 and 6 were more of the same with each team trading home wins, locking the series up at three games apiece.
Before the deciding Game 7, Bulls coach Phil Jackson tried to weave some of his zen voodoo magic on the players at practice the day before the game, but Jordan wasn’t having it, especially since this was only the second time during the six runs to a NBA championship that the Bulls had even been taken to a Game 7.
“I remember the day before the game we had our walkthrough practice and I remember Phil called us in and in typical Phil fashion, trying to get our minds right, he said, you know, the important thing in a game like this is to not fear losing,” Kerr recalled. “You embrace the idea that you could lose. It’s okay. You face that. And so he was kind of getting into the psychological spirit of how to approach the game.
“But before he could even really get started, Michael just said, ‘Nah, f*** that, Phil. We’re not losing.’ [laughs] And we all put our hands in the middle, ‘1, 2, 3, Bulls,’ and everybody went home.”
Chicago went on to beat Indiana 88 to 83, as Jordan predicted, with MJ droping 28, Toni Kukoc connecting for 21 on 7-for-11 shooting, and Scottie Pippen snagging 12 boards. Then they took out the Utah Jazz in six games for their second three-peat and the rest is history.
This also happened in Game 7 against Indiana…
No wonder Reggie says he still wants to punch Jordan in the face.
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