True story.
It was 15 years ago today that the basketball legend authored arguably the gutsiest performance of his illustrious career. It was Game 5 of the 1997 NBA finals, a tough match up between Jordan's Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz, who were still in their John Stockton-to-Karl Malone glory days. As a matter of fact, the Jazz had spent the previous two games squaring a series that had threatened to turn into a Bulls cakewalk. Stockton himself highlighted his team's Game 4 victory with a steal from Jordan on a spin move into the lane, then threw a long outlet pass to Malone for a dunk on the other end. That play energized Utah the previous game and deadlocked the Finals at 2-2.
Game 5 of any series is usually seen as the pivotal game, especially if that series is tied at two going in. The Bulls were looking to get back on track and regain control of the series, and the Jazz were aiming to put the Bulls in a hole that seemed all but impossible just a few days prior. Raising the degree of difficulty for Chicago was Jordan's health status prior to the game. It was first disclosed on the NBC pregame telecast that the legendary hoopster had taken ill; the victim of a violent stomach flu (though initially reported as a case of food poisoning) and had been vomiting consistently since the early morning hours. Even still, Jordan's insatiable competitiveness and unmatched will to win guaranteed that he would be in the starting line-up for this ultra-important game.
Utah got off to a roaring start in the game, running up a 29-16 lead after one quarter. Jordan, meanwhile, had a very sickly tint to his skin and looked miserable. During timeouts, his body language was very slouchy while he wore agony on his face and often covered his head with a towel. However, with the Jazz off to such a great start and threatening to put the game out of reach in the second period, MJ shook off the debilitating effects of his illness and rallied the Bulls by scoring 17 audacious points to pull Chicago to within just four points at halftime.
The uneventful third quarter gave way to another offensive burst from Jordan in the fourth. Pulling loads of energy and resilience from the most distant areas of his inner soul, the 34-year old headliner poured in another 15 points in the final frame. Included in Michael's closing flourish was a backbreaking three point jumper that put the Bulls ahead with just 25 seconds left in the game. Even though they were only up by the slimmest of margins, the cold-blooded shot infused Chicago with a psychological edge over the pesky Jazz. Utah's precise execution and ever increasing confidence needed to be curtailed if the Bulls were going to win this game, and with the reality of MJ's pivotal basket, the tables had turned Chicago's way once again.
When the buzzer sounded and the scoreboard publicized a Bulls 90-88 triumph, Michael Jordan was near collapse and famously crumpled into teammate Scottie Pippen's arms from utter exhaustion. A simple and brief on-court interview with Ahmad Rashad was about all MJ had to say about this game in its immediate aftermath, but none of that mattered. He'd already said it all during his excruciating 44 minutes in battle; his transcendence was never more obvious, especially when Jazz star Karl Malone's lackluster performance is taken into account. Malone had just 19 points and 7 rebounds--pitiful numbers for a superstar (and that season's joke of an MVP) of his caliber in a home game of this magnitude. In spite of Malone's marginal numbers, there is no need for an excoriation of the man. Instead, we should salute the heroic and phenomenal excellence of Jordan, who once again proved himself to be the master of the crunch-time moment. Just a week and a half prior to this game, MJ knocked down the game-winning, buzzer beating jumper to lead Chicago to a Game 1 victory. Two days after this Herculean effort in Game 5, he drew a double-team from John Stockton in the closing seconds of Game 6 and passed to sharpshooting specialist Steve Kerr for the championship clinching jumper.
Defending champion Chicago won the 5th of their eventual six NBA titles after that shot.
Looking back on Michael Jordan's classic Game 5 effort against all odds in the '97 finals, we all have the benefit of 15 years worth of perspective. However, nothing changes the fact that MJ epitomized basketball genius to the highest degree; he was a singularly gifted megastar with the white hot confidence of a rising sun. Not to mention the fact that he also possessed the indelible leadership qualities that augmented each of his teammates' contributions. Can Kobe and LeBron lay claim to those attributes? So, far they haven't...but that's fine.
Jordan was always in a class by himself.
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