“Ruthian,” I jotted in my notebook when Michael Jordan stole the ball, and almost immediately recognized how unsatisfactory that adjective was. When Jordan unretired and led the Bulls to the second round of the playoffs a mere three years ago, I speculated that he could still have his greatest feats ahead of him and cited Babe Ruth, whose most famous exploits–his 60 homers in 1927 at the age of 32 and his supposed “called shot” in the World Series against the Cubs five years later–both came after his 1925 bellyache/stomach virus/syphilis attack, after many had written him off as over-the-hill, a has-been. And look at what Jordan has achieved since his comeback at age 32: a return to MVP form two years ago, both in the 72-win regular season and in the National Basketball Association finals; a game-winning shot in game one of the finals a year ago and a courageous performance while ill in game five that perhaps will become his most legendary feat; and, most important, two championships and a shot at a third, which would make six in all.
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“I was trying to force him left,” Jordan said afterward. “I figured that was his weakest hand, and I beat him to the position and he never really brought the ball back in. He exposed it and I went for it and I just saw clear sailing after that.”
So began what coach Phil Jackson has called “the last dance,” almost certainly the final playoff run involving the Bulls’ nucleus of Jordan, Jackson, and Pippen, quite possibly the last involving Jordan at all. During the rough last few weeks of the season, he certainly had the look of someone who could readily ponder retirement. Perhaps it wasn’t age but an injury to the index finger on his shooting hand that hindered his play, but if so, no injury had slowed him to such an extent over such an extended period since the broken foot he suffered in his sophomore NBA season.
The Bulls looked much better in the second game, controlling the boards from the get-go and getting inspired play off the bench from Kerr and Bill Wennington. Yet straining for beauty again got them into trouble. The Bulls controlled the play throughout the first half, taking a 52-38 lead. The Nets came out hard in the second half, and the Bulls responded in kind. In fact, for a while they pretty much mopped the floor with the Nets, Jordan completing a three-point play for a 72-52 lead. Kittles, however, hit a desperation three-point shot caroming off the glass to trigger a seven-point New Jersey run, and the Bulls found they couldn’t rein in the horses once they were running full out. The Nets kept the pace frantic, but Kerr hit a critical three-pointer to make it 81-71, and in the end Jordan made just enough shots–from the field and at the line–to carry the Bulls home.
