The Greatest Game Of Michael Jordan's Career

When you think of Michael Jordan's greatest performance, which one comes to mind? The shot on Elo to win the series against the Cavs in 89? How about his iconic shrug game after hitting 6 threes in the first half of the 92 finals? Or is it his legendary flu game against the Jazz in the 97 finals? I can go on forever. MJ owns a handful of the greatest performances in NBA history. But in my opinion, Game 6 of the 1998 finals against the Utah Jazz stands as his masterpiece. In a decade of complete and utter dominance, Jordan had a chance to do what no one has done in modern NBA history. Capture a second 3-peat and his 6th title in 8 years. But it wasn't gonna come easy. Despite being up 3-2 in the series, the pressure Jordan faced was suffocating. This was Chicago's last dance. Coach Phil Jackson was gone at the end of the season, and MJ's second retirement was looming. And to make matters worse, Scottie Pippen gets injured and leaves the court just minutes into Game 6. Everything was on MJ's shoulders. In this one game, Michael Jordan has a chance to do the impossible and solidify himself as the greatest to ever do it. It's been over a quarter century since MJ's historical Game 6. So much has happened in the NBA since. So to understand the importance, the stakes, the sheer magnitude of this game, we have to go back even further. A selfish scorer. Just a dunker. The Pistons' punching bag. The guy with all the talent, but no rings. That was the label thrown onto MJ for the first 6 seasons of his NBA career. Until he shattered the narrative. In 1991, Mike and the Bulls finally broke through, capturing his first championship and finals MVP against the team of the 80s. And it marked the start of a new age in the NBA. The Jordan Era. In 92, he proved that he wasn't just a one-hit wonder. He hit Portland with a shrug, back-to-back titles, back-to-back finals MVPs, and yet the man wanted more. In 1993, he did just that with his third consecutive championship. A three-peat, if you will. A feat that Magic, Bird, Kareem, and many other greats weren't able to pull off. In fact, no team had won three straight championships since the Celtics in the 60s. Jordan was already cemented among the game's elite. And apparently, that was enough. At 30 years old, right smack in the middle of his prime, MJ retired from basketball for a multitude of reasons. And you probably know the story. He leaves the game, plays baseball for a little while, gets the itch to return to basketball, and just like that, he's back. Or in Michael's words, he made his return late in the 95 season. But his supporting cast just wasn't the same. The Bulls lost in the second round to the Orlando Magic, and it set the stage for an incredible 1996 season. In his first full year back, MJ captured his fourth MVP as Chicago went 72-10. The greatest record in history at the time. And like he never left, Jordan was back on the mountaintop to capture his fourth ring. But to think the dude is satisfied would be crazy. In 97, he and the Bulls were poised for another run. And with a meeting against the Malone and Stockton-led Utah Jazz in the finals, MJ went into another dimension. An iconic buzzer beater to beat Utah on Game 1, and with the series tied at 2, the man entered Game 5 crippled by the flu. Or food poisoning. And he still snapped. 38 points, 7 boards, 5 dimes, and 3 steals in the wind. He wasn't human. Jordan's greatness was truly unshakable now. Back-to-back titles, 5-7 years, and a 5th finals MVP. The NBA was at MJ's mercy, and another 3-peat was officially on the horizon. But it didn't come without some pressure. Riding high off their 5th championship, Jordan and the Bulls got a reality check. Prior to the start of the 98 season, GM Jerry Krause told Phil Jackson that he can go 82-0, and he still won't return as coach the following season. The reason? Well, it's due to Jerry's fascination in starting a rebuild right in the middle of a dynasty. Once the news broke, Jordan made it clear that he won't play for anyone but Phil, hinting at retirement. Plus the fact that he was in the final year of his contract made it official. This was the last dance for the Bulls' dynasty. Like he has for most of his career, MJ used this as motivation. He averaged 28 points on the season and captured his 5th MVP. A great honor, but not the hardware he was looking for. In round 1 of the playoffs, the dude was scorching as he averaged 36 in a sweep over the Nets. And in round 2, Chicago flexed their dominance, manhandling the Hornets in 5 to set up an Eastern Conference Finals faceoff against Reggie Miller and the Pacers. Chicago came out firing as they won games 1 and 2. But on the road in Indy, the Pacers answered in game 3. And thanks to some late game heroics by Reggie Miller in game 4, this series is tied at 2. The Bulls would answer at home and then Indiana did the same to force a do or die game 7. Just the second such game during the Bulls' dynasty. But Jordan didn't flinch. With the dynasty on the line, MJ stayed true to his word, pouring in 28 points to survive and keep the 3-peat alive. Indiana pushed them to the edge, but their next opponent will be their greatest test. Because they know them all too well. It was the rematch. Jordan and his Bulls up against a two-headed monster in Utah, motivated by what happened last season. And game 1 made that clear. Despite a 33-point outburst from MJ, the Jazz managed to escape with a 3-point overtime win to get one step closer to revenge. But bad news for them, Jordan took that loss personally. In game 2, the man lit Utah's building on fire with a 37-point nuke, including 13 of those in the 4th quarter, as the Bulls are headed back to Chicago, with the series tied. And it was home sweet home in game 3, as they embarrassed the Jazz in a 42-point massacre. Yes, the largest winning margin in NBA Finals history. And Chicago goes up 2-1. With a chance to go up 3-1, Mike was electric once again with 34 points, including another double-digit 4th quarter. And for the second year in a row, they've put Utah on the brink of elimination. MJ can taste the champagne, but it would have to wait. Carl Malone was a wrecking ball in game 5, smashing the Bulls for 39-9-5 in the win to avoid elimination, pushing the series back to Utah for a game 6. Jordan and the Bulls had a golden opportunity to clinch the 3-peat at home. Instead, they now face a daunting game 6 and potential game 7 on the road. The pressure was mounting. A game 7 with an older, injured, worn-down Bulls team is not ideal. It had to end now. MJ has to get his 6th in 6. MJ and the Bulls are back in Utah looking to put an end to this series and cap off their dynasty with a 6th and final championship. And as if the pressure on Jordan wasn't already sky high, it hit its peak just minutes into game 6. On the first play of the night, Pippen throws down a two-handed slam and immediately grimaces. Scottie had been dealing with a back issue throughout the series, and this dunk completely handicapped him, putting an even bigger burden on Jordan. At the 7 minute mark, the man announces his arrival with a patented fadeaway over Stockton for his first bucket of the game. And just a minute later, he extends his range out to the left wing, lacing a triple to put Chicago up 7. MJ was starting to get a feel for the game, but right as he was, it went south. Laboring with that back injury, Pippen heads back to the locker room at the 5 minute mark of the first quarter, officially leaving Jordan all by his lonesome. He'd finished the quarter with a hezy pullup in Brian Russell's grill to tie it at 22. But other than that, it wasn't very pretty. 8 points on 3 of 8 shooting, getting outplayed by Karl Malone, who had 12 at the end of the frame. And with Scottie Pippen still in the locker room to start the second quarter, Jordan had to turn it on. And I think he sensed it. Nasty footwork in the paint, a long range triple, a lob at the cup, another 3 from the right wing, a tough jumper, and then another fadeaway to mark his 6th straight field goal made in this quarter. MJ was an inferno. Even at 35 years old, lacking some of the athleticism he used to have, the man was still able to take over games with his assassin-like shot making. But despite his sizzling 15 point second quarter to give him 23 at halftime, the Bulls still found themselves down 4. They needed a spark, and at the beginning of the 3rd quarter, they got just that. Pippen was back for the start of the period, but you can tell he wasn't 100%. The dude was gonna be a decoy out there. At the 8 minute mark of the 3rd, Jordan swishes home a middie to get Chicago within 4. But that wasn't the talking point of the quarter. Just minutes later, tempers start to flare as Malone and Rodman get into some sort of wrestling match. And as that's going on, at the other end of the court, Brian Russell and MJ give each other a shot. Russell's pissed, but Mike is unfazed. He's got something in store for him a little bit later. On the next possession, Michael goes right at Russell and loses him with a filthy shimmy into a right shoulder fadeaway, and it's butter to put him up to 27 points on the night. But coming off his heater of a 2nd quarter, the 3rd was pretty underwhelming. Sitting at a solid 29 on the night, he put in just 6 in the frame on 2 for 6 shooting and 2 for 4 at the line. Fatigue seemed to be playing a serious factor. I mean, for context, the dude is in a deep postseason run for the 3rd straight season, and he hasn't missed a single game, regular season, or playoffs since he returned from retirement. The sheer amount of miles on his legs seem to be catching up to him. So, considering his fatigue and Scottie's injury, MJ can't allow this series to go 7. It has to end now. To start the 4th quarter, he drives and fades off the block for a wet jumper to put him up to 33 points. His reaction? Ice cold. It's time to kill. A couple minutes later, he knocks down 2 free throws to get within 1, and on the very next possession, he finds his sweet spot in the midrange and fills up the cup to give Chicago the lead, shooting his total up to 37 points. The clutch god was showing out. Then he disappeared. Midway through the quarter, MJ went cold, missing 3 straight field goals within a minute. All of which were short. A telltale sign that a player is fatigued since he can't get enough elevation on his jumper. This was worrisome. At the 3 minute mark, Mike launches a 3 and he's short yet again. Utah comes back down and Malone flares for a wide open jumper to put the Jazz up 4 with 2 minutes to go. It looked like this one was slipping through the Bulls' hands. Jordan has to dig deep. Off the Malone bucket, MJ comes back and attacks the rim. Brian Russell fouls him and he catches his breath at the free throw line as he drains both shots to get Chicago within 2. Moments later, he relentlessly attacks the rim again, gets fouled again, and as he shoots these massively clutch free throws with 59 seconds to go, Dennis Rodman is so confident that he's turns away from the rim and is talking to fans as Michael laces them. The game is tied at 83. The Jazz make their way down the court and Stockton finds a weak spot in the defense. Karl Malone dots him out of the post. He lines up the seams and splashes a monster 3 to put Utah up with 41 seconds remaining. A heart stopper. Chicago calls timeout and a Game 7 is less than a minute away. It was a 3-pointer that seemed to force Jordan and the Bulls into an inevitable Game 7 in Utah. But in reality, it set into motion a series of events that led to the crowning jewel of the Bulls' dynasty. Running on fumes with whatever energy he has left in the final 41 seconds, Michael Jordan, like he has his entire career, delivered with the single greatest sequence in sports history. If this was in a movie, you wouldn't believe it. The greatest player in the history of the game with the ball down by one breaks his defender's ankles and perfectly swishes home the jumper to get his team 5 seconds away from their second 3-peat and 6th championship in 8 years. But it wasn't just the shot either. It was the tough banker off glass into a crucial steal on the opposing team's best player that led to the iconic shot. It was absolute perfection. In the final 41 seconds, no other player on the Bulls touched the ball. It was all MJ. With all the pressure of this being the last gasp of Chicago's dynasty and Jordan's final moments in a Bulls uniform, he sealed it in storybook fashion with his 45th point of the night. It is, in my opinion, the greatest moment in the history of basketball. But I must mention that there's still 5 seconds left. Utah's coming out of their timeout down by 1. One shot can send this series to a 7th game. Either we're going 7, or Michael Jordan's final moment in a Chicago uniform is a masterpiece. Maybe I made you think my highlights started at the free throw line and not in the gym. Maybe I made you think that every shot I took was a game-winner, that my game was built on flash and not fire. Maybe it's my fault that you didn't see that failure gave me strength, that my pain was my motivation. Maybe I led you to believe that basketball was a God-given gift and not something I worked for every single day of my life. Maybe I destroyed the game, or maybe you're just making excuses.