Ten years later, greatness remains

10 years ago, June 11, 1997. Chicago Bulls at Utah Jazz, game five of the NBA Finals.

The flu game

I can’t believe its been ten years since the greatest to ever put on shorts, a tank top and a pair of sneakers dropped 38 points in 44 minutes on the Western Conference champs. And this was while being defended by not only Byron Russel, but also a horrible stomach flu. In my opinion its the greatest performance in NBA history, and honestly, there’s nothing even close. On 6/11/1997, Michael Jordan was as good as it gets.

How many times in the past have cold symptoms or minor injuries not only failed to stop Jordan, but spurred him on to even greater feats than normal? Bulls coach Phil Jackson used to marvel at Jordan's extraordinary powers of concentration under such circumstances that have happened with regularity throughout his career.

In Game 5 of the NBA Finals Wednesday, after a bout of vomiting the night before and up until game time, Jordan once again managed to focus on the task at hand, leading the Bulls with 38 points in 44 minutes, including the game-winning three-pointer with 25 seconds left in regulation followed a tipped rebound off his own missed free throw.

- “Jordan’s Heroics Leave Jazz Feeling Ill”, Melissa Issacson, ‘Chicago Tribune’, Jun. 12, 1997


I remember watching the game in my den , the place where I saw countless classic Bulls contests, from John Paxson’s three to beat the Suns in ’93 to game six versus Seattle in June of ’96, when MJ, Scottie, Phil won title number four on fathers day as Jordan began to sob like a three year old. I remember thinking that it must suck to play with the stomach flu, and that MJ must have had some type of super-human ability to be able to play a game of this importance while lying in bed all day, throwing up whatever he had in his system. And I remember that when he hit the three pointer with less than half a minute left, I was so excited that I nearly broke a window by shrieking so loudly.

With everything on the line, he took a pass from Pippen at the top of the three-point stripe. Stockton came flying at him, but Jordan rose up and stroked in an arching shot that proved to be a lot more than just the game-winner.

It showed what champions do when they don't feel good, when they would prefer napping to playing, when they are ready to pray to the porcelain God and beg for mercy.

They just win.

And so did the Bulls, 90-88.

Jordan had 38 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

But he had a lot more than that.

He had another crisp page in the famous Book of Michael.

- “Luckily for Bulls, only MJ's tenacity proves contagious”, Rick Telender, ‘Chicago Sun-Times, Jun. 12, 1997


As you all know, the Bulls went onto win game six of that series two days later on a pass by Jordan and a clutch shot by Steve Kerr. They came back and faced Utah again the next season in the Finals and beat them a second time, because of an MJ shot with six seconds left in game six to give the Bulls a sixth title.

But none of those moments, not the pass to Kerr, the shot that should have ended his career, or ones not mentioned here, like ‘The Shot’ versus Cleveland, the spec-tac-u-lar move against the Lakers in the ’91 Finals, or the 63 he dropped in the ’86 playoffs versus Boston, were as incredible as the flu game. It was the greatest performance I have ever witnessed, and even ten years later, I can confidently state that nothing will ever top it.



Some links on the game:

Box Score

Video #1 (Short highlight tape)

Video #2 (All of MJ’s important plays, NBA on NBC)

Video #3 (Final two minutes of the game, NBA on NBC)