Michael Jordan: Legends in Sports (10 page)

Now the Bulls were the team with championship experience. It showed. Instead of turning to Michael Jordan to do everything,
Chicago clamped down on defense and made sure everyone was involved in the offense. They easily beat Portland 112–89, in game
five. The Bulls returned triumphantly to Chicago with a chance to win it all.

Bulls fans looked forward to seeing their team win an NBA championship on their home court. From the opening tip-off, they
were on their feet cheering.

Portland hung close, but the Bulls would not be denied. When the final buzzer sounded, the scoreboard read
HOME
97,
VISITORS
93. The Bulls were champions again!

The fans stood on their feet and cheered as Michael and his teammates danced with joy on the court at Chicago Stadium. Michael
was again named playoff MVP and became the first player ever to win the MVP award in consecutive seasons for both the regular
season and the playoffs.

“Come next June you’ll probably be expecting a third from me,” he told the media after the game,
“but for now this championship proves the first one was no fluke.” In reference to his earlier troubles, he then added: “This
season has been a learning experience for me. I’m a better person for everything that has happened.”

That was bad news for the other teams in the NBA. If there was anything they didn’t need, it was for Michael Jordan to get
any better than he already was.

CHAPTER EIGHT
1992–1993

After such a grueling season, no one would have blamed Michael Jordan if he had taken the summer off. But he didn’t. For the
second time in his basketball career, he joined the United States Olympic basketball team.

In 1992, for the first time ever, professional athletes were allowed to compete in the Olympics. Playing with a team of collegians
in 1988, the United States had lost to the Soviet Union. Determined to avenge the 1988 loss, they created a “Dream Team” made
up of the best players in the NBA, plus one college player.

Magic Johnson came out of retirement to play on the team, and Larry Bird decided to join him. Utah forward Karl Malone and
point guard John Stockton agreed to play, as did centers Patrick Ewing of the
Knicks and Davis Robinson of the Spurs, forward Chris Mullin of the Golden State Warriors, Clyde Drexler of the Trail Blazers,
and Charles Barkley of the Phoenix Suns. Even Michael Jordan’s teammate Scottie Pippen agreed to play. Christian Laettner
of Duke represented the NCAA.

At first, Michael was unsure whether or not to play. He was tired, and he wanted to spend time with his family. Then Michael
realized that the 1992 Olympics gave him a unique opportunity. He would have a chance to win a second Olympic gold medal,
something very few athletes have been able to do. He would also have the chance to be a teammate of players like Bird and
Magic. As opponents, each had pushed the others to play their very best. All-Star games gave them a chance to play together,
but as Olympians, they’d all be reaching for the same goal.

Before the Olympics even began, the U.S. team had to qualify in a pre-Olympic tournament. In the very first game, Michael
made the play of the tournament. As a ball bounced free at the sidelines near midcourt, he raced to save it. He leaped out
of bounds, caught the ball, and fired a behind-the-back
pass to a wide-open Larry Bird under the basket! Only then did he crash-land into the stands.

Despite the fact that Bird missed more of the tournament with a sore back and guard John Stockton broke a bone in his hand,
the United States swept to five straight victories, winning by an average of more than 50 points. They were more than ready
to face the best the world had to offer.

The Olympics were held in Barcelona, Spain, in late July and early August. From the moment the Dream Team arrived, its members
were the most popular athletes at the Olympics. Off the court, athletes from all over the world swarmed the NBA stars at every
opportunity. No one was more popular than Michael Jordan. The games were broadcast around the globe, soon making Michael Jordan
the most recognizable athlete in the world.

On the court, the Dream Team was unstoppable. In most games, they opened up a huge early lead and spent much of the rest of
the game entertaining the crowd with a dizzying variety of astounding plays. Sometimes, even their opponents just stopped
and watched in amazement.

On the best team in the world, Michael Jordan
was the best player. Because the team had so much firepower, Michael spent most of the tournament passing the ball, rebounding,
and playing defense. He helped make sure everyone was involved in the offense.

The Dream Team won all eight games it played, crushing Croatia 117–85 in the finals to win the gold medal. In that game, Michael
led the United States in scoring, going 10–16 from the field to finish with 21 points. For the second time in as many tries,
a gold medal hung around Michael Jordan’s neck.

As satisfying as that accomplishment was, when the Olympics were over, both Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen were exhausted.
They had gone right from the NBA Finals straight to the Olympics, so it seemed as if their basketball season had never ended.
Now, only a few weeks after the Olympics, it was time to begin working toward another NBA championship.

Everyone was wondering whether or not Michael Jordan and the Bulls could “three-peat” — win the championship for the third
time in a row. Not even Magic Johnson’s Lakers or Larry Bird’s Celtics had been able to accomplish that. In fact, no NBA team
except for the Boston Celtics of the 1960s, who won 11 titles in 13 years, and the Minneapolis Lakers of the 1950s had ever
won three titles in a row.

Early in the 1992–93 season, it didn’t look as if the Bulls had much of a chance. They got off to a slow start and in January
actually lost more games than they won. The Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks were both much improved and were playing
better than the Bulls. Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen were tired, Bill Cartwright’s knees were bothering him, and John
Paxson was sidelined with an injury.

But the team got its second wind in the second half of the season. The Bulls started running again and closed with a rush,
winning the Central Division with a 57–25 record, third best in the league behind Phoenix and New York. Michael himself finished
with a flourish and won his seventh consecutive scoring title with a 32.6 average.

The Bulls started the playoffs playing as if they didn’t know how to lose. They beat the Atlanta Hawks and the Cleveland Cavaliers
in rounds one and two without a defeat. Then the Bulls ran into a stone wall: the New York Knicks.

The Knicks’ tough defense slowed the Bulls’ fast-breaking offense. New York center Patrick Ewing was dominant down low. Chicago
lost the first two games of the series.

Things were even worse for Michael Jordan. In game two, he played poorly, and afterward a newspaper reported that before the
game he had been seen in a casino in Atlantic City until the early hours of the morning.

The report upset Michael. While he admitted he had been at the casino, he also knew he had been back at his hotel by midnight.
He did not appreciate the implication that he had not been ready to play.

He took his anger out on the Knicks. In game three, he led Chicago to a 103–83 win. Then, in game four, he scored 54 points
to tie the series at two games. Inspired, the Bulls went on to beat the Knicks in six. It had been a difficult climb up the
ladder, but once again, the Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, had made it to the finals.

Their opponents, the Phoenix Suns, had the best record in the league during the regular season. Impressive on paper, that
didn’t mean much in the finals. The Bulls had Michael Jordan.

In game one, in Phoenix, Michael scored 14 fourth-quarter points. The Bulls won, 100–92. When Chicago took game two, 111–108,
the three-peat looked like a sure thing.

But the Suns refused to give up. In game three, in Chicago, they shut down Michael and hung on for a gritty 129–121 victory
in triple overtime.

Michael didn’t like losing on his home court. In fact, he didn’t like losing at all. In game four, he responded with one of
the best games of his career, hitting for 55 points and giving the Bulls a three-games-to-one lead. Afterward, Michael reminded
everyone, “We’re one game away.”

The Bulls were still one game away after game five, as the Suns bounced back to beat the Bulls, 108–98. The series went back
to Phoenix.

Game six was as tough and hard fought as any in the finals. The Bulls kept creeping ahead only to allow the Suns to draw back
close. With only a few minutes left in the game, the Suns jumped out to a 98–94 lead.

Then Michael Jordan got the ball. Every player on the court and every Suns fan in the stands knew what was going to happen,
but they were powerless
to stop it. Michael Jordan put the ball on the floor, drove to the basket, leaped into the air, and, twisting between two
defenders, scored on a layup, bringing the Bulls to within two.

Now Phoenix had the ball. They stalled for as long as they could but had to shoot before the 24-second clock expired. With
14 seconds left in the game, Phoenix guard Dan Majerle threw up an air ball. The Bulls had possession, down by two.

Chicago inbounded the ball to Michael, who took it across half-court. As the defense came out to meet him, he passed the ball
to Scottie Pippen on the wing. Pippen threw the ball down low to Horace Grant.

Grant looked for Michael, but Michael was double-teamed. Grant fired a quick pass to Paxson, who set up just behind the three-point
line. He jumped and shot.

Swish!
The basket was good! The Bulls had won, 99–98! THREE-PEAT!

The Bulls had done what no NBA team since the 1960s Celtics had done. Much of the credit belonged to Michael Jordan. He had
averaged 41 points in the six-game series, an NBA playoff record, and was
named MVP for the third straight time. Yet after crying over his first championship and dancing after the second, Michael
Jordan was more subdued and reflective this time.

“This championship is something special,” he admitted, “because it separates me from Magic and Bird. Neither ever won three
straight.”

At the end of only his eighth year in the National Basketball Association, Michael Jordan was at the top of his profession.
He had just turned 30 years old, yet he had won every award imaginable and led his team to a remarkable string of championships.
Basketball historians were beginning to consider Jordan’s Bulls one of the greatest teams in NBA history.

As Michael Jordan started his first summer vacation without basketball in two years, he looked forward to getting some rest
and, perhaps, setting his sights on some new goals. Life was very, very good. But, as Michael Jordan would soon learn, that
could change in an instant.

CHAPTER NINE
1993–1994