Episodes 5 and 6 of The Last Dance premiered Sunday, and while episode five focused on the Dream Team and Jordan's gargantuan celebrity, episode six seemed to have a primary theme: the imperfections of The Best.
In the 1993 Eastern Conference Finals, the Bulls would meet the New York Knicks, with the Knicks having home-advantage. The Knicks won Game 1, 98-90, on the back of 25 points and 17 rebounds from Patrick Ewing. They would also win Game 2, 96-91, despite 36 from Jordan.
Following the Game 2 loss, the media wondered if Jordan was worn down in Game 2 because of a trip he took to Atlantic City with family the night prior to Game 2, Jordan said in the episode that it was to get away from New York City and the media circus following Game 1, but the media pounced on the circumstance and it created a firestorm.
Jordan was lambasted in the media, with WFAN New York's Mike Francesa saying that Jordan's going to Atlantic City showed a lack of commitment to the Bulls and the ultimate goal of winning a third straight title. Papers had written that he was "gambling the Bulls' hopes" with his late night in which he got back to the team hotel in the early morning hours of the day of Game 2.
The episode also focused on Jordan's gambling involvement with golf hustler Slim Bouler and the book "Michael & Me: Our Gambling Addiction, My Cry for Help" by Richard Esquinas, who Jordan had golfed with regularly. Episode 6 details that Jordan wrote a check out to Bouler for $57,000 as payment for losing bets, and that he once lost over 1 million to Esquinas on golf bets.
This topic in the documentary was the first time that we saw Jordan portrayed in a negative light in the media, and it gave an insider look at what he had to deal with with his whole gambling situation. At one point, David Stern had in the papers had to say that there would be no penalty levied to Jordan, saying in the episode that "given Michael's earnings and the like, it never reached epic, crisis levels".
Needless to say, the situation had no impact on the court for Jordan or the Bulls. They would win the next four games of the series, by differentials of 20, 10, 3, and 8, and it would set up a Finals meeting between the 62-20 Phoenix Suns and league Most Valuable Player Charles Barkley.
That Finals would be the best of Jordan's career, as he would average 41 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists. Jordan scored 55 points in Game 4, and in the clinching Game 6, had 9 of the Bulls' 12 4th quarter points, with John Paxson's winning three pointer the only score other than Jordan in the quarter.
To this point, it's three titles for Jordan and the Bulls. For three straight seasons, they had conquered the league, and mental fatigue for Jordan was beginning to set in: the dealing with the media and then just the thinking of what is there left to prove after you've won three straight championships and proved your dominance over the league?
Episodes 7 and 8 will focus on the shocking news of his retirement and his dive into baseball, while the "Last Dance" season begins its playoff foray as the Bulls meet the New Jersey Nets in Round 1.
While I am a big Jordan fan and a fan of those teams, I do wish that this documentary was more focused on the 1997-1998 Chicago Bulls rather than the blend of Jordan's career with the 1998 team mixed in that it seems to be. While there are still four episodes remaining, I myself was hoping for more behind the scenes of that particular season rather than the focus that the documentary places on Jordan's career. Knowing a lot about Jordan and his career, I do wish that that team was the primary focus.
Having said that, though, there are four episodes to go and I am sure that it will dive into '98 even more, as the documentary's flow seems to be Jordan's career catching up to the '97-'98 season and then my guess would be concluding it with intricate details of that final season.
I'm not complaining though, because as a big time Jordan fan and fan of that era Bulls, this is the best sports documentary that I have ever seen.
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