ESPN’s 10-part documentary series “The Last Dance,” which chronicles Michael Jordan and the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls, continued Sunday with Episodes 7 and 8.
Jordan and the Bulls allowed NBA Entertainment to follow them throughout the season and document their final championship. The series features never-before-seen footage, as well as interviews with more than 100 people close to the team.
Here’s what you need to know from the seventh and eighth episodes, which covered Jordan’s first retirement, the mid-’90s Bulls led by Scottie Pippen and the start of the 1998 postseason.
MORE: How to watch Episodes 7 and 8
ESPN’s NBA experts on ‘The Last Dance’
Our team weighs in with their biggest takeaways from the seventh and eighth episodes of the series. This will be updated throughout the night.
- Bobby Marks: I can still see the confetti coming down at the old Continental Airlines Arena. After winning the final game of the season at home against the Detroit Pistons, the New Jersey Nets had clinched a playoff spot. Their reward: the defending champion Chicago Bulls.
Game 1 of the series was one of those “what if” moments. Two starters, PG Sam Cassell (groin) and rookie PF Keith Van Horn (flu), played a combined 33 minutes. A third starter, SG Kerry Kittles, struggled offensively (3-for-17 from the field).
Still, Chicago needed overtime to win Game 1, despite the Nets being down 14 in the fourth quarter.
There was so much confidence heading into Game 3 that the Nets, trailing 0-2, flew in legendary ringside announcer Michael Buffer to introduce the starting lineups.
Jordan dropped 38 points on 16-of-22 shooting from the field, and the Bulls swept the series in a non-competitive Game 3.
The lasting memory from that game is the infamous staredown that Jordan gave Calipari.
Coach Cal had a penchant for stomping his feet on the sidelines and screaming at our younger players, in this case Van Horn and Kittles. I can still see Jordan staring at Calipari. The wordless expression was aimed at telling Calipari to leave these two young players alone.
- Eric Woodyard: I love my job to death, don’t get me wrong. But it’s definitely bothersome at times to see how rumors can get started without any sort of proof or facts to support them by certain media members, and that they can actually stick all these years later.
As a kid, you hear about all of these stories about MJ leaving basketball the first time because of the supposed “secret suspension” and that he got his father killed because of so-called gambling debts. but in this day and age there is no way something like that would still remain under wraps. We all have a job to do, and criticism is a part of solid reporting. But I also believe that you have to be able to convey a human element to these athletes to go along with the concrete evidence before writing something. Yes, they do make millions, but they are human beings as well. In some ways, it seems like the media robbed MJ of his joy of the game as well. Being like Mike was no easy job. The man couldn’t even mourn his father in peace. That will weigh heavy on any man.
- Ohm Youngmisuk: Scott Burrell arrived to the Bulls practice facility every day with a sense of anxiety and fear lurking in the back of his mind.
“The toughest part for me was practicing against Michael every day, you are so afraid to hurt him,” said Burrell, who had to guard Jordan in practice during Jordan’s final season with the Bulls. “Say you bump knees [or] do something to his ankle? You’re the a—— for the rest of your life.”
Fortunately for Burrell, the backup wing didn’t alter history as Jordan and the Bulls completed their second three-peat. But as “The Last Dance” has shown, Burrell was the sacrificial lamb placed in front of a blood-thirsty Jordan at every practice.
After a practice in Denver, Burrell challenged Jordan to a game of one-on-one up to seven points. Burrell led 6-5 when he says Jordan fouled him. Jordan, though, wouldn’t admit to fouling, took the ball and scored two straight baskets to win the game according to Burrell.
Burrell then made the mistake of challenging Jordan to a rematch.
“He said, ‘What?'” Burrell recalls. “‘Why would I play you? So you can tell your kids I beat Michael Jordan.’
“‘If I tell my kids I beat Scott Burrell, they’ll slap me in my face.'”
Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and Michael Jordan’s personal trainer Tim Grover reflect on MJ’s decision to play baseball. Episodes 7 and 8 of “The Last Dance” debut Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.
- Jesse Rogers: It didn’t take long to see the athleticism. It was apparent after spending just a few days in Birmingham, Ala. in 1994. Michael Jordan had that quick first step – just as he did on the basketball court.
But as you might imagine, Jordan’s size worked against him, especially in the batter’s box. His swing was long, taking its time through the zone. Even an average fan could recognize those deficiencies.
But when Jordan got moving – on the base paths or in the outfield — it resembled MJ in the open court. He was still entertaining despite a career .202 batting average over 127 games. His three home runs were a thrill, though, proving that he had some hand/eye coordination and ability. Double-A baseball isn’t exactly a picnic, and there were plenty of times the 31 year-old held his own.
But MJ wasn’t accustomed to failure. And baseball is all about failure.
- Andrew Lopez: There are several moments in “The Last Dance” where you think, “what would happen if this occurred during the social media era?” and Scottie Pippen’s refusal to go in with 1.8 seconds left is certainly at the top of that list. A team’s star player not wanting to go in because he didn’t get the play drawn up for him? It’d be insane.
But another thing that stood out – Toni Kukoc feels like one of those players from the 1990s that came around too early. Kukoc played until 2006, but he seems like he’d be just perfect in the modern game.
- Jesse Rogers: MJ’s close relationship with his father highlights the kind of loner he was — which sometimes comes with being so famous. But Jordan came to Chicago that way. His driver (George Koehler), who picked him up on his first day in town, became his life long friend and confidant. He and James Jordan basically were his support system. Jordan had no posse. I can’t emphasize that enough. It shaped who he was from early in his playing career. It became about basketball and only basketball and I think that’s why he was so ruthless in all the ways he competed. And after his father died, he had only Koehler. There was no entourage to distract him.
More on ‘The Last Dance’
Episodes 5 and 6 — ESPN NBA experts’ biggest takeaways from the middle of ‘The Last Dance’
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Steve Kerr talks about how fights in practice used to happen all the time and no one found out about his scuffle with Michael Jordan until months later.
Dennis Rodman wants to set the record straight on Scottie Pippen
Dennis Rodman once split Scottie Pippen’s chin open, but “The Last Dance” and the history it reveals has strengthened their bond.
Our NBA experts’ biggest takeaways from Episodes 3 and 4 of ‘The Last Dance’
ESPN’s NBA experts weigh in with their biggest takeaways from the second weekend of “The Last Dance.”
In 1998, Michael Jordan’s mother, Deloris, sat down to discuss what it is like to be the mother of the world’s greatest basketball player.
MJ kept NBA superstars at a distance, but Kobe broke through
“The Last Dance” offers a glimpse into the Michael Jordan-Kobe Bryant relationship, but the bond between the two basketball icons goes far deeper.
ESPN’s Michael Jordan documentary: Big takeaways from Episodes 1 and 2 of ‘The Last Dance’
ESPN’s NBA experts weigh in with their biggest takeaways from the first two episodes of “The Last Dance.”
Full schedule
The groundbreaking sports analysis program returns with a historic edition airing in conjunction with “The Last Dance” on ESPN. The five-episode series explores the 1998 Chicago Bulls and features episodes hosted by Phil Jackson, Dennis Rodman and Steve Kerr.
Sunday, May 17
- 7 p.m. ET | Re-air of “The Last Dance” Episode 7
- 8 p.m. ET | Re-air of “The Last Dance” Episode 8
- 9 p.m. ET | Premiere of “The Last Dance” Episode 9
- 10 p.m. ET | Premiere of “The Last Dance” Episode 10
Netflix (outside of the U.S.)
- Monday, May 4 | 12:01 a.m. PT | “The Last Dance” Episodes 5 and 6
- Monday, May 11 | 12:01 a.m. PT | “The Last Dance” Episodes 7 and 8
- Monday, May 18 | 12:01 a.m. PT | “The Last Dance” Episodes 9 and 10
MORE: How to watch Episodes 7 and 8
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