Chuck Daly est décédé samedi matin à l'âge de 78 ans des suites d'un cancer du pancréas, selon un communiqué diffusé par les Pistons. Après avoir conquis deux bagues de champion avec Detroit (1989, 1990), Chuck Daly avait mené la dream team jusqu'au sacre olympique, en 1992, à Barcelone. (sports.fr)
je suis un grand fan de la nba des année 1990 la grande époque de Jordan....je lance un sondage a tout les fans de la nba qui peut remplacer JORDAN : KOBE ou LEBRON ?????
Auteur de trois triple double d’affilée cette semaine, LeBron James rêvait secrètement de continuer son incroyable série face aux Kings.
Malgré ses 51 points plantés dans la défense de Sacramento, James n’a pas poursuivi sa série, et il reste donc loin du record de la spécialité. Un record d’ailleurs qui sera difficile à battre.
Il est l’œuvre de Michael Jordan, auteur de 7 triple double d’affilée en 1989. C’était il y a 20 ans presque jour pour jour.
Sur la période du 24 mars au 14 avril 1989, MJ avait même réussi 10 triple double en 11 matchs !
Un triple double en 21 minutes !
A l’époque, Doug Collins avait décidé de le décaler au poste de meneur de jeu. On se souvient même d’un match face aux Kings où il n’avait eu besoin que de 21 minutes pour réussir son triple double !
Pas suffisant cependant pour lui permettre de remporter le titre de MVP… puisque le panel de votants lui préféra Magic Johnson cette année-là.
Il défie Magic Johnson
Pour le plaisir, voici un long résumé d’une rencontre face aux Lakers de Magic Johnson. Nous sommes le 21 mars 1989. Depuis 10 jours, Jordan évolue au poste de meneur, et tout le monde a les yeux braqués sur son duel face à Magic Johnson.
MJ finira avec 21 pts, 16 pds (record) et 8 rbds. De son côté, Magic cumulera 20 pts, 12 pds et 8 rbds.
Au final, Chicago créé l’exploit en s’imposant 104-103 au Forum d’Inglewood, et Jordan ne sait pas encore qu’il entamera après ce match sa fameuse série de triple double.
-- McGrady 4... a dit : -- Lady M a dit : moi aussi ils ont disparu des forums de basket sérieux Pour se rabattre sur "YouTube" et autres sites de partage et là c'est encore pire . --
-- McGrady 4... a dit : -- Lady M a dit : les kikoolol on quasi disparu de tous les sites que je lis régulièrement parlant basket même basketsession Je parle des mecs du style: " KoBe il è MélIeUr Ke JoRdAn LOL..." --
moi aussi ils ont disparu des forums de basket sérieux
-- McGrady 4... a dit : Je commence à en avoir assez de tous ces petits cons qui ont découverts la NBA en 2000 et qui pensent tout connaître sur le sujet . - Leur langage SMS à base de Kikoo et autres conneries dans le genre. - J'ai presque 20 piges de matchs au compteur et j'en apprends tous les jours mais pas eux visiblement. Désolé mais ça en devient pénible à force. J'espère que "Stopweb" ne va être "envahi" par ce genre d'énergumène. --
les kikoolol on quasi disparu de tous les sites que je lis régulièrement parlant basket même basketsession
-- Sam Dalembert a dit : J'ai déplacé ton post là Mac, mon2 avait commencé ce topic pour mettre les vidéos des anciens games, autant faire dans la continuité
OK, je voulais le mettre dans ce topic mais je ne le trouvais plus .
Un petit résumé d'un match opposant les Bulls de jordan aux Hornets (Charlotte) de Rice le 11 février 1997 soit quelques jours après le titre de MVP du ASG obtenu pas Glen à la surprise générale.
La feinte de corps de Jordan, avant son départ en dribble (3ème action montrée dans la vidéo), est incroyable. Ca a l'air de rien, mais je trouve ça énorme. Avec la vitesse de son premier pas, il n'y a rien à faire pour l'arrêter.
Bulls vs Rockets. Jordan 45pts Barkley 35 (Thrash talk game)
"Charles is not Charles with his mouth shut. That's like me playing....with hair." -- Jordan.
Rockets were playing without the injured Hakeem and Drexler. Pippen was playing only his 5th game after returning from his long injury. The stage was set for two old friends and they didn't disappoint.
They were both 35 years old but their competitive fire was still young. Besides the great performances, there was lots of thrash talking, fun and mutual respect for one another. The only thing missing were the cracked asphalt and chain nets.
Enjoy.
Post game notes & quotes:
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CHICAGO -- They yapped, jawed and traded barbs. They crashed to the floor together after one under-the-basket collision. And after a timeout, they exchanged a lighthearted head butt.
It wasn't the playground, just two highly paid NBA stars and two good friends, Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley, going at one another on national TV on a Sunday afternoon at Chicago. Maybe for one of the last times.
"There was a lot of trash talking today, most done by me and Charles. It just adds to the game," Jordan said after scoring 45 points and leading the Chicago Bulls past Barkley and the Houston Rockets, 106-100.
"Charles is not Charles with his mouth shut," Jordan said. "That's like me playing with hair."
"You may see us jawing at each other every now and then. I think the fans get an understanding of the competitiveness between us and it's not done in a nasty way. It's done with a lot of smiling," Jordan added.
"We're trying to jockey for the referees' preference."
Barkley, like Jordan, did more than run his mouth. He scored 35 points - 19 over his average - and had 14 rebounds but still the Rockets lost for the 10th time in 14 games.
"It was old-time trash-talking," Barkley said. "These kids today think trash-talking means getting real personal and challenging your manhood. They're missing the point. It's just about trying to get to the other guy a little bit, having fun.
"This was like it used to be when (Larry) Bird and Magic (Johnson) went at it. Or when Isiah (Thomas) was doing his thing with the Pistons.
"I went by him once and told him, 'You're an old man.' He's two days older than me.
"He told me, 'You got no chance today, and you never will.' It was all stuff like that."
"We are tight, very tight. That was just us playing around," Barkley added. "Michael is like a brother to me. We have a great relationship, but we also love competing like cats and dogs when we play each other. He wants it badly, I want it badly. He likes to beat me, I like to beat him. I hate (bleeping) losing, I can tell you that. But our friendship is bigger than basketball and any one game, believe me. "
"Me and Michael will carry on as friends forever. He's done so much for me, and I feel I've done some things to help him along the way. After we're done playing this game, we'll be golfing until the day we die."
"Every time we have the opportunity to compete, we realize it may be the last," said Jordan.
"We're friends, but I don't feel sorry for him. One of us has to lose and I'd rather it be him."
It's the law of the playground. No breaks, no sympathy. Especially for your brother.
The Rockets played without injured stars Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler and then lost guard Mario Elie with 6:54 left in the first half when he strained his left shoulder after colliding under the basket with Scottie Pippen.
But every time it looked like the Bulls would run away, Houston fought back with determined play from Barkley, who made 11-of-14 field goal attempts.
Barkley's intensity and aggressiveness made Dennis Rodman (no points, five rebounds in 35 minutes) ineffective, turning the NBA's leading rebounder into a pussycat with leopard-spotted hair.
"Charles doesn't take any of the mess that Dennis may try to do to other players to get into their minds," Jordan said.
"Actually, I think Charles tries to beat him to the punch early. In Phoenix (two years ago), he threw an elbow at Dennis and more or less held him at bay the rest of the game. Today, he threw Dennis down early. (Barkley) got a foul, but I think it set the precedent to Dennis that he's not going to manhandle (Barkley)."
Four points by Othella Harrington and Emanual Davis's three-pointer highlighted an 11-2 fourth-quarter run that got the Rockets within 90-87.
Jordan then hit a pair of three-pointers and Scott Burrell added another as Chicago went up 10 with just more than four minutes remaining.
Jordan's 45 points marked his seventh game of at least 40 points this season.
think this footage is somewhat rare. In October 1997, Bulls went to Paris to compete in McDonald's Open which featured some of the best clubs from all over the world. The other teams competing were Paris St Germain, the champions of France, Olympiakos of Greece, the European champions, Atenas de Cordoba, the South American champions, Barcelona and Benetton, champions of Spain and Italy, respectively.
Jordan playing in Europe was a gigantic event. More than one thousand journalists came from all over the world to witness the tournament. France-Noir, a daily French newspaper, wrote "Michael Jordan is in Paris. That's better than the Pope. It's God in person."
Pippen was injured and Rodman was ill, thus they were absent. In the semifinals Bulls beat Paris St. Germain 89-82 in a quite close game. Kukoc was 0-7, Harper 1-9, Kerr 2-7. Jordan finished with 28pts on 11/23 with 6 assists. Longley and Scott Burrell had also good performances.
On the other semifinal matchup Olympiakos beat Atenas de Cordoba in the final possession. So the Bulls and Olympiakos met in the finals. This time Bulls were more focused and since it was a 20-25 point blowout early in the fourth quarter Jordan only played for 29 minutes and finished with a game-high 27 points. (if anyone's interested I have the boxscores for both Bulls games. )
The camerawork was great in this game. The commentary wasn't English.
Here are the complete results in the tournament. (Bulls entered from the semifinals).
10/16/97
Atenas de Cordoba 87 -- Benetton Treviso 78
PSG Racing 97 -- FC Barcelona 84
10/17/97 (semifinals)
Olympiakos 89 - Atenas de Cordoba 86
Chicago Bulls 89 -- PSG Racing 82
10/18/97 (final and classification)
Benetton Treviso 106 -- FC Barcelona 103
Atenas de Cordoba 88 -- PSG Racing 78
Chicago Bulls 104 -- Olympiakos 78
Post game quotes & notes
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PARIS, Oct.18 -- For most of the 1990's, the Chicago Bulls have been calling themselves ''world champions.''
''Now, it's official,'' Bulls guard Randy Brown said.
Official, but not necessarily emotional. As the Bulls gathered around the trophy at the Palais Omnisports de Paris tonight after their very routine 104-78 victory over Olympiakos Piraeus in the final of the McDonald's Championship, they looked about as overwhelmed as a Nobel laureate would after winning a local poetry contest.
''We didn't really have any doubt we were the best team in the world,'' Michael Jordan said.
No one had any doubt that Jordan was the best player in the world, either, and over the last two nights in this six-team international event that advertises itself as a world club championship, he merely underlined the obvious.
"I think hopefully the fans were pretty pleased despite the little time I was on the basketball court," said Jordan, who played 29 minutes.
On Friday, Jordan scored a game-high 28 points when his supporting cast was abysmal in a surprisingly close 89-82 victory over the French champion PSG-Racing. Tonight, he scored a game-high 27 points, many of them with great panache, against the European and Greek champion Olympiakos when his supporting cast was playing at a far superior level.
''I think the Bulls were much better prepared and concentrated for this game,'' Olympiakos Coach Dussan Ivkovic said.
Jordan's finest move came with just more than four minutes left in the first half when he gave the locals what they came to see as he skirted the baseline, swooped under the basket and stalled out in mid-air to score and draw the foul.
"I think a lot of people in the stands were looking for something unique," said Jordan, who is shown in polls to be the most popular athlete in France.
"It just happened to go in, and I was pretty amazed to get the shot up," he added.
Dozens of banners and hand-made pennants waved from the stands. "Be Legendary MJ," read one. "His Airness Came on Earth to Bless Us," went another. "Give Us a Show Michael - Germany Loves the Bulls," yet another.
Several times Jordan said he put a "little extra mustard on top of the hot dog" to please the fans.
"I think I could sense the competition in their eyes at a challenge," Jordan said. "A couple of times, I gave a head and shoulder fake, and I felt like they were anticipating the worst.
"If they were dreaming of playing Michael Jordan all alone, this was their opportunity. This is not television, they couldn't change the channel.
"I gave one player a fake, and I thought he lost his shoes. He thought it was funny. He laughed, so I laughed too."
Michael Hawkins, who played briefly with the Celtics, directed Olympiakos' offense, often penetrating the Bulls defense.
At times, the Greek team was their equal, thanks to Arturas Karnisovas, who had 19 points, and center Dragan Tarlac, once a Bulls draft pick, who scored 14 points with a game-high 11 rebounds despite inspired opposition from Luc Longley and Bill Wennington.
They were the necessary character actors in games that were written for Jordan. His reported $33 million salary is probably more than the combined budgets of the two European clubs opposing him.
On Friday, the Bulls shot 42 percent from the field. Tonight, they shot 52 percent. On Friday, they were outrebounded; tonight, they won the battle of the boards, 49-36, and outscored Olympiakos in every quarter. About the only elements that remained mediocre were their 3-point shooting and Toni Kukoc, who bore scant resemblance to the versatile, cocksure golden boy who once dominated European basketball. He scored a total of 5 points in two games on 2-of-15 shooting from the field, in part because he is recovering more slowly than expected from a foot injury.
''We had a game a little more befitting of the Bulls and the tradition we've had,'' said Chicago Coach Phil Jackson, who arrived here without the injured Scottie Pippen and the ill Dennis Rodman.
But Jackson still had Jordan. And at the end of what he admitted was probably his last international game -- future barnstorming tours excepted -- Jordan was given the most valuable player award, named for the former Croatian star Drazen Petrovic, who played for the Nets and was killed in an automobile accident in 1993.
Doug Collins decided to move Jordan to the point guard spot against Seattle on March 11, 1989. He finished that game with 15 assists. Two days later, he had a game of 21/14/14 against the Pacers in just 30 minutes of playing time in a 32-point blowout win. He reached the triple double mark in just 21 minutes.
Jordan continued to play at the PG spot until the end of the season. In these 24 games he averaged 29.3ppg, 8.9rpg, 10.6 apg, 2.4spg. Between March 24 and April 14, 1989, he recorded a triple double in ten of the eleven games, including seven consecutive ones. In the game he didn't record a TD, he finished with 40 points, 11 assists and 7 rebounds.
In this game, he has 16 assists against the Lakers and ties his career-high which was set in his rookie year. (Three days later, on March 24, he had 17 assists at Portland which remained as his highest.)
In the first 3 quarters of this game he rarely shoots the ball and feeds his teammates. In the 4th, he scores 12 points and leads the Bulls to the victory.
I've included a good article about his PG days after the game notes.
Post game notes & quotes
====================
INGLEWOOD, CA -- If there wasn't already enough excitement with Michael Jordan in town, the Bulls wrote their own Hollywood ending Tuesday evening at The Forum.
The Bulls held Los Angeles without a field goal for 5:22 of the fourth quarter and then had to withstand a furious comeback attempt by the defending NBA champions en route to a 104-103 victory before a sellout crowd of 17,505.
Michael Jordan's two free throws with 48 seconds remaining proved to be the winning points for the Bulls (38-26), who evened their record at 1-1 on their five-game road trip following last Saturday's loss at Indiana.
The Bulls victory, coupled with Atlanta's loss to Detoit, leaves them tied with the Hawks for fourth place overall in the Eastern Division.
The Lakers (45-20) had several chances to avoid their second straight loss at home and fifth overall following Jordan's free throws. But Magic Johnson, the league's second-best free throw shooter, missed one of two attempts with 37 seconds left and following a missed shot by Craig Hodges, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's skyhook attempt was short with one second left.
Riley's first option was Worthy, but he wasn't open, so Magic and Abdul-Jabbar worked Jordan and Cartwright on the right of the lane. With the clock winding down, Abdul-Jabbar got the ball, but Cartwright had shoved him about three feet farther out than the Lakers' center would have liked. His 18-foot sky hook bounded away.
"I did get him a little more away from the basket, but he has made that shot a million times over the years," Cartwright said. "Considering that he missed the shot, I'd say I played good defense."
Abdul-Jabbar said his final shot "felt pretty good. I was out far -- I got pushed out that far. I didn't have time to get better position."
"The game . . . this was a great win for us tonight," Bulls coach Doug Collins said. "Because we start such an unbelievable road trip. The defense in the second half was superb. This was the first time we have beaten a good club on the road in a long time. That is why this is such a big win for us."
Starting his sixth game as point guard -- the Bulls are 4-2 in those games -- Michael Jordan had 10 first-half assists and wound up tying his career high with 16. The Bulls star had double figures in assists in five of six games as the point guard.
"Jordan had an excellent game," said Chicago coach Doug Collins. "People don't realize how good his defense is. He makes everyone around him play better."
"I am totally mystified with our fourth quarters," Lakers coach Pat Riley said. "A pattern is developing that I don't like. We're just not getting the job done."
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Bulls' Jordan Makes a New Point by Gerry Fraley
Atlanta Journal and Constitution. April 9, 1989
Michael Jordan now plays point guard, which means the Chicago Bulls give the ball more often to the NBA's most productive offensive player.
How does that strike the rest of the NBA?
"I don't like it," Atlanta Hawks guard Doc Rivers said. "I think it's terrible. It's not fair."
"He was a nightmare already," Hawks coach Mike Fratello said. "Now, he gets the ball even more."
"Everybody wonders why they didn't do it before," Golden State coach Don Nelson said.
Chicago general manager Jerry Krause found some humor in his team's switch of Jordan from the shooting guard position.
"It's like the old joke about the 2,000-pound gorilla," Krause said. "Where does he sleep? Anywhere he wants. Great players can play different positions."
No other NBA player has made a change of more league-altering significance. Los Angeles Lakers point guard Magic Johnson played center against Philadelphia in the 1980 NBA Finals, but that lasted only one game. In just 16 games at point guard, Jordan has gone from the league's leading scorer the last two seasons to being lumped with Johnson, John Stockton of Utah and Isiah Thomas of Detroit as the elite among NBA point guards. Jordan may already be the best of the group.
Entering today's 12:35 p.m. game against the Hawks at The Omni, Jordan has seven triple-doubles (double-figure totals in scoring, rebounding and assists) in the last eight games. His streak of seven consecutive triple-doubles ended Friday in a 114-112 overtime loss to Detroit in which Jordan finished with 40 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. Before Jordan's run, the most consecutive triple-doubles in the league this season was two, by Johnson and Portland's Clyde Drexler.
Since Oscar Robertson, who averaged double-figure totals in each category over a full season for his first six years in the league, Johnson has the most triple-doubles in a season with 18. Jordan already has 11 triple-doubles while learning the new position.
"Everybody has to watch him with the ball," Drexler said. "The other guys are free to roam, and their shooting percentages are going to soar. I think (Jordan) handles the ball better than Magic. (Jordan) just makes everybody else better. When he gets used to that position . . . "
The significance of the move can be better measured by the tremors it has sent through the league. Many things have changed.
Jordan has changed the Bulls. They are 11-5 since the switch and have created a three-way race with the Hawks and Milwaukee for the fourth playoff spot - and homecourt advantage in the first round - in the Eastern Conference.
Jordan has changed the playoff outlook. In four seasons with him at shooting guard, the Bulls are 5-15 in the playoffs and have advanced past the first round just once. They wilted at playoff time because of too much reliance on Jordan and limited contributions elsewhere.
Having Jordan as a point guard "certainly makes them a better team," Knicks coach Rick Pitino said. In the playoffs, when the point guard takes pre-eminence, there is "no doubt about them being a force," Pitino said.
The move was born of frustration.
"It's a challenge, and that basically is what Michael Jordan is all about," Jordan said. "I've been bothered for some time about the Bulls being a one-dimensional team, a Michael Jordan team. The thing I've been harping about all year has come true. The other guys are getting into the game. They now believe in themselves, and that's what we needed.
"For the most part, I'm starting to like it. I never dreamed I'd play that position - me, a lifelong (shooting) guard. But it helps. I can call my own plays and get everyone else involved in the offense."
The passive reactions of teammates triggered the change. In each of the last two seasons, Jordan outscored the Bulls' second-leading scorer by an average of 22.6 points. Only one other player in NBA history, Wilt Chamberlain, had a greater margin over his team's runner-up in scoring.
Given the Bulls' obvious dependence on Jordan, opponents designed defenses to wear him down. The muggings were pronounced in the fourth quarter, when the Bulls' offense was designed to get the ball to Jordan and get out of the way. Playing one-on-five too often, the Bulls languished in fifth place, and Jordan chafed under the growing label of scorer but not winner.
Jordan, whose unhappiness at a lack of help in the offense was well known, buckled under the demands. On March 8, his consecutive-game streak ended at 235 because of a pulled groin muscle. Jordan's psyche was of more concern to the Bulls. The next day, coach Doug Collins met with a depressed Jordan for two hours to hash out the situation.
The resolution: Jordan would change to point guard to replace the injured Sam Vincent.
The purpose: Jordan would become the creator and therefore force the rest of the team to become more involved on offense.
The benefit: The Bulls' best player would handle the ball more often but be spared some of the dirty work that was wearing him down.
Jordan tried point guard briefly in the exhibition season but did not like it. This time, frustration moved him to accept a major change.
"Doug, in talking with Michael and the staff, thought this was the right time to fool with it," Krause said. "The move has definitely helped us in many, many ways. It's gotten Michael into more of a leadership position, which we talked about with him for a long time. It's hard to lead when you're a (shooting) guard. When you're the (point) guard, leadership is easier.
"Michael gets a big kick out of getting our players more involved. He likes the position now, and that's a big factor. He's enjoying himself and having a lot more fun."
The fun comes from having less pain. For shooting guards, the body goes first because of the hammering that goes with the position. At 6- feet-6 and 195 pounds, the slender Jordan is under-equipped for that part of the game. The physical demands combined with a league-leading total in minutes last season and this season were draining Jordan.
For point guards, the legs are more important than the body. Jordan "can run all day," Rivers said, and it is much harder to hit a moving target in the open court.
Less physical pounding leaves Jordan fresher at the end, when the Bulls still ask him to do much. The difference now is Jordan has more energy for the final charge.
"The beauty of Michael Jordan at point guard is he can walk through the whole game and save himself for the fourth quarter," Nelson said. "Then, he can turn it on or wait on any one point when he feels it's necessary."
Jordan has brought young forwards Horace Grant, who complained in February about not getting enough shots, and Scottie Pippen into the offense. With Jordan at point guard, Grant has averaged 11.5 shots and 14.7 points per game while Pippen has averaged 14.5 shots and 19.8 points per game. In the previous alignment, Grant averaged 9.3 shots and 11.5 points and Pippen averaged 12 shots and 13 points.
"So many people key on Michael that you're usually going to have one or two guys open all the time," Hawks forward Dominique Wilkins said. "It makes them that much more effective. It depends on how the other players respond to it, and they've responded very well."
Jordan's response was also vital to the change. While a shooting guard, he had proven he could perform the essentials of point-guard play: passing, defense and sound judgment. The uncertainty was how Jordan would handle a small decrease in scoring chances.
He still leads the league in scoring, but his average has dropped from 34.2 at the All-Star break to 32.3. Jordan has also taken about four fewer shots a game.
"What he's done is an incredible sacrifice," said Rivers, who plays both guard spots. "He was already carrying the team. To sacrifice shots and points, I've never seen a sacrifice like that. It's just incredible. That tells you how much he wants to win. He doesn't care who does it. He just wants to win."
78 games into the 1987-88 season, the Bulls were 48-30. They needed to win 2 out the final 4 games to reach the 50-win mark for the first time in 15 years. Scoring 47 points on 18-27 (67%) shooting, Jordan made sure they got the first one.
He had various great dunks and drives along with the jumpers. This is the game in which he accidentally kicks Ewing in the head after one of his well-known alley-oops.
And yes, commentary wasn't English.
Post game notes and quotes:
=========================
BULLS 121 KNICKS 118
NEW YORK -- Michael Jordan put on a magic dunking show and brilliant all-round scoring performance Tuesday night that had the local media, as well as himself, thinking MVP.
He scored a game-high 47 points, including six sensational dunks, to lead the Bulls (49-30), the league's hottest team with six wins in a row, to a 121-118 victory over the Knicks before a sellout Madison Square Garden crowd of 15,591.
"Do you think you should win the MVP this year?" a writer asked Jordan.
"Sure," Jordan said. "I thought I played well enough to win it last year and didn't. I deserve to win it this year, too, because I'm playing even better. They've said in the past that to win MVP, you must be on a winning team and you must be a good all-round player. Well, if those are the credentials, then I believe I qualify.
"Of course, that doesn't mean I'll get it. It depends upon you guys. I would like to get MVP for our fans, our team and myself. But more than anything, I want us to go all the way. And I want us to get 50 wins."
Jordan has been fighting a stomach virus for the last four or five days, according to his coach Doug Collins, who simply shook his head in amazement at game's end while trying to describe Jordan's play.
"He is just that rare athlete who finds a way to get himself mentally prepared for a game when he's not physically up to par," Collins said.
"A mediocre player will use being sick as an excuse not to play well. Michael uses it to make himself better, to psyche himself up to a different level. It's a level a lot of people have never seen before."
"I was struggling just trying to get through it," Jordan said after scoring more points than any player the Knicks have faced this season. "I felt bad before the game, but as it went on I just figured why stop now."
"I don't know if there's anyone better than Jordan," New York Coach Rick Pitino said. "We tried to stop him, but he's Superman. You can't stop Superman. I don't have any Kryptonite. Several players can dominate a game, but none like him."
The Bulls took control of the game with an 11-4 run in the last 3 1/2 minutes of the third quarter and took an 11-point lead going into the final period. Jordan had 12 points in the third period, but the best was yet to come.
He had two straight thunder jobs in the mid-fourth. One was on an alley-oop feed from Vincent, capping a fast break and turning into a three-point play. His dunks electrified the Garden crowd that cheered him on. Jordan, hanging on the rim after Mark Jackson fouled him, swung around and added insult to injury when he accidentally kicked Knick center Patrick Ewing smack in the face.
"That was the funniest thing I've seen in a while," Paxson said, "and probably the most exciting quarter of the season."
On the Bulls' next possession moments later, the 6-6 Jordan drove the baseline and dunked over the seven-foot Ewing, again triggering a roar of cheers.
"Jordan was unbelieveable," Collins said. "He broke their press consistently, took it right through their defense and scored."
"He was simply amazing," Ewing said. "Nobody could stop him tonight."
''We needed a win and they needed a win,'' said Jordan, who shot 18 for 27 from the field. ''The challenge was there. I tried to disappoint them as much as possible. I really felt good in terms on my game. Once I'm hitting the outside jumper the way I did tonight, it makes me a more deadly player.''
The Knicks came back with a three-point play by Gerald Wilkins, a Trent Tucker layup, Ewing's short hook and another short jumper by Wilkins to get within 119-118 with 47 seconds left.
It was Jordan's turn again. Everyone in the rocking arena knew he was getting the ball, and Jackson had no choice but to foul him as he drove to the basket with 12 seconds left. Jordan made both free throws for the final margin, but the Bulls still had to sweat out three final shots.
Wilkins fired first from three-point range and Jordan partially blocked it. Tucker got the rebound and forced another shot that was rebounded by Ewing. Immediately, he fired out to Jackson.
"The last shot felt real good leaving my hands," Jackson said, "But I kind of rushed it a little. I was real concerned about getting it off before the buzzer. But what can you do, we've won some like that, too."
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