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31

5-31-1998: Bulls Dismiss Pesky Pacers

Filed Under On This Day . . ., NBA, Chicago Bulls, Loose Balls

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Only twice during the Chicago Bulls’ six championships in the 1990s did a playoff series go seven games.

The New York Knicks pushed Chicago to the brink of elimination in the second round of the 1992 NBA Playoffs. While the Bulls would win that Game Seven in convincing fashion and go on to repeat as NBA champions, a new rivalry was formed.

In 1998, the Indiana Pacers pushed the Bulls to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals.

While the Bulls finished off Indiana in a scary Game Seven 11 years ago today, in all honesty this series shouldn’t have gotten that far.

After taking a 2-0 series lead with Scottie Pippen putting Indiana point guard Mark Jackson on lock down, the Bulls headed to Indianapolis on Memorial Day Weekend with the goal of winning at least one game.

Chicago lost a tight Game Three at the dreaded Market Square Arena — a house of horrors for the team — but should have won Game Four.

Clinging to a late lead, Pippen missed several free throws in the game’s final moments.

The Bulls still had a one-point lead with Indiana set to inbound the ball with 2.9 seconds left, setting the stage for one of the worst non-calls in NBA history.

Coming off a screen, Indiana three-point specialist Reggie Miller shoved Michael Jordan with both hands before catching the ball and drilling a three pointer with 0.4 seconds left.

Amazingly, no offensive foul was called.

Jordan would have a chance to win the game, but his three pointer banked off the glass and rimmed in and out as the horn expired.

Pure agony.

What likely would have been a 3-1 series lead (had Miller been called for a foul and Jordan hit his free throws) was now a 2-2 series.

In this Chicago fan’s mind, the fix was in.

Coming out angry in Game Five, the Bulls would blow out Indiana.

Chicago couldn’t put the Pacers away in Game Six though, as Jordan slipped and turned the ball late in the game after Travis Best scored on a beautiful runner in the lane.

Game Seven would start off disastrous for the Bulls, which trailed by 13 in the first half.

Chicago would slowly fight its way back into the game, with Steve Kerr somewhat breaking out of a shooting slump.

Still in the fourth quarter, the game was too close to call.

On one possession, Jordan actually missed two free throws, which seemed to be indicating that the Bulls’ time as champions was up.

Yet, somehow, someway, Chicago pulled out the gut-wrenching 88-83 victory in Game Seven to knock off the Pacers.

Despite missing 16 shots from the field, Jordan led all scorers with 28 points in the game and propelled the Bulls to a rematch with the Utah Jazz in the 1998 NBA Finals.

What was expected to be Utah’s revenge after losing the 1997 NBA Finals to Chicago in six games did not go according to script.

After losing Game One in overtime, the Bulls won the next three games and clinched on the road in Game Six with Jordan’s picturesque jumper over Bryon Russell.

People would complain that Jordan pushed off on Russell on that last play.

Let’s ask this question: what’s more of an offensive foul?

This play?

Or this play?

Anyways, after Jordan’s heroics, the 1998 Bulls — decimated by injuries, old age and management that wanted the team to lose — had done the impossible: win its sixth championships in 8 years.

A little more than a decade later, this feat still seems improbable, especially that oh-so-tough title in 1998.