Michael Jordan was deeply motivated to beat the Utah Jazz in the 1997 NBA Finals since Karl Malone won MVP over him.
Jordan was second in MVP voting in 1996-97.
“I’m not saying he wasn’t deserving of it,” Jordan said in The Last Dance documentary. “All I’m saying is that that fueled the fire in me. Okay, you think he’s the MVP? Okay fine. No problem.”
Jordan and the Chicago Bulls won Games 1 and 2 of the 1997 NBA Finals at home.
However, Malone and the Jazz won Games 3 and 4 in Utah, setting up a pivotal Game 5.
On June 11, 1997, Jordan played in his legendary “Flu Game.” Although it’s called the “Flu Game,” Jordan suffered from food poisoning after eating pizza in his hotel room the night before Game 5.
Jordan threw up all night before Game 5 and had IVs hooked up to him in the Bulls locker room. He probably shouldn’t have played.
However, MJ suited up for two significant reasons.
Jordan was so weak that he didn’t speak to the media after the “Flu Game.” The next time reporters got to talk to Jordan was after Game 6 in Chicago. The five-time MVP explained why he played in Game 5 despite being ill.
“I didn’t wanna give up,” Jordan said. “No matter how sick I was or how tired I was or how low on energy I was. I felt the obligation to my team, to the city of Chicago, to go out and give that extra effort.”
Not only did Jordan play 44 minutes in the “Flu Game,” but he also burned the Jazz for 38 points and hit the game-winning 3-pointer off a nice pass from Scottie Pippen.
Jordan shot 13-of-27 from the field, 2-of-5 from beyond the arc and 10-of-12 from the free-throw line in the “Flu Game.” He finished with 38 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.
With the game tied at 85 in Game 5, Jordan hit a 3-pointer with 25.0 seconds left in regulation to give the Bulls an 88-85 lead. Chicago won by a final score of 90-88 to take a 3-2 lead in the series.
Pippen, who had the game-winning assist to Jordan in the “Flu Game,” spoke about Jordan’s will to win after Game 5.
“The effort that he gave us today was unbelievable,” Pippen said. “We really appreciate the way he stepped up and showed his leadership for our ball club.”
The Bulls and Jazz only had one day off before playing Game 6 at the United Center. Fortunately for Chicago, Jordan got over his food poisoning and was close to 100% on June 13, 1997. The 10-time scoring champion had another stellar performance in Game 6.
However, he wasn’t the hero.
The Bulls and Jazz were tied at 86 with 28.0 seconds left in regulation in Game 6. Phil Jackson took a timeout to draw up a play for Jordan, who told Steve Kerr to be ready to shoot since he knew he would get doubled.
John Stockton left Kerr to double Jordan, who found the sharpshooter behind the free-throw line. Kerr hit a jumper with 5.0 seconds remaining to give the Bulls a two-point lead.
However, Chicago still needed one more stop to win championship No. 5.
One of the best defenders in NBA history, Pippen stole the inbounds pass from Bryon Russell and passed it to Toni Kukoc, who dunked the ball at the buzzer for the Bulls’ final exclamation point.
Jordan won his fifth Finals MVP after finishing the series with averages of 32.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.8 blocks.
Chicago may have lost the 1997 NBA Finals if Jordan hadn’t played in Game 5. The “Flu Game” is undoubtedly one of the most iconic contests in sports history and showcased Jordan’s mental and physical toughness.
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