Chicago Bulls icon Michael Jordan threw up all night before Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals after eating pizza in his Utah hotel room.
Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals is called “The Flu Game,” but Jordan was dealing with food poisoning.
“Before Game 5 in Utah, I’m at the Marriott,” Jordan said in The Last Dance. “So it was George, myself, Tim and I think a couple of security guys. But it’s like 10:00, 10:30 at night, I’m hungry. I ate the pizza. All by myself. Nobody else ate the pizza. I wake up about 2:30 throwing up left and right. So really it wasn’t the flu game, it was food poisoning. I stayed in bed all day. Couldn’t eat anything, couldn’t hold nothing down.”
Not only did Jordan play 44 minutes in “The Flu Game,” but he also scored 38 points and hit the game-winning 3-pointer off an excellent 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, 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.
The Bulls and Utah 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 right 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 ahead 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 and 6.0 assists.
Chicago might 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.
With the Bulls, Jordan won six championships, six Finals MVPs, five regular-season MVPs, 10 scoring titles, three steals titles and one Defensive Player of the Year Award. He’s arguably the best player in NBA history.
Jordan has career averages of 30.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.3 steals and 0.8 blocks with the Bulls and Washington Wizards. He’s first in NBA history in points per game, fourth in steals, fifth in field goals and second in player efficiency rating.
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