“I know I can’t be perfect and score 36 points every night” – Michael Jordan felt humbled by the Pistons’ defense in 1988 originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Michael Jordan established himself as one of the deadliest offensive players of his time. However, this didn’t mean the Chicago Bulls star was spared from bad shooting nights, especially when he played against the Detroit Pistons.
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Jordan conspicuously ended scored only 18 points in a December 1988 game against the Pistons, the first time he had scored less than 20 points in his last 73 games. MJ had no qualms about his poor shooting night, crediting the Motor City squad and stressing he will have his off nights.
“There are going to be games like this. I know I can’t be perfect and score 36 points every night. Tonight my jumper wasn’t falling and whenever I’d drive two or three guys would collapse on me,” Jordan said after that 109-84 loss to their Eastern Conference rival.
Pistons limited MJ’s touches
Detroit figured that to win against the Bulls, the key was to prevent Jordan from getting the ball. Michael acknowledged this and knew their chances hinged on how MJ’s teammates would pick up the slack. Unfortunately, that never happened, resulting in the loss.
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For Jordan, there was nothing else to do but move on. He showed no ill feelings about seeing his string of 20-point performances get snapped. It was a regular-season game and the more important thing for him and the Bulls was to bounce back in their next game.
As for the Pistons, the win over the Bulls was not a big deal. They knew that their defensive strategy in that game may not be as effective if the two teams faced each other again in the future.
“He’s a major threat every night because there’s no pattern to him,” Pistons guard Joe Dumars stated. “He’s lived most of his life on a basketball court, so everything he does is instinct. You just have to play it by ear each night.”
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Dumars defended Jordan best
While Jordan was tried and defended by a lot of players, Michael himself admitted that Joe Dumars was the toughest of them all. He credits Joe D for his analytical approach to defending, which is why he was challenged to broaden his game.
“He approaches the game as trying to dissect his opponents and try to find weaknesses or try to force them to do things they didn’t feel comfortable doing. He introduced certain tricks to make me expand on my talents as an offensive player, and that is why I consider him one of the best,” Jordan confessed.
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Although the Pistons were notorious for their uncanny ways of throwing opposing players off their game, Dumars never resorted to such tactics. He never resorted to trash-talking to frustrate MJ. It was a testament to the level of respect the two legends had for each other.
“Never once did he try to trash-talk me, and never once did I try to trash-talk him. It was toe-to-toe, nose-to-nose, for 14 straight years, and we never said a negative word to each other on the court,” Dumars professed.
Jordan welcomed the challenge of defenders, regardless of whether it was done clean or not. He treated it as a challenge that forced him to work harder and smarter for his points.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 11, 2025, where it first appeared.