The road to the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals was anything but smooth. The Chicago Bulls were on their last legs as a dynasty, and everyone could feel it. Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman were all playing their final season together under head coach Phil Jackson.
The front office was already hinting at a rebuild, and the pressure was mounting. Across from them was the Indiana Pacers, a team that had been knocking on the door for the better part of a decade but had never quite been able to get in.
Jordan’s confidence
After a keenly contested six games, Jordan had other plans. He made it clear to reporters that the series was far from over and the possibility of winning Game 7 was high.
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“Is that a promise?” a reporter asked Mike.
His response, “I never make promises. I don’t even make promises to my wife, but we will win Game 7.”
Led by their sharpshooting star, Reggie Miller, the Pacers weren’t just underdogs; they were hungry. Miller had built a reputation for getting under the skin of his opponents, but he was up against the most ruthless competitor the game had ever seen.
Game 4 of the series was the turning point. With the Bulls leading 2-1, the sharpshooter delivered a performance for the ages, scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter, including a game-winning 3-pointer over “His Airness.”
He turned around and shoved the five-time MVP before running to midcourt with his arms flailing in pure delight. The basketball world saw it as a statement: Reg wasn’t afraid of the Bulls, and he certainly wasn’t afraid of Michael.
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Final game battle
The United Center in Chicago was packed for Game 7, the energy was suffocating and the stakes were higher than ever. The Pacers, to their credit, came out swinging. They led by double digits in the first half, out-hustling and outshooting the defending champions.
Jordan and Pippen struggled early and for a brief moment, it seemed like Miller’s brashness might actually be backed up by history. Then, reality hit.
Despite not having his best shooting night, MJ willed his team back into the game. But it was the Bulls’ defense that made the difference. Chicago out-rebounded Indiana 50-34, with Pippen grabbing 12 boards and Rodman playing suffocating defense on Indiana’s big men.
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With under two minutes left, Chicago clung to a 3-point lead. Indiana had a chance to tie, but a frantic possession ended with a missed 3-pointer by Chris Mullin. Jordan secured the rebound, walked the ball up and drained a mid-range dagger over Jalen Rose to put the game out of reach.
“Uncle Reg” recounted in interviews that his best shot for the championship came in the 1998 series. It would take the Pacers a few more years before they finally made it to the NBA Finals, but they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Meanwhile, Jordan would go on to complete his second three-peat, culminating in a memorable jumper over Bryon Russell in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz. It was the perfect exclamation point to his legendary Bulls career, a moment frozen in time that cemented his status as the greatest to ever do it.