After pulling away in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan had some choice words for Larry Bird as seen in Episode 9 of The Last Dance.
The Pacers forced a Game 7 against the powerhouse Bulls squad. Jordan himself admitted that the Pacers were the toughest team they competed against in the East outside the Detroit Pistons Bad Boys. And after the game, he let Bird know how difficult the series was for them.
This is the best compliment you can ever get from Michael Jordan.
I could watch MJ and Bird talk shit to each other all day 😂 pic.twitter.com/Np1dZf8xGV
— Emerson Lotzia, Jr. (@EmersonLotzia) May 18, 2020
As observed, the two congratulated one another but at the same time, managed to slip in some trash talk.
The trash talk might hurt even more than the L 🤣#TheLastDance pic.twitter.com/aZE8lf4nvg
— ESPN (@espn) May 18, 2020
Of course, Bird and Michael Jordan go way back. When Jordan was still an up and coming young stud, Jordan faced the powerhouse Celtics squad led by Bird. It occurred in the first round of the 1986 NBA playoffs. While the Celtics swept the Bulls in three games, Jordan dropped 63 points on them — a playoff scoring record that still stands today. And as seen in the previous episodes of The Last Dance, Bird and the Celtics were just in awe of the young Jordan.
Fast forward to 1992, Jordan and Bird joined forces to form the Dream Team. At that time, Jordan was at the height of his powers, having won two straight titles. Bird, meanwhile, was at the tail end of his career. But with their talents combined, they formed one of the greatest and most influential teams in basketball history.
Jordan may have booted out Bird's Pacers, but as his Airness himself said after winning his first title, he can finally be mentioned in the same sentence with Larry Legend.
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