According to The Last Dance director Jason Hehir, Utah Jazz legend John Stockton initially turned down an appearance on the documentary, noting that he didn't want to be a part of a “Michael Jordan puff piece.”

On “The Dan Patrick Show,” Hehir shared that he had been trying to contact Stockton. After all, the Jazz was one of the arch rivals of the Bulls in their run for a second three-peat. But once he got Stockton on the phone, the guard was unwilling to be interviewed.

“I finally got (Stockton) on the phone after like two years of chasing him,” Hehir said, as transcribed by Ben Anderson of KSL Sports. “(Stockton) said, ‘I don’t want to be a part of a Michael Jordan puff piece.’”

Below is the full interview:

However, things changed as Stockton agreed to finally take part in “The Last Dance.” Hehir and ESPN had set an interview with Stockton in Spokane, Washington. But then, COVID-19 cases started rising exponentially.

“On Tuesday, March 10 we interviewed him in Spokane,” Hehir said, “It was so deep into this COVID crisis that we decided that I shouldn’t fly to Spokane because we’re afraid that flight would get grounded indefinitely. So we had someone from out there, a stringer from Seattle drive in and do that interview.”

To recall, it was on March 11 that Rudy Gobert became the first NBA player to test positive for the coronavirus. It subsequently triggered the NBA to suspend the 2019-20 season.

With that said, fans can now expect Stockton to appear in the remaining four episodes of The Last Dance, providing another layer of insight into the Bulls' late-'90s run and quest for a sixth championship in eight years.