Michael Jordan is considered by more than a few folks as the greatest player who ever lived. The six-time NBA champ has done so much throughout his illustrious career. This being the case, picking the ultimate best plays during his tenure as a superstar for the Chicago Bulls proved to be quite a challenging proposition.
Nonetheless, after going through a myriad of MJ highlights (admittedly, something that we enjoyed thoroughly), we are proud to present our own version of Jordan's best plays ever.
UNC
Even before his NBA days, Michael Jordan was already making waves. However, one of his most iconic moments as a college player for North Carolina came in his freshman year. Jordan hit the game-winner against Georgetown to lift his team to the NCAA title. Many consider this shot as the one that placed Jordan on the map. Everyone knew his name after this shot, and NBA scouts began taking notice even more.
1987 Dunk Contest
During his early years, Jordan won the Slam Dunk Contest two years in a row. It was during his second title in 1987 though that he produced the memorable free-throw line dunk, wherein it seemed like he took an invisible step in mid-air. He was up against an all-time great dunker in Dominique Wilkins, and this slam was what brought MJ the title.
Putback Jam
This one is not one of Jordan's signature game-winners, nor is it a crucial end-game play. However, it is still a very impressive follow-up dunk. Check out how cleanly he executed this slam.
RIP Patrick Ewing
MJ took a lot of victims during his day, but perhaps none more than New York Knicks great Patrick Ewing. The Knicks were one of Chicago's biggest adversaries, and Ewing was one of the top centers in the league at that time. In this play, Jordan practically took on the entire Knicks team before throwing a nasty one down on Ewing. And one!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=330HeLlv52U
The Shot
One of Jordan's most memorable plays was his game-winner against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1989 NBA Playoffs. As far as MJ buzzer-beaters go, this has to take the cake.
The Impossible Lay-up
Remember when Jordan switched hands mid-air during a lay-up? We're pretty sure you do. This happened in the 1991 NBA Finals — Chicago's first out of six championships — against no less than a powerhouse Los Angeles Lakers side. Such was the audacity of His Airness.
The Shrug
In the 1992 NBA Finals, Jordan amazingly made six 3-pointers in the first half of Game 1 against the Portland Trail Blazers. This tied the record for the most tripls in a single half during the Finals. He was so hot that even he himself could not explain it.
Bad Boys-Killer
The Bad Boys of the Detroit Pistons were one of Jordan and the Bulls' most heated rivals during the early 1990's. In this particular fastbreak play, Jordan knew that he was about to get fouled by Pistons enforcer Bill Laimbeer, so instead of going straight up, MJ decided to come up with this amazing circus shot.
The Triple-Clutch Layup
If you need further proof of Jordan's unmatched aerial prowess then here it is. In 1991, Jordan made three (!) adjustments in mid-air to come up with an amazing and almost inexplicable move. They should have given him five points for this impossible shot.
The Flu Game
Now this is a whole game's performance as opposed to a single play, but we just couldn't bare not throwing this one in here. Battling the flu (rumor has it that he was food poisoned the night before in his Utah hotel), Jordan dug deep into his well of mental fortitude as he brought forth an epic performance in the 1997 NBA Finals. It didn't look like he was in any condition to play, but still, he powered through the illness, and came up with one of his most memorable performances in his career.
Game-Winner vs. Jazz
We all know that Jordan hit the game-winner against the Jazz in the 1998 Finals en route to championship number six, but unfortunately for Utah, that wasn't the only time MJ beat them at the buzzer. In Game 1 of the 1997 Finals, Jordan hit one of his best buzzer-beaters to seal the win for Chicago. Guess who he made the shot on. Yup, it was Byron Russell yet again.
The Shot – Version 2
How could we not include Jordan's last ever shot as a Chicago Bull? Check out how Jordan stole the ball from Karl Malone in the previous play before taking and making that game-winning, series-clinching jumper over a hapless Byron Russell. What a perfect way to end his career in Chicago.
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