| March 28, 1995 Well, everybody knows this game. And I know there are other shorter versions of this game which are also excellent. Considering the circumstances, it is an extraordinary game even for Jordan's standards. Also, it's the game in which he declared he's "really" back. So I wanted to make another version with more replays, more context, a post-game interview with Jordan, quotes, articles and so on. Since almost everything has already been said about this game, I'll just point out a couple of quick things. First off, it should be mentioned that Riley's 94-95 Knicks was the #1 defensive team in the NBA, measured by points allowed per possession. The only player who was able to score 40 or more points against the Knicks that season was young Shaq (41). Other than him, only 3 players managed to score 30 or more points at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks in the entire regular season. And here comes a guy who hasn't played basketball for 18 months, scores 55 points on 21-37 shooting (57%) in just his fifth game, commits only two turnovers, and dishes out the game winning assist. Just too good to be true by any standards. One other thing is that there's a crucial play towards the end of this game which is not included in most of the highlights. Jordan is about to sink another jumper over Starks 1:20 to go in the game. Ewing comes out to double and manages to block the shot with his fingertips. It's very important because after the game Jordan said that play was ... |
