?They Didn?t Want to Shake Our Hand?: After Redeeming Himself from Two Years of Defeat, Michael Jordan Was Over Cloud Nine Seeing His Rivals? Petty Gesture in 1991
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?They Didn?t Want to Shake Our Hand?: After Redeeming Himself from Two Years of Defeat, Michael Jordan Was Over Cloud Nine Seeing His Rivals? Petty Gesture in 1991
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Basketball: NBA Playoffs: Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan (23) in action, shot vs Detroit Pistons John Salley (22). Game 2. Detroit, MI 5/22/1990 CREDIT: Manny Millan (Photo by Manny Millan /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
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Basketball: NBA Playoffs: Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan (23) in action, shot vs Detroit Pistons John Salley (22). Game 2. Detroit, MI 5/22/1990 CREDIT: Manny Millan (Photo by Manny Millan /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
Until 1991, Michael Jordan was considered a great player, but not one of the best as he is now. Because Jordan was yet to receive his first championship ring. The Detroit Pistons were the biggest obstacles in the Chicago Bulls’ way to an NBA championship. The Chicago Bulls battled the Detroit Pistons regularly during that period.
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Michael Jordan mentioned his feelings during the end of the conference final series in 1991. The Detroit Pistons didn?t pay back the respect that the Bulls deserved for their performance after the Pistons lost the series by some margin. However, the Bulls legend was rather happy than angry at the incident.?
Michael Jordan on the Pistons walking off the court
Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls faced the Detroit Pistons in the 1991 conference finals. The Pistons were defeated 4-0, and the series ended in the shortest time possible. At the end of the fourth game, the Detroit Pistons walked out of the court without shaking the hand of a single Bulls player. Many fans and experts called this behavior unsportsmanlike.
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Back in 2013, Jordan told Ahmad Rashad how he did not take the incident personally. ?You get your a** beat you can get out of the building anyway you want. You know to us it was gratifying, we beat them so bad they didn?t wanna shake our hands. That to me you know was an accomplishment.? the 14-time All-Star mentioned.
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Michael Johnson #23, shooting guard for the Chicago Bulls prepares to make a shot during a Central Division game in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA) 1988 – 1989 season at Chicago Stadium, Chicago, United States. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Allsport/Getty Images)
The petty behavior of the Pistons’ was not a problem for Jordan and Co. According to the Bulls legend, it was personally gratifying.
?You know we got over that hump, and we never looked back?, Jordan added. The six-time NBA champion implied that they finally managed to get over their rivals who gave them a hard time previously. The Bulls legend mentioned that their physicality was a big obstacle while trying to win the NBA Championship. And exactly like that, the Chicago Bulls won two more NBA Championships on the trot, after winning it in 1991.
Jordan?s 1990-91 NBA season
Till the 1990-91 season, Michael Jordan was already on the path to becoming a global basketball icon. He already launched his sixth signature shoe and averaged 37.1 PPG.?
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In the 1990-91 season, Jordan averaged 31.5 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 5.5 APG. Finally defeating the Pistons after two seasons of disappointing exits was just an icing on the cake before their first championship win in the 1991 NBA Finals.
