Michael Jordan's Universe - Online Youtube Streaming Collection

The 1993 season began with the Bulls as hot favorites for a three-peat, something Michael Jordan had set his sights on because fellow Legends Larry Bird and Magic Johnson could not win 3 in a row. The East had a new powerhouse, the New York Knicks, under the guidance of Pat Riley, a team which nearly eliminated the Bulls the previous season. New blood was revitalizing the NBA with the additions of players like Shaquille O'Neal, Alonzo Morning, Latrell Spreewell, etc., all which made an impact. Charles Barkley finally left Philadelphia, signing with Phoenix, a move which would propel the Suns to the best record in the NBA that season.
	For the Bulls it seemed the Knicks were the only big challenge, as the old contenders like Boston and the Pistons were declining due to their stars aging, but it proved to be a lot more difficult than expected. They lost many close games and were repeatedly criticized during the season for what seemed to be lackluster performances. Michael Jordan's season was nevertheless spectacular. At age 30, coming after the Olympics, with virtually no time to rest his legs, he would increase his scoring to 32.5 ppg during the season, 2.5 points more than in 1992. Even if it seemed that his desire to drive to the basket had somehow diminished in favor of the jumpshot, towards the end of the season he showed that he was still the king of dunks in the NBA.
Jordan had some memorable scoring games, netting 54 pts at the Lakers, 57 against Washington, 64 against Shaq's Orlando Magic while playing with a sprained wrist, or 52 against Alonzo Morning's Hornets. Michael played much of the season while caring various injuries, from the jammed shooting wrist to an infected foot. The Bulls looked that they would finish the regular season in a strong fashion, but tough losses against Charlotte, Cleveland and New York in the last games of the season meant they would end the year on a 57-25 record, 3rd in the NBA, and with rising doubts that they could manage their goal of winning the championship. The Playoffs began against Atlanta. As in the previous seasons, they didn't have any real problems in the opening round, as Michael Jordan's last duel with Dominique Wilkins proved to be one-sided. A scary moment came for the Bulls when Michael Jordan sprained his ankle in game 3 and having to be helped off the floor into the locker room. However, he would come back in the 4th quarter and, while hobbling, hardly missed a shot and helped the Bulls end the series. The second round brought the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs had developed by then an obsession with Michael Jordan, bringing Gerald Wilkins in the off-season with the purpose as containing Jordan as much as possible, billing him as the "Jordan Stopper". That proved to be a wrong strategy, as Jordan took the duel personally and embarrassed Wilkins in game 1 with 43 points on a Bulls victory. Game 2 was won early by the Bulls due to their stifling defense, but another scary moment came when Jordan re-injured his shooting wrist late in the 3rd quarter. While he wasn't needed in game 2, he was more than needed in games 3 and 4 as they were to be played in Cleveland. Jordan came up shooting air-balls at the beginning of games, but in another display of his amazing talent, took the ball to the basket on many left handed drives and lay-ups over the entire Cavs defense. And, as his wrist was beginning to loosen up towards the end of the games, his jumper also started to fall. This was exectly the case in game 4 of the series, when Michael Jordan hit a buzzer beater billed as "The Shot part II", a fade-away over Wilkins, winning the clinching game 103-101 and breaking the Cavs hearts yet again, while also completing an unexpected sweep. However, the Eastern Conference Finals proved to be a lot tougher than the previous rounds. The Bulls would face the Knicks, a team which was supremely confident. Like the Cavs, they were also built to beat Chicago, also had the best record in the East, therefore the home court advantage, and had also beaten the Bulls 3-1 during the season, including a 30 point blowout and in the last game of the regular season. And the Knicks took the first 2 games at Madison Square Garden. Michael Jordan was defended superbly by the rotation of John Starks, Doc Rivers, Greg Anthony and Rolando Blackman. While managing to score 27 and 36 points, he shot 37% from the field. Game 3 proved to be the turning point of the series, a 20 point Chicago victory at the Chicago Stadium, where Jordan, even though he again shot the ball badly, still contributed with good free-throw shooting and 11 assists. And when people were staring to wonder if there is indeed a way to stop Air Jordan, he would come back in game 4 scoring 54 points, including 6 three pointers, silencing all the doubters, and evening the series at 2-2. Game 5 was the pivotal game of the series, which the Bulls dramatically won on the Knicks' home court. Michael Jordan had a triple double when it mattered the most, with 29 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds, also contributing along with Pippen with their defense on the final play that sealed the win. With the Knicks loosing confidence, the Bulls closed the series at the Chicago Stadium in game 6. The NBA Finals brought Michael Jordan face to face with his friend and that year's NBA MVP, Charles Barkley and his Phoenix Suns. Phoenix had the best record in the NBA, and had an array of stars such as Kevin Johnson, Tom Chambers, Dan Majerle, or Danny Ainge. It proved to an atypical series, with only one team able to win a game at home. The Bulls started in their typical fashion, confident after beating the Knicks, while the Suns were nervous about reaching the finals. Michael Jordan would score 31 and 42 points on 50% shooting in the first 2 games, propelling the Bulls to victories. Perhaps overconfident, the Bulls lost game 3 at home after a triple overtime game. With the Suns always coming back after a Bulls run, the legs finally gave out and the 44 points from Jordan were not enough for the victory. Michael would come back with a vengeance in game 4, scoring a personal best 55 points in a finals game and second on the all-time list after Elgin Baylor's 61 back in 1962, including a 3 point play over Charles Barkley in the final seconds to seal the win. However, they would again lose game 5 at home, as the Suns again, would refuse to go away, which would set a stage for an improbable return to Arizona. Game 6 started well for the Bulls, on 3 points scores by BJ Armstrong and Jordan, and the Bulls led by a small margin going in to the 4th quarter. However, as they did throughout the series, the Suns came back and put the clamps on the Bulls, forcing them to consecutive shot clock violations while Jordan was resting. As Michael came back, he scored all the points for the Bulls in the 4th quarter, keeping them in contention. With 40 seconds to go and down by 4 points, Michael Jordan grabbed a defensive rebound and went on a quick coast-to-coast drive, pulling the Bulls back with 2. As Phoenix missed the following possession, he set up John Paxson for the game winning 3 pointer with 3 seconds to go. A last second block by Horace Grant would seal the win and the 3rd championship for the Bulls in the Michael Jordan Era. Michael had an finals record of 41 ppg, also capturing his 3rd consecutive NBA Finals MVP Award. No team since the Celtics of the '60's were able to win 3 in a row. Bird, Magic, Isiah, all tried and failed. And, as Jordan said, winning the 3rd one proved to be by far the hardest thing to achieve, even if at the beginning of the season he thought it would be the easiest of the 3. The run that the Bulls had was improbable and the scrutiny that Michael Jordan was put under was unprecedented. He had to fight public expectations, gambling allegations, injuries, fatigue, and ultimately, the brutal murder of his father in the summer of 1993. Consequently, Michael Jordan shocked the whole world at the beginning of the next season's training camp, announcing his retirement, citing lack of motivation to continue. It is not known which motives had a bigger impact, perhaps all of them to a given point, only Michael Jordan knows the true answer to that question. Luckily for us, he could only stay away for 15 months, so we were blessed with witnessing his talents for a few more years to come.