Michael Jordan's Universe - Online Youtube Streaming Collection

The 1996 season proved to be one of the most memorable seasons for any franchises in the history of the NBA. But it didn't look to be a successful campaign right at the beginning. For the first time ever, Michael Jordan was facing doubts regarding his ability to raise his game when it really mattered, with a lot of people wondering if he would be able to regain his form from before baseball, as he was no longer a young man, at almost 33. The Bulls front office surprised everyone by making a bold and signing the NBA's leading rebounder Dennis Rodman fro the Spurs, in a deal that would see them part ways with the long time backup center Will Perdue. Rodman, despite his rebounding and defensive skills, was viewed as a lose cannon around the league, and had also had a strained relationship with Jordan and Pippen from his early days as a Detroit Piston. However, probably confident in their abilities as leaders, both Jordan and Pippen gave their ok for the trade. The move would fill in the weakened power forward spot, a position which was the Achilles’ heel for the Bulls in the previous season. Phil Jackson had the task of convincing Tony Kukoc to take the role as 6th man on the team and fire up the second unit, something the Croat wasn't happy about at first, but it proved to be an inspired move, as Kukoc would win the NBA’s 6th man award at the end of the season.
	So with exceptional role players, like Luc Longley, Ron Harper, Steve Kerr, John Salley, Jud Bucheler or Randy Brown, the Bulls would embark into what would seem to be a nearly perfect season. The started an amazing 39-3, and if that wasn't a good indication of their strength, they managed to win against almost all the good teams in the Western Conference in their road trip, something the Bulls haven't been able to do, not even in their championship years. They had a winning streak of 18, the longest in club history, and if there weren't for some sporadic heart breaking losses, they could have ended with a perfect record. This way they would end with 72 wins and only 10 losses, the best regular season record to date in the history of the NBA. For Michael Jordan, all season long he proved he was back in business. With a scoring average of 30.4, he gained his 8th scoring title, while shooting 50% from the field. He would score 53 points against the Pistons, and break the 40 point barrier 8 times, while sitting out many 4th quarters because the games were already decided. But one important aspect of his game was the fact that he became more of a jump shooter, perfecting a deadly fade-away jumper and shooting 111 3-pointers on 43% from beyond the arc.
All these would be good enough to win him his 4th MVP award, his second MVP at the All Star game, his 7th All Defensive first team (along with Pippen and Rodman, a rarity that 3 players from the same team are selected on an NBA first team on any given category) and his 8th NBA First team selections. In other words, he was back as the best player in the world. But all that storybook season meant nothing if the Bulls would not confirm their dominance in the playoffs. The first round brought them face to face with the Miami Heat. The Heat were a young team, who had just acquired Alonzo Mourning from the Hornets and Pat Riley as their coach for that season. They were hungry, but not yet the force they would become in the later years. The Bulls would sweep them in 3 blowouts, behind Michael Jordan's 35, 29 and 26 points. The second round would bring them against a familiar foe: the New York Knicks. The Knicks had the same core that gave the Bulls so much trouble in the early 90's, and under Riley's former assistant Jeff van Gundy, they wanted to get some revenge. Michael Jordan made a statement in game 1, scoring 44 points, and despite him scoring only 28 in game 2, the Bulls would manage to win both. However, game 3 would be different. Madison Square Garden was always a hard place to play, the Knicks managed to beat the Bulls during the season in a massive 30-point blowout, and they proved again how tough they were at home. With the Bulls down 7 points with 2 minutes to go, it took some vintage Jordan heroics and 46 points to send the game into overtime, where Patrick Ewing would score some vital points, brining the Bulls the first loss in the post season. Game 4 the following day would go neck and neck, Michael was held in check, scoring only 27, but Bill Wennington game the Bulls the victory with a jumper in the final seconds. This set the scene for Game 5, which proved to be the last of the series, back in Chicago. Michael Jordan scored 35, as the Bulls gradually pulled away for the victory. This set the stage for a long expected rematch against the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Magic were the eastern champions and were the team the eliminated Chicago the previous season. If the Bulls were confident, it was because they had the home court advantage and they managed to beat the Magic 3-1 in the regular season, including the last 3. Game 1 would start perfectly for the Bulls, who went on an early lead and never looked back. Magic's forward Horace Grant injured himself before the game and then again during the game, effectively ending his season, which meant that the Bulls would have a rebounding advantage with Dennis Rodman. Dennis' defense on Shaq was superb at times, and Jordan needed to score just 21 points in a 30 point blowout. Game 2 would be different, as the Magic would come out with a purpose, and quickly jumped to a 20 point lead just after half time. But the Bulls were still focused and thanks to some stifling full court press, they would get back in the game and eventually win it. Jordan would end with 35 points, 18 in the 3rd quarter. This was the quarter that decided the series, as the Magic's confidence vanished. Game 3 in Orlando was another 20-point blowout, despite Jordan's only 17 points. The only drama left would come up in Game 4, when the Magic came out blazing. Jordan would score 45 points and put the finishing touches on a series that everybody feared and which turned out to be a sweep by and average margin of 20 points. Like in the Eastern Finals against Detroit in 1991 the Bulls proved that when focused, they could play perfect basketball and none could beat them. One more step had to be taken by the Bulls: win against the Seattle Supersonics in the 1996 NBA Finals. The Sonics had an outstanding season as well, and were lead by spectacular power forward Shawn Kemp and NBA Defensive Player of the Year Gary Payton. The Sonics game plan all series long was to pressure and double-team Michael Jordan, dare the other Bulls to beat them. Game 1 would prove that the Sonics had a tough task ahead, with Jordan scoring only 28 points on 50% shooting, the Bulls defense proved the cornerstone of their success yet again, carrying them to a 107-90 victory. Game 2 would be much closer, with the Bulls struggling to score from the field and from the free throw line. Although Michael Jordan would score 29 points, he would hit only 10 of16 from the free throw line. However, the extra attention he was getting enabled Dennis Rodman to record 11 offensive rebounds, and NBA Finals record, and with it the second win 92-88. Game 3 was to be held in Seattle, where the Sonics were confident due to their fan support and their good play in the previous game. However, the Bulls jumped to an early lead behind Michael Jordan's great first half, and never looked back. Michael would have his best offensive game of the series, with 36 points in a 108-86 blowout victory. With holding a 3-0 lead, the Bulls relaxed entering game 4, while the Sonics knew they had to win and avenge the previous embarrassment in front of their home fans. It was essentially the reverse of game 3, with Seattle winning 107-86, and holding Jordan to 23 points on 31% shooting and Pippen to 9 points of 23% shooting. The Bulls played better in game 5, managing to avoid a blowout, but their poor shooting continued this too, connecting on only 3 of 26 three point attempts. Michael Jordan would bounce back scoring 26 point on 50% shooting, but still not enough as the Bulls lost 89-78. This set the stage for game 6 back at the Unites Center in Chicago. Even if the Bulls' 2 consecutive losses raised questions regarding their stamina, age and cohesiveness, no team had ever come back from 3-0 down, and now they were back home. And that showed, as they jumped to an early double digit lead in the second quarter and managed to maintain it until the end for a 87-75 final victory. Dennis Rodman would have another memorable rebounding night, matching his 11 offensive rebounds Finals record, and Scottie Pippen compensated his poor shooting in the series with strong defense. As for Michael Jordan, even if he would score just 22 points in that emotional Father's Day, it would prove to be the crowning end of a fairytale season. He would win his 4th Finals MVP, adding it to the regular season accolades and thus enhancing his legend in ways never thought possible: coming back from retirement, he led the Bulls to the best season in NBA history, culminating with another championship. And if that seemed to be enough, it proved in the following seasons that the dynasty that he led in the Windy City was far from over.