3 takeaways from episodes 3 and 4 of The Last Dance, ESPN’s MJ doc

3. Give Jerry Krause his dues

It is incredibly difficult to view Jerry Krause as anything but the antagonist in this documentary. More than anyone else, it was his words and actions that put an end to the dynasty before it was necessary. He certainly wasn’t aided by the comments shown at the end of episode four before Chicago took on the Utah Jazz.

And yet, there’s a factor that unites both Rodman and Jackson in their individual journeys that eventually brought them to the Bulls, and that’s Krause.

It was Krause who went out and swung a trade for Rodman in October of 1995. He’s also the one who made sure Jackson found his way to Chicago’s bench and tabbed the future Zen Master to run the show in 1989.

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Both moves proved critical in the Bulls run to six championships but neither was as guaranteed as hindsight would lead you to believe.

Rodman was a famous headcase both on and off the court, and questions regarding the Bulls’ acceptance of a player who had played a prominent role on the Bad Boy Pistons were legitimate.

Paving the way for Jackson to assume head coaching duties meant the departure of Doug Collins, the head coach who had a strong bond with Jordan and guided the Bull to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Neither move absolves Krause from how he alienated just about every prominent figure of those Bulls teams later on. But it should earn him some credit as the architect behind two of the most significant moves in franchise history that were hardly viewed in such a light when they occurred.