The Last Dance: Best quotes from episodes 3 and 4 of the MJ doc

More of Episode 3

That’s right. Episode three was so awesome that we needed more than one slide to recognize all the delicious quotes we were treated to on Sunday night.

We’ll pick back up with the entire sequence involving Jordan’s game-winning shot against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 5 of the first round of the 1989 Eastern Conference playoffs.

Jordan acknowledged that Cavs guard Ron Harper was giving him the most fits that series. The documentary then cut to former 16-year veteran’s recollection of the play.

“I got MJ. I got MJ,” Harper said during Cleveland’s timeout. “Then coach said, ‘I’m gonna put (Craig) Ehlo on MJ.’ Harper, almost knowing that Jordan would sink the dagger to send the Cavaliers packing, said, “I’m like ‘Yeah, OK. Whatever. F–k this bulls–t.’ “

Flash forward a few ticks later in the episode and the doc showed Jordan’s game-winning bank shot against the Pistons in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. In the postgame press conference, Bulls head coach Doug Collins was asked for the play he drew up in the timeout huddle. He provided an answer that still resonates to this day.

“Get the ball to Michael, everybody get the f–k out of the way,” said Collins. 

It really doesn’t get much better than that.

To close up episode three, The Last Dance gave viewers a chance to observe the vulnerable side of Rodman, who had grown agitated with the persistence of the Chicago media on the cusp of Scottie Pippen’s return.

“Basketball is simple, said Rodman. “It’s a simple game. But when you leave this confined zone, it’s hard. It’s hard. Like I said, I ain’t gotta prove anything to the people in this country. This business can kiss my ass.” 

In this clip, we witnessed Rodman open up about how basketball was an escape from reality for him. Outside of the “confined zone,” life as a professional athlete was almost a burden to him.

That was all that episode three had to offer as it pertains to fetching quotes, and it was a certified gold mine. Its conclusion chronicled Rodman’s trade to the Bulls and how fans quickly embraced his polarizing personality. Keep reading to see if episode four lived up to the notoriety of its predecessor.