The Last Dance: Things we learned from episodes 3 & 4

4. “Tonight we take care of you”

It was more than clear that Dennis Rodman couldn’t have cared less about what others thought of him, and that the determinations and opinions of those around him were fraught in shaking the core self-attributes that made him who he was.

Michael Jordan, on the other hand, was a rigid opinion connoisseur.

In fact, it’s quite possible that it was the concept of proving his doubters wrong (including his dad at a wildly innocent young age, which he alluded to in episode 1) that created the full-on workaholic responsible for the six rings he brought to Chicago.

Oftentimes in today’s basketball landscape, players are advised to stray away from media criticisms – and especially the judgmental comments of the cruel couch-potato social media world that thrives on making viral memes of player pitfalls (see Kevin Durant). It’s impossible to avoid outside commentary as a public figure who’s been thrust into the global spotlight, but players of today’s age have constantly been advised that their own personal power lies in the amount, or lack thereof, of reactive aggression they have to it.

It’d be a wonder to see how Jordan would fare with these efforts in today’s NBA.

He was undoubtedly fueled by responding to his haters (just take his 63-point outburst vs. Boston after losing to opposing guard Danny Ainge in a game of golf the previous day).

And the backstory behind his iconic game-winning double-pump jump shot against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1988 Eastern conference semis is the ultimate insinuation of this.

Here’s the account, as told by then-Chicago Tribune beat writer Sam Smith:

"“So (Game 5’s) about to start and there were two other beat writers. Beat writer from the Sun-Times, Lacy Banks. And Kent McDill from the (Daily) Herald, and me,”  Smith begins. “Lacy has picked the Cavs to sweep in three. Kent has picked the Cavs to win in four. And I had picked the Cavs to win in five. “Game’s just about to start. And Michael walks over to Lacy and points to him and says, ‘we took care of you.’ Then he Looks at Kent and says, ‘we took care of you.’ And he looks at me and says, ‘we take care of you today.'”"

And take care of each he did – almost single-handedly, busting out for 44 points in the final game of a series in which he averaged nearly 40 a night (39.8).

Jordan’s final resolution of the night, also known as “The Shot”, will forever be etched into the memories of Bulls’ fans worldwide, and into the hearts of those writers that publicized their questionings of his winning aptitude. As he famously leaped into the air in celebration, we now know the exact words that came out of his mouth in jubilant elation as Cavs’ players solemnly sombered off of their home court: “get the f*** outta here!”

An emphatic outcry to the quietly stunned Cleveland fanbase no doubt, but also a giant middle finger to the non-believing media members that incorrectly predicted his downfall.