One of the fascinating threads in “The Last Dance” documentary is the set of changes that took the Chicago Bulls from being a top-two team in the Eastern Conference to arguably the greatest team of several generations.
They had lost to the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals two years in a row. Three things changed.
(1) They took the loss seriously. Most of the team, led by Jordan, gave up their summer break and got back in the gym. The Pistons had bullied them – they resolved to get strong enough that it wouldn’t happen again. You see the result in a moment from the next season’s Eastern Conference Finals: Dennis Rodman commits a flagrant foul on Pippen, nearly pushing him into the benches. Pippen gets up and moves on as if nothing happened. That’s when the Pistons knew they couldn’t shake the Bulls.
(2) Phil Jackson installed the triangle offense. Moving away from a Jordan-centric offense meant Jordan wouldn’t be the leading scorer every night. It was painful for him – but he understood that building an excellent team required it. Jordan drove his teammates hard as part of this. Scottie Pippen bore the brunt, and grew into an incredible Robin to Jordan’s Batman.
(3) Jordan learned to rely on his teammates. In the finals against the Lakers, Phil Jackson asked him on the bench – “Who do you think is free?” “John Paxson.” “Who should you pass to?” “John Paxson.” Jordan passed. Paxson shot. It went in. And again. And again. A switch flicked. After they won, Phil Jackson famously told Jordan on tape – “You’ve won it the right way.”
What stands out most is how much of the arc was about Jordan himself. One player talks about how when you saw Jordan show up and dial up excellence in practice, you could either join him or move on.
But the real shift wasn’t Jordan being excellent. It was Jordan embracing that he needed to inspire excellence – bring the whole team along, and learn to rely on them.
Only then could he go from being an incredible player on a good team to an incredible player on an incredible team.
A Learning a Day 