Many regard Michael Jordan as a basketball god who could do nothing wrong on the offensive and defensive ends of the floor. The numbers, individual awards, and highlights back up this claim.
However, some of MJ's lowlights have been filtered out of history. In a regular season game against the Detroit Pistons in 1989, while Mike chipped in 21 points, 12 rebounds, and ten assists, Jordan's poor defensive effort led to a Chicago Bulls loss.
Adrian schooled Michael
Jordan entered the fourth quarter with zero fouls. He stepped up to defend scoring machine Adrian Dantley , hoping to slow down the Pistons' offense. But as the quarter progressed, it became clear that MJ was no match for Dantley's tricks.
Michael committed six fouls in the final quarter alone, three of which were on the two-time scoring champion. Adrian finished the game with 20 points, notching 14 from the free-throw line.
"They were a little worried about fouls in putting Jordan on me," said Dantley, per the Chicago Tribune. "I guess they were right."
The game went into overtime with Jordan sitting on the bench. The Bulls struggled to contain Dennis Rodman, who had had five rebounds in the overtime and 14 for the game. Isiah Thomas, too, converted on key buckets to win the game, 104-98.
Interestingly, the North Carolina product was impressed with their defensive antics. From his point of view, it was their offense that lacked coordination.
"It was a good defensive game," said Jordan." But our offense was a little lost. We had our chances to win, but we couldn't do it."
While he walked away with a triple-double, the Bulls guard shot a horrendous 7-of-24 from the field and also committed five turnovers.
Related: "I wondered myself why he wasn't on the team" - Larry Bird knew Dream Team selection process would result in controversies
Leaning the ropes
This little-known anecdote shows that even the greats like Mike have a handful of bad games, too. In 1989, the "Black Cat" was in his fifth year as a professional and was still trying to learn how to play the game with a team. Jordan's horrible 7-of-24 shooting clip says he might have been forcing his shots and not playing within the system.
MJ had just won the 1988 Defensive Player of the Year award, which was a major feat for a guard. However, Michael was seemingly out of touch during that fateful night against Dantley and the Pistons.
Whether it was a case of over-eagerness, fatigue, or something else is a big mystery to Jordan fans. But for the rest of NBA fans, it showed the renowned GOAT is human, too, who took a lot of tumbles before he rose to the top.
Related: Dennis Rodman credits Adrian Dantley for his defense: "He'd do things in practice I couldn't comprehend"
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