The Miami Heat knew that one antic to try and throw the Chicago Bulls off their game was to get chippy and physical. However, it took more than that to frustrate Michael Jordan and company.
In a highly physical encounter between the two Eastern Conference teams in March 1998, MJ got his share of roughhousing. He took an elbow to the head from Heat center Alonzo Mourning , something Michael believed was meant to throw him off his game.
Nice try Zo
Unfortunately for Mourning and the Heat, the ploy didn't work. The Bulls took the beating and also the win, 106-91.
"He can't get into my head and intimidate me," Jordan said via the New York Times at the time. "He'll have to hit me harder than that."
Zo's physical play is nothing new for the Bulls. In the previous year's Eastern Conference Finals, the 6-foot-10 center elbowed Scottie Pippen in the head. Ever since that incident, Michael had not shaken hands with Mourning.
"As you see, there's not much love," the 3rd overall pick of the 1984 Draft quipped.
Jordan and Pip were not the only ones sore with Mourning with his on-court antics. Dennis Rodman was aware of what the Georgetown product was up to and countered with his mind games.
"It doesn't matter what Zo does," Rodman said . "Miami just doesn't have the quality people to knock us off. I told him he's a 17-million-dollar punk. He can't intimidate us."
Related: "He has 47 kids in the Philippines, and I'm the oldest one" - When Dennis Rodman broke down during his Hall of Fame speech
Lessons from the Bad Boys
Ironically, "The Worm" was another Bulls player who had a run-in with Zo during the 1997 playoffs. At the time, Rodman got into an altercation with Mourning in the EC Finals. Surprisingly, Dennis was able to control himself and did not escalate the situation.
"I'm a smart guy. I'm not the guy out there making $100 million. He's out there trying to poke my eyes out," Rodman said . "He's just a young kid. He doesn't know how to play the game of basketball."
It was an unusual turn for Rodman, who was part of the 1988 Detroit Pistons team that did a number on MJ in Game 3 of the EC Finals. Dennis' teammate, Bill Laimbeer, caught the "His Airness" following an illegal pick.
Jordan responded by throwing punches, claiming that Bill was trying to knee him. Mike would later admit that the incident threw him off sync .
"It threw me out of sync, mentally," Jordan said . "I really couldn't get myself mentally back into the game, and I think it took everyone out of sync."
That and other physical encounters that followed helped Michael mature. Being the talented player he is, teams tried to throw him off his game. The 1998 incident with Mourning proved that. With a wiser MJ, the Bulls would go on to win the NBA title, ironically Jordan's last ring.
Related: "He dunked on me, he screamed, he flexed" - Alonzo Mourning recalls him getting dunked on by Michael Jordan as a rookie
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