‘The Last Dance’ Redux: Michael Jordan Owns the Team He Later Actually Owned as the Bulls Took Down the Wizards
A night after losing what turned out to be an Eastern Conference Finals preview against the Indiana Pacers, the “Last Dance” Chicago Bulls squared off with the Washington Wizards on November 29, 1997.
Playing the penultimate game of a seven-game road trip, it seemed early on that the Bulls would extend their losing streak to three as they were behind by 15 after the first quarter. But behind a 12-point second quarter from Michael Jordan, Chicago took a two-point lead into halftime.
The game remained close over the final 24 minutes, but the Bulls had just enough to get back in the win column, taking an 88-83 victory to move to 9-7 for the season.
Jordan, who literally owned his opponent that night just a few short years later, made 10 of 21 shots from the floor and eight of 12 from the foul line en route to a game-high 29 points. Toni Kukoc was the only other Chicago starter in double figures with 15, while Bill Wennington chipped in 10 points off the bench. Dennis Rodman contributed 17 rebounds in the win.
Former Michigan teammates Juwan Howard and Chris Webber led the way for the Wizards, combining for 43 points and 20 rebounds in the loss.
| Bulls | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis Rodman | 2 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Jordan | 29 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Toni Kukoc | 15 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Ron Harper | 9 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| Luc Longley | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jason Caffey | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Rusty LaRue | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bill Wennington | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Randy Brown | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Scott Burrell | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Wizards | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Juwan Howard | 22 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Rod Strickland | 15 | 8 | 13 | 2 | 0 |
| Calbert Cheaney | 12 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Chris Webber | 21 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Terry Davis | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Tracy Murray | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Ledell Eackles | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Whitney | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Darvin Ham | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lorenzo Williams | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Here’s a look at the NBA standings following all the action on November 29, 1997.
| Eastern Conference | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Hawks | 13 | 2 |
| Miami Heat | 10 | 5 |
| New York Knicks | 10 | 5 |
| Orlando Magic | 10 | 5 |
| Charlotte Hornets | 9 | 5 |
| New Jersey Nets | 9 | 5 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 9 | 6 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 9 | 6 |
| Chicago Bulls | 9 | 7 |
| Indiana Pacers | 7 | 6 |
| Boston Celtics | 7 | 9 |
| Detroit Pistons | 6 | 10 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 4 | 8 |
| Washington Wizards | 5 | 11 |
| Toronto Raptors | 1 | 14 |
| Western Conference | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| LA Lakers | 12 | 2 |
| Seattle Supersonics | 12 | 3 |
| Phoenix Suns | 9 | 3 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 10 | 5 |
| Houston Rockets | 8 | 5 |
| San Antonio Spurs | 9 | 6 |
| Utah Jazz | 9 | 6 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | 7 | 8 |
| Vancouver Grizzlies | 6 | 11 |
| Sacramento Kings | 5 | 10 |
| Dallas Mavericks | 4 | 11 |
| LA Clippers | 2 | 14 |
| Denver Nuggets | 1 | 12 |
| Golden State Warriors | 1 | 13 |
Up next for the “Last Dance” Bulls was a matchup with the Boston Celtics to close out their road trip.
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