‘The Last Dance’ Redux: Michael Jordan Stays Hot as the Bulls Take Down the Kings
Two days after surviving a scare from the one-win LA Clippers, the Chicago Bulls continued their “Last Dance” campaign against the Sacramento Kings on November 23, 1997. And Phil Jackson & Co. didn’t let their guard down in this one as they had a couple of nights earlier
Coming off a 49-point effort against the Clips, Michael Jordan got off to a bit of a slow start in Sacramento, scoring just two points in the opening quarter. But he dropped 31 over the next three to lead all scorers with 33 in a 103-88 Bulls victory.
Fellow starters Toni Kukoc and Ron Harper added 18 and 13, respectively, while Bill Wennington chipped in 11 points off the bench. Dennis Rodman grabbed 14 rebounds, his sixth straight game with at least that amount.
Mitch Richmond scored 23 points to lead the way for the Kings, who had their two-game winning streak snapped and dropped to 4-8 on the season.
| Bulls | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Jordan | 33 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 1 |
| Toni Kukoc | 18 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 0 |
| Dennis Rodman | 2 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Luc Longley | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Ron Harper | 13 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Randy Brown | 6 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| Bill Wennington | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jason Caffey | 9 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Scott Burrell | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Rusty LaRue | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jud Buechler | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Kleine | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kings | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mitch Richmond | 23 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Corliss Williamson | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Olden Polynice | 12 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Terry Dehere | 6 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Billy Owens | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Lawrence Funderburke | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Stewart | 6 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tariq Abdul-Wahad | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Anthony Johnson | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Hurley | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kevin Salvadori | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Here’s a look at the NBA standings following all the action on November 23, 1997.
| Eastern Conference | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Hawks | 11 | 2 |
| Charlotte Hornets | 8 | 3 |
| New York Knicks | 9 | 4 |
| Miami Heat | 8 | 4 |
| Orlando Magic | 8 | 4 |
| New Jersey Nets | 7 | 4 |
| Chicago Bulls | 8 | 5 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 7 | 5 |
| Boston Celtics | 7 | 6 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 6 | 6 |
| Indiana Pacers | 5 | 6 |
| Detroit Pistons | 5 | 9 |
| Washington Wizards | 4 | 9 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 3 | 7 |
| Toronto Raptors | 1 | 11 |
| Western Conference | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| LA Lakers | 11 | 0 |
| Phoenix Suns | 7 | 2 |
| Seattle Supersonics | 10 | 3 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 8 | 4 |
| San Antonio Spurs | 7 | 5 |
| Houston Rockets | 6 | 5 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | 6 | 5 |
| Utah Jazz | 6 | 6 |
| Vancouver Grizzlies | 6 | 8 |
| Sacramento Kings | 4 | 8 |
| Dallas Mavericks | 3 | 9 |
| Golden State Warriors | 1 | 10 |
| LA Clippers | 1 | 12 |
| Denver Nuggets | 0 | 11 |
Up next for Jordan and the “Last Dance” Bulls was a matchup with Gary Payton and the Seattle Supersonics.
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