Anyone who knows NBA history knows all about The Shot. It came from Bulls legend Michael Jordan, to beat the Cavaliers at the buzzer, in the deciding game of the first round in the 1989 playoffs.
The dagger came at the Richfield Coliseum, and Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf remembers it well. He was there, after all.
Now, keep in mind that most have been the most beloved Cavs era of all time, featuring the likes of Brad Daugherty, Larry Nance, Mark Price, Hot Rod Williams and coach Lenny Wilkens.
The Cavs actually beat the Bulls in all six regular-season matchups that year. They were the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Bulls were No. 6, leading to the first-round matchup.
But Jordan’s shot at the buzzer changed the course of hoops history, particularly when it came to the Bulls. They went on to become the team of the 1990s, a dynasty of that decade.
“The best memory I will ever have is the shot (Jordan made) on (Cavs guard Craig Ehlo) because that’s really what started everything off,” Reinsdorf said, via Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. Cowley, by the way, is from Cleveland.
Anyway, Reinsdorf elaborated on that game-winner, saying there wasn’t much time to celebrate.
“I remember being in whatever the name of the arena was (Richfield Coliseum) with Jerry Krause and Karen Stack, and Michael made that shot. The three of us started hugging each other and jumping up and down,” said Reinsdorf, who still serves as Bulls chairman.
“Then all of a sudden, I remembered where we were. I said, ‘Jerry, we gotta get the hell out of here.’ Cleveland fans are usually not the most hospitable.”
Cleveland fans beg to differ, of course. But at that moment … yeah, Reinsdorf may have been right. Getting out of dodge was probably a good idea.
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