'The Last Dance': Reviewing the first two episodes

MANILA, Philippines – The first two episodes of “The Last Dance” were uploaded to Netflix Monday afternoon, April 20, and with those two mailed in, it’s already like a game-winning jump shot.

I was a die-hard fan of the Chicago Bulls who watched all the games and bought all the books, magazines and videos, so the stories are not unknown to me. However, going back to see the game footage along with what was going on behind the scenes makes an already tantalizing meal into like being served by a Michelin five-star chef. 

Watching “The Last Dance” — directed by Jason Hehir, who has worked on a tasty and memorable slew of sports films from The Fab Five (of Michigan) to professional wrestler Andre the Giant to a smattering of UFC films — has brought back to the surface all those roiling emotions of following the Bulls from 1984 to 2019.

Here are my thoughts about those first two episodes:

Aside from the interviews with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, why do we only hear from Steve Kerr and Bill Wennington? Is it because they are the most eloquent? Is it because Kerr has become a world-famous personality himself? Where is Ron Harper, Luc Longley and Toni Kukoc? The former two were starters on all three titles teams of the second three-peat wave.

In spite of that, it was good seeing people like Barack Obama and Bill Clinton interviewed alongside the beat reporters like Rick Telander, JA Adande and the controversial Sam Smith, as well as former NBA players and coaches.

Watching the bickering between Jordan and Krause was painful. I know that the late Bulls GM was like the villain in the piece and as much as he had this oversized ego where he wanted credit, he did build this Bulls team. Seeing Jordan chastise Harper and Kukoc… and that is not the worst. I wonder if they have footage when the Bulls won and Jordan told off teammate Joe Kleine (who was also with MJ in the 1984 gold medal-winning team for the 1984 Olympics), “Why are you crying? You didn’t play a minute.” That barb, if shown later in the series, will be painful to watch.

Watching Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and Krause justify their actions for blowing up the team is painful, illogical and even jarring to watch. Twenty-two years later, the Bulls are still rebuilding.

I recall how post-Jordan and company, Krause tried to reel in Tracy McGrady from Orlando, Eddie Jones from the Los Angeles Lakers, and if I am not mistaken, Kevin Garnett — who was then playing for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Nothing came of that, although Jones nearly came close to changing zip codes. I also remember reading from other NBA players about being concerned that if the Bulls management could do this to MJ, Pip and Jackson, how much more to them?

I am curious though why there was no mention of former Bulls Orlando Woolridge and Reggie Theus, who were the stars when Jordan joined the team in 1984. And when Hehir showed Jordan during his University of North Carolina days, why was only Buzz Peterson and James Worthy interviewed? Where was Sam Perkins, who was not only a star but became a legit NBA player? He was also on the US Olympic team of 1984.

When Worthy and Perkins graduated, something went out of those UNC Tar Heels. As good as Jordan was, they didn’t win another title during MJ’s last two seasons. If anything, it underscored that no one person can carry a team.

You see the parallels with Pippen, Rodman and Kukoc joining the team?

One of the best quotes was hearing former UNC head coach and assistant under Dean Smith, Roy Williams, saying that Jordan was the only player who did not switch off his game.

The end of Episode One saw that electric Bulls introduction where they played the Alan Parsons Project’s Sirius with the voice of former announcer Ray Clay barking out the names just made my hair stand. 

The huddle where Randy Brown would ask out loud, “What time is it?” and the rest of the team would answer, “Game time… hooh!”, it would have been nice to show how that came about (former Bull Cliff Levingston started that during the first three-peat wave).  Why? Because every other basketball team all over the world tried to copy that.

In Episode Two, the seeds of the differences between Jordan and with management were sown when management limited his minutes upon his return after missing a bunch of games. Michael wanted the team to fight for a playoff spot while the team wanted to go into the lottery. The result was the Bulls being ousted by the title-bound Boston Celtics in three games in the first round. But Jordan torched the Celtics in all those games, and his legend grew. 

The best story of Episode Two was former Boston player (and now the team’s General Manager) Danny Ainge recounting how before Game Two of that series, MJ woofed by saying “Tell your boy DJ (Dennis Johnson) I’ve got something for him tomorrow.”

Jordan scored a game-high 63 points versus the Celtics, and the result was the famous “God as Michael Jordan” quote from Larry Bird that fanned the flames of Jordan’s popularity.

The second episodes ends with Pippen asking for a trade (we all know it wouldn’t happen). His eventual return saw the Bulls take off. But that is for the next episode.

The first two episodes of “The Last Dance” — despite my quibbles – do not take away from this riveting series. But I do hope that they make use of other players too. And it would certainly be nice to see if any players kept that handbook of that last season.

“The Last Dance” is a winner. It is something for those who grew up during this era for those growing up today to be acquainted by this force known as Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.