- The Chicago Bulls vs. San Antonio Spurs game on November 3, 1997, was an all-time classic
- David Robinson and Spurs coach Gregg Popovich weren’t pleased with a referee who didn’t call a foul on Michael Jordan
- The Bulls won the game which stretched into a double overtime
The Chicago Bulls vs. San Antonio Spurs clash on November 3, 1997, was a high-octane thriller, and it wasn’t without drama as David Robinson and Gregg Popovich launched into the referee for his missed foul call on Michael Jordan.
To recap, Jordan’s play with Sean Elliot in crucial minutes saw him attempt to block the latter’s shot, but make contact with him while at it. The referee, however, didn’t call the foul, and Robinson could be seen yelling at the referee to “make the right call.”
You can watch the clip below, the action starts at 6:20 onwards:
A closer examination sees Jordan making contact with Elliot’s hand as he attempts to make the shot. Robinson, all muscled and towering, came over with a sneer and exchanged words with Jordan, while the Bulls legend smiled back, chewing gum and remaining unfazed.
It was also one of the games where Jordan took 39 shots at the United Center and missed 27 of them. But in a clutch moment, he delivered by draining a final shot in regulation and in each of the two extra periods.
As the clock was winding down in the fourth stretch, Chicago trailed San Antonio by three points, and Jordan sunk a three to send the game to overtime, and later hit another jumper in the first OT with 22 seconds to force a second OT.
In the second overtime, the Bulls held on to a one-point lead and Jordan pulled up a 15-footer from the left corner, this time with 32 seconds remaining. And the Bulls finished with an 87-83 hard-fought win over the Spurs — the outcome of which would have surely been different had the referee called the obvious foul on Jordan.
The wild thriller saw Jordan finish with 29 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals, and 2 blocks, while Dennis Rodman showed why he was one of the dominant rebounding presence in that era with 22 rebounds against his former team.
Robinson led for the Spurs with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists. But one of the more underrated performances was from Tim Duncan, who playing just his third game in the NBA, had 19 points on 8-for-14 and matched Rodman with 22 rebounds.
Safe to say, this Bulls vs. Spurs double overtime game will surely go down in history as one of the more electric games in the 90s.
Michael Jordan Dunked On David Robinson During A Dream Team Practice Session
Earlier, NBA analyst Rachel Nichols shared a video of Magic Johnson narrating a big story of Michael Jordan dunking on David Robinson during a Dream Team practice.
Jordan went off on Robinson, sending a message to the rest of the team that he was going to dominate for years to come. Here’s Johnson’s account of the tale:
“He’s coming down the right side, he takes off. David Robinson coming this way [left]. So Mike just cups and he just looked at him. And kept looking. Kept looking. He went all the way down, Jack [talking to Stephen Jackson], he did a 360… Bam! I said, ‘That’s it. That’s it. It’s over now.’ So he just looked at me too, and let me know… He said, ‘I just want y’all to know, there’s a new sheriff in town.’ He said, ‘it’s my league now. MJ you had your turn, Larry Bird, you had your turn. Now it’s my league.’ And we all bowed down.”
True to his word, Jordan dominated, winning six championships before calling time on his decorated career.
Over the course of their careers, Jordan and Robinson had their rivalry, and the Bulls icon remained undisputed. Even in a tight-knit November 3rd blockbuster.
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