The 1993 Eastern Conference finals brought out the nastiest kind of basketball the New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls had to offer. Chicago was hunting a three-peat while New York wanted nothing more than to dethrone the reigning champions.
Pat Riley‘s Knicks played a brand of physical basketball that made opponents uncomfortable, with Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, and John Starks leading the charge. One moment from that series became impossible to forget.
During Game 3, a heated confrontation between Starks and Michael Jordan nearly turned into something more before teammates and officials broke it up. Nobody threw a punch, but the bad blood was obvious.
Years later, Starks looked back on that night during an appearance on Carmelo Anthony‘s 7PM Brooklyn podcast. What he said gave the story new life and revealed how much respect he actually had for Jordan, even in the middle of all that chaos.
“When we played them in Chicago, and me and him got into a little altercation on the court. It wasn’t like, we were gonna throw hands or anything like that. Then we was pushing each other, and they end up kicking me out the game.”
“I’m back there in the locker room. I’m steaming, this and that, and the media come in. Then I just went, kind of went off on them. And I had to, like, say exactly what I felt, that they was doing to him, which was unjust. And I was saying that this man understands better than anybody in this league how to get ready to play a basketball game. And y’all kind of overstep their boundaries as far as reporting on his personal life.”
“However he gets ready off the court, that’s his time, away from the game, and he should deserve the respect out of everybody in this league to be able to relax the way he want to relax. I said, If Chicago had a problem with it, that’s the team thing. That don’t have anything for y’all to report on this man’s personal life and what he does to get ready for a basketball game. Because I’m pretty sure he knows how to get ready for a basketball game.”
“He appreciated that. He sent word through Patrick (Ewing) to apologize for whatever we was doing out there on the court. And I appreciate that coming from me, ’cause he didn’t have to do it.”
Game 3 was where things went completely sideways. John Starks had been playing aggressive defense all night when he crashed into Michael Jordan on a drive to the basket. Jordan got up quick and immediately got in Starks’ face. The two exchanged words before Starks lost his cool and went after Jordan, then did it again moments later. The officials tossed him with two technical fouls.
Starks later claimed Jordan elbowed him first and kept provoking him throughout the game. What didn’t get enough attention was what Starks did after leaving the floor. With Jordan facing relentless questions about gambling before Game 2, Starks came to his defense publicly.
The Bulls were already down 0-2, playing in Chicago, and Jordan had been grilled about an Atlantic City trip during that stretch. Starks standing up for him showed a different side of their rivalry and brought them closer.
“He appreciated that, and I think our friendship grew after that. It really did. Because it wasn’t about basketball. This is about you as a human being. As a man. And so, I think he truly, truly appreciate that.”
For someone like Michael Jordan, who used every bit of disrespect as fuel and rarely gave an inch during competition, that gesture carried weight. It proved there was respect underneath all the animosity.
