Deseret News archives: Bulls break Jazz fans’ hearts, Part 2
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
Michael Jordan denied the Utah Jazz again.
One year and a day after leading the Chicago Bulls past the Jazz to win the 1997 NBA title, he foiled us all again on June 14, as the Bulls clinched their sixth NBA championship in eight seasons in a thrilling 87-86 win at the Delta Center.
Jordan hit the game-winning shot in the final seconds — pushing off, of course— and earned his record sixth NBA Finals MVP on June 14, 1998.
And the Deseret News archives were filled with angst and woe. Utah hasn’t been back to the Finals since.
After the 1997 season, the Jazz kept the roster intact, but an 11-7 start to the season due to a John Stockton injury had fans worried. Then Jerry Sloan’s squad fired up and stayed hot, ending up with 62 wins and home-court advantage in the playoffs.
Utah plowed through the first two rounds of the postseason, then swept a Los Angeles Lakers squad with Shaquille O’Neal and a young Kobe Bryant. Nothing could stop the Jazz.
Except Jordan. The Jazz won the series opener but then lost the next three, scoring just 54 points in Game 3 of the series. Utah fought back and won a thrilling Game 5 on the road, with Game 6 set for the Delta Center.
The Jazz led for most of the game, but in the final minutes, Jordan stole the ball from Karl Malone, as any Jazz fan will recall.
In the final seconds, MJ outdueled Byron Russell, hitting the “Last Shot.”
It still might be too soon — even 25 years later — for Jazz fans to think about, but for many Utahns, the playoff runs were truly exciting times, never to be forgotten.
Here are some Deseret News archive stories from that season, and that series:
“Here’s what Jazz, Bulls must do to secure title”
“Neither Bulls nor Jazz care to be favored”
“20 years later, Utah Jazz’s 1998 NBA Finals team still haunted by Jordan’s ‘Last Shot’”
“See Phil Jackson’s scouting report on the Utah Jazz ahead of the 1998 NBA Finals”
“Utah Jazz: Accept it! The Bulls deserved the series”
