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Michael Jordan goes full supervillain watching Gary Payton's description of 1996 NBA Finals

The eighth episode of ESPN’s “The Last Dance” ended Sunday with a breakdown of the Chicago Bulls’ victory over the Seattle Supersonics in the 1996 NBA Finals.

As you could imagine, that meant a lot of talk from Michael Jordan and Gary Payton. What very few people saw coming, though, was the birth of a new meme. And another reminder that not even other people’s interviews are safe from Jordan’s ruthlessness.

Michael Jordan laughs off Gary Payton

The fun started with Payton talking about his defense against Jordan, and how he wished it didn’t take going down 3-0 in the Finals to convince coach George Karl to let him take over guarding Jordan.

As Payton told it, the key was getting physical with Jordan, not unlike the tactics of the “Bad Boys” Pistons from a few episodes ago. Unfortunately, what Payton may not have realized is that the documentary producers would give Jordan a tablet with the video of his explanation.

What ensued was one of the most dismissive laughs you will ever see, as Jordan basically acted like a supervillain hearing the plot to bring him down. Except this supervillain ended up winning.

“The Glove. I had no problem with The Glove,” Jordan said after the laughs. “I had no problem with Gary Payton. I had a lot of other things on my mind.”

And suddenly, yet another new meme was born.

To be fair to Payton though, he might have had a point.

Chicago Bulls guard Michael Jordan holds the ball away from  the Seattle SuperSonics' Gary Payton (20) during the first quarter of Game 4 in the NBA Finals Wednesday, June 12, 1996, in Seattle.  (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Michael Jordan had some trouble with Gary Payton in the 1996 NBA Finals. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

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