“Has anyone ever seen him bleed? I have not seen blood yet” – When Reggie Miller claimed Michael Jordan is not human
Miller knew deep down that MJ was not from planet Earth.
When Michael Jordan retired for the second time in January of 1999, everyone thought it was for good and the whole league felt it. He didn’t just dominate the sport for a decade; he propelled it to unprecedented global heights.
Six titles with his Chicago Bulls, six Finals MVPs, two three-peats, and a legacy that wrapped up with one of the coldest game-winners of all time. Everything about MJ felt magical, not to sound overly sentimental. Once he walked away, the rest of the league was left grappling with a real void.
Of course, the tributes poured in. People praised his competitiveness, his work ethic and the gravity he brought to every game. But one of the best summaries came from a guy who had a front-row seat to greatness and who had to guard prime “His Airness” – Reggie Miller.
“‘I am telling you he’s not human,” the Indiana Pacers icon said in 1999. “Has anyone ever seen him bleed? I have not seen blood yet. Something is going on here. He is not human.”
This time, there was no talking trash between the two rivals; it was pure admiration.
The battles between two legends
Indiana vs. Chicago was never billed as a blood feud, but make no mistake: Reg and MJ went at it on any given night. The 1998 Eastern Conference Finals pushed the Bulls harder than any team not named the Detroit Pistons. That Pacers squad, led by Miller, made Jordan sweat in ways few others did. Game 7 at the United Center was a battle on the hardwood.
As always, “Black Jesus” got the last laugh, but the respect between the two elite guards was undeniable. For “Uncle Reg,” that series only cemented what he already knew deep down: the Bulls legend wasn’t like the rest of them.
Miller held his own with 17.4 points per game on efficient shooting, but Jordan was a different beast, averaging 31.7 points across seven games while playing over 41 minutes a night. It was a vintage Jordan performance.
“The Knick Killer” didn’t want to talk trash to MJ
Miller was a certified trash talker — one of the best to ever do it. He chirped at everyone, from rookies to legends. But when it came to Jordan, the mouth went quiet, and he was afraid to do it. The Pacers sharpshooter knew that trying to get into MJ’s head was a pointless task, it just couldn’t be done without vengeance.
“Were we friends? No, we weren’t friends,” Miller admitted years later. “Did we talk to each other on the floor? He might have been the one player I didn’t talk to. Because he might have been the one player who could really embarrass you. He could come right back at you.”
This is coming from a guy who once went at it with Spike Lee mid-playoff game and a guy who would bait legends into technicals and flip off entire arenas with a single jumper. However, with Jordan, it was a whole different story.
Challenging a man many consider the GOAT was the basketball equivalent of poking a sleeping lion. One ill-timed comment, and he’d erupt for 50 points just to make a statement, and he did quite a lot of those.
Miller wasn’t one for handing out praise easily. But when it came to his longtime rival, he made an exception. For Regg (and many others), Mike wasn’t just the greatest; he was not even from the same planet.
