“It was a dumb shot” – When MJ horribly air-balled a game-tying shot against the New Jersey Nets

For all his greatness, Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan also missed clutch shots. Against the New Jersey Nets in March 1997, the “Black Cat” airballed a game-tying shot, which would’ve been added to his expansive highlight reel. Mike broke down what went wrong in that potential game-tying shot from 15 feet.

“The last shot wasn’t my favorite,” Jordan said, per the Los Angeles Times. “I thought I could create a foul, but at the last moment, I took the fadeaway. It was a dumb shot.”

The shot could’ve tied the game at 97 all. Xavier McDaniel grabbed the defensive rebound and was fouled by Scottie Pippen. “X-Man” knocked down the two free throws, which proved to be the game-winning baskets. Jordan’s 36 points on 16-of-34 shooting went to waste.

Another botched game-winner

Another one of Jordan’s lowlights was from 1992 during a regular-season game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Even though Magic Johnson had abruptly retired due to HIV, it was still considered a big game given that the two super teams met in the 1991 NBA Finals, with the Bulls prevailing in five games.

MJ showed up prepared and exploded for 54 points. He even knocked down a tough fadeaway that tied the game in overtime. With 5.4 seconds left, a defensive lapse left Vlade Divac wide open, and Michael, the nearest defender, had no choice but to foul. The Serbian center knocked down both shots, which put the Purple & Gold up 120-118.

With 2.2 seconds left, the Bulls had a chance to tie the game and go for the win. The Phil Jackson-led squad opted for the latter, but his ace shooting guard botched the chance.

“I had a good shot, and that’s all you can ask for. I knew when I released it that it wasn’t going in. I was kind of hoping for a curveball,” Jordan said.

Adjustments

Mike took these heartbreaking failures and turned them into life-changing lessons. As the adage goes, one must fail to succeed. In Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz, the 6’6″ shooting guard combined all the lessons he learned from those sorry misses and integrated them into his shot.

“Ironically, I have problems going to my right for a stop, pull-up jumper because I have a tendency to come up short,” Jordan wrote in his book, “For the Love of the Game: My Story.” “I normally fade a little, but on this shot, I didn’t want to fade because all my jump shots had been short.”

That little tweak was pivotal. The shot proved to be the game-winning basket, which gave Mike his sixth NBA Championship. It was the perfect ending to Michael’s Bulls career. And it wouldn’t have been possible if he missed game-winning baskets, turned the ball over, misread plays, and committed other errors. MJ needed to make those mistakes to learn how to win. Jordan needed to lose before being a champion.