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Throwback: When Michael Jordan Revealed How He Beat Dennis Rodman During 1991 Eastern Conference Finals
Before Dennis Rodman became teammates with Michael Jordan in the Chicago Bulls, he was his rival in the NBA.
Dennis Rodman was a major factor in Michael Jordan's failure to make it to the Finals in the 1980s, even before he turned into the defensive pillar that helped Jordan and the Chicago Bulls complete their second three-peat.
As a key member of the Detroit Pistons Bad Boys, Rodman employed psychological warfare to ensure that he provoked the Bulls players to the point where they had to perform at their best. In order for his Bulls to defeat the Pistons in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals, the five-time MVP realized he had to outwit Dennis at his own game.
Not his comparatively low scoring average, but rather Dennis Rodman's aggressive play style and psychological tricks were what worried Jordan, a star player for the Pistons. Mike came to understand that his role in the Pistons' victory extended well beyond his game average of 6.8 points and 6.4 rebounds. Then, in the 1989 Eastern Conference Finals, Jordan became aware of Rodman's psychological influence once more. This time, it was even more important than his series-high 13.3 rebounds.
"These guys talk trash all the damn time to everybody. Let's see if they can handle some trash talking back to them. So I started taking it to 'em," Jordan said.
"Rodman, I said, 'Rodman, best defensive player? Jump your a** over here if you think you're the best defensive player in the league.' And that irritated the hell out of him. Every time he'd go past me, boom, knee me in the corner, knee me in the back. He was trying to frustrate me. And I was trying to do exactly what he would do. I'm trying to knock the hell out of Rodman. I'm telling Scottie to bring him off the screen—boom, I knock him. Rodman got pissed off because we were doing the same s*it that he would do. I knew I was getting to him."
Rodman's diminished impact even on the stat sheet—averaging just 4.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game—demonstrates the success of this strategy. In the end, Michael and the Bulls got their comeuppance as they defeated the Pistons en route to the Finals. That 4-0 victory felt especially sweet because it was the first time the Bulls had defeated the Pistons in the postseason since 1974. Additionally, Detroit had eliminated Chicago from the playoffs for three straight seasons.
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