Rarely did the Chicago Bulls experience moments of heroic comebacks in the 90s without the presence of Michael Jordan . However, Game 6 of the 1992 NBA Finals stood as a unique exception, as "His Airness" found himself on the bench with the rest of the team leading the rally.
This unusual turn of events occurred because assistant coach Tex Winter persuaded head coach Phil Jackson to bench MJ, as Scottie Pippen revealed in his book 'Unguarded.'
Winter was tired of MJ's selfishness
Although the Bulls led the series 3-2, their performance in the first three quarters of Game 6 didn't reflect their dominance. After falling behind by 15 points to begin the fourth quarter, Portland forcing a Game 7 seemed like a likely scenario.
However, that's when Bulls' assistant coach Winter took matters into his own hands and approached the 'Zen Master' to bench Jordan, who was trying to orchestrate the comeback by himself.
"Michael, meanwhile, was trying to do too much," Pippen wrote . "And it was backfiring. 'You have to get him out of there,' Tex Winter, one of our assistant coaches, pleaded to Phil, 'He's holding the ball too long, destroying the action.'"
With Mike on the bench, the Bulls started the fourth quarter with a 14-2 run. He rejoined the action when his team trailed 81-78, eventually clinching a 97-93 victory after the Bulls outscored the Portland Trail Blazers 33-14 in the last 12 minutes.
Where was this in The Last Dance?
Despite the 14-time All-Star scoring a game-high 33 points and Pippen contributing 26, 'The Last Dance' only delved into the details of Game 5 of the series. On the other hand, the documentary barely covered the crucial moments of Game 6.
Pippen, who pointed out that Jordan had editorial control over the project, said the project should've included more clips from that game. However, the Hall of Famers understands why that wasn't the case.
"It wouldn't have enhanced Michael's legacy to show his 'supporting cast' being the difference in a game of such magnitude," Pippen added. "The Bulls would likely have lost that game if Phil had put Michael back in earlier in the fourth quarter. Tex was right."
Pippen, along with other former MJ teammates, felt slighted that the documentary focused solely on Jordan and his most iconic moments during their all-time great eight-year run. That's why the Hall of Famer, together with Horace Grant and Luc Longley decided to share their version of events and give fans a different perspective on the Bulls dynasty.
Related: "We literally had to carry him off the bus, off the plane" - Phil Jackson recalls Michael Jordan showing his "special skill"
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