This is the sixth installment from Hall of Fame writer Sam Smith's new book "There Is No Next: NBA Legends on the Legacy of Michael Jordan."
CHICAGO — Michael Jordan came into 1987-88 determined the Bulls would be a serious challenger, and that he would be personally less dominant. Heck, it would be nine games before Jordan would score more than 37 points in a game, which was his average for the previous season.
That ninth game, of course, was against the Pistons, and Jordan had 49 points. He never would forget, and it would only get worse for Detroit later that season. That was when the Bulls were finishing a four-game road trip — three in the Western Conference — in six days, with the closer Easter Sunday in Detroit on national TV.