Credits: USA Today Sports

After several years of losing to the Detroit Pistons in the postseason, the Chicago Bulls finally managed to get past the Eastern Conference Finals in 1991. Michael Jordan played his first-ever NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers and suffered a tough 91-93 loss in Game 1. In classic MJ style, he approached Game 2 with a vengeance and blew out the Lakers 107-86. Byron Scott wasn’t too thrilled about the fact that Jordan kept taunting the Lakers’ bench during Game 2. However, the Bulls star replied by denying any such allegations.

Talking to The Baltimore Sun, Byron Scott – an integral part of the Los Angeles Lakers – accused Jordan of mocking the Lakers bench during the contest. As he complained, Scott certainly didn’t seem to appreciate the actions of “His Airness”.

“We noticed Michael taunting our bench. That’s not something you do early in the series. It got us upset and we’ll be ready at home,” Byron Scott claimed.

With Jordan receiving a lot of criticism, the combo guard decided to speak up on the matter. Unsurprisingly, the reigning league MVP didn’t apologize. In fact, MJ denied all allegations. Responding to Byron Scott, the former North Carolina Tar Heel simply stated that he didn’t say a single thing to the team bench. Instead, Jordan showed some of his emotions only as a means to keep himself motivated.

“I never said one thing to the bench. I made some big plays on that end at crucial times in the game and I showed my emotions for those situations as something to keep me motivated, but I didn’t angle it at them or try to disrespect them,” Jordan told The Baltimore Sun.

With MJ having the tag of the most competitive player ever, Scott shouldn’t have been surprised by all the taunts and trash talk. Adding fuel to his fire and “making things personal” were only more ways to motivate Michael Jordan. And that’s precisely what Scott did with these allegations.

After feeling disrespected, Scott was all riled up, revealing that the Lakers would be ready as the levelled-up series would shift back to California. Much to Scott’s surprise, Jordan managed to elevate his game for the remainder of the series. Averaging 29 points, 10.6 assists, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals in the last three games at the Great Western Forum, Michael led the Bulls to a 4-1 series win.

Byron Scott praised Michael Jordan during games

Michael Jordan was the most lethal offensive player that the league had ever witnessed. Even the greatest defenders such as Gary Payton, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Dikembe Mutombo, among others, would be terrified when going up against Jordan.

It was a known fact that Jordan would thrive on his opponent’s hate. Trash-talking would only enable MJ to shift gears and result in him dominating. Hence, Byron Scott used a unique strategy while guarding the multiple-time scoring champ.

Instead of allowing MJ to tap into his competitive side, Scott would constantly praise the Bulls legend throughout the game. The 6ft 3” guard’s gameplan was simple – “kill him with kindness”.

“I enjoyed guarding Mike. The one thing I did with Mike was I never got him pi**ed off. He make a shot, you say ‘Good shot, Mike.’ You don’t talk trash to him so he could go off for 60. You tryna kill him with kindness,” Scott revealed.

As surprising as it sounds, this strategy was successful. In the 19 regular season games (between 1984 and 1996) that Scott faced off against Jordan, the latter recorded 28.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 6.5 assists.

Yes, these seem like terrific numbers that the Bulls leader put up. However, comparing them to Jordan’s career average during those 12 years (32 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.7 assists) is when one realizes how effective Scott’s approach was.