May 18th of 1994 may have been the most significant day in the history of the NBA. But before I explain why, let me set the table. The Chicago Bulls were coming off of their first threepeat in which they beat the Phoenix Suns in the 1993 NBA Finals. Michael Jordan was absolutely unstoppable and clearly the best player on the planet. He was the Finals MVP for the third year in a row and there was nothing that could stop this dynasty from moving forward. Early that summer the team and the fans were partying in Grant Park in downtown Chicago to celebrate. Life was grand for the Bulls and the NBA had their face of the franchise.

But later that summer Michael Jordan’s world would never be the same. His dad, James R. Jordan Sr., was murdered in an apparent car jacking attempt in McColl, South Carolina. It was devastating and its impact on Michael Jordan was drastic.

At the absolute height of his fame and talent on the court, Michael Jordan did the unthinkable. He retired. He shocked the world and it was something that no one was prepared for. But MJ wasn’t done with professional sports. In honor of his deceased father, he wanted to prove that he could play Major League Baseball. The Chicago Bulls were and are owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, who also owns the Chicago White Sox. Reinsdorf would give MJ his shot and let him play in the White Sox minor league system.

That would leave the Chicago Bulls without their leader, their super star, their champion, their face of the franchise. Surely the Bulls would not be any good with out him and they had no chance in hell at winning a fourth consecutive title, right?

The Bulls made a couple small moves in the off season by adding Steve Kerr, Pete Myers, and Bill Wennington to their roster. Kerr was a sharp shooter but Myers and Weenington would be roles players at best. The starting line up when the season opened consisted of BJ Armstrong (Point Guard), Pete Myers (Shooting Guard), Scottie Pippen (Small Forward), Horace Grant (Power Forward), and Bill Cartwright (Center). Not exactly a powerhouse of a line up.

But it was Scottie Pippen’s time to shine and step out from behind the shadow of Michael Jordan. And he did not disappoint. Pippen would lead the team in points, assists, steals and was second in rebounds.

He would make another All-Star Game and would win the MVP of the game.

The Bulls would win 55 games and earn the #3 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. This wasn’t the current, pathetic, and talentless Eastern Conference that we have now. This was a physical, tough, and talented Conference.

The Bulls would sweep the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs and looked determined and focused to prove that they could make another title run without MJ. They would face the #2 seed, New York Knicks, in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. The Knicks, led by Hall of Fame Center Patrick Ewing, would win the first two games in New York. But the Bulls would bounce back in Chicago and even the series at 2 games a piece. Game 5 of the Best of 7 was back at Madison Square Garden. In the history of the NBA, the winner of Game 5 of the Best of 7 series, when the series is tied at 2-2, wins 85.4% of the time. So everything was on the line and the pressure was at a fever pitch.

The two teams battled back and forth and an instant classic was being played right in front of our eyes. The Bulls were clinging to a one point lead with less than 20 seconds left. The Knicks had the ball and John Starks drove to the corner and kicked the ball out to Hubert Davis at the top of the key. As Davis caught the ball with 2 seconds left he launched a 3 point shot and Scottie Pippen put his long right arm up as Davis released the shot that would brick of the back of the rim. The Bulls were going to win! But then the referee blew the whistle and called a foul on Scottie Pippen. He was irate as was the rest of the Bulls team and head coach Phil Jackson. It appeared that Davis got the shot off clean and Pippen didn’t even touch him. The TV announcer tried to make a claim that Pippen touched his hand after the shot was long gone but that argument didn’t hold water.

The Knicks fans on the other hand were going crazy in excitement. Davis was an excellent shooter and knocked down 2 of 3 free throws to take the one point lead and win the game.

Scottie Pippen and the Chicago Bulls felt that they got robbed. They thought they got cheated. This was the all too familiar story of a referee blowing a call that would cost them the game. The Bulls were unable to bounce back from this and the Knicks would win game 6 in Chicago and eventually go on to the NBA Finals.

Now back to my opening sentence “May 18th of 1994 may have been the most significant day in the history of the NBA.”

If that foul had not been called on Scottie Pippen on May 18th, 1994, the Bulls would have won that game. They would have then had the 3-2 lead in the series and would have two shots at finishing off the Knicks. I believe that they would have made the NBA Finals. The #4 seeded Indian Pacers would have been the team in their way and that would have been a cake walk for Scottie Pippen and the Bulls with home court advantage.

The Chicago Bulls would have made the NBA Finals for the fourth straight year and would face the Houston Rockets. The Rockets were led by my favorite center of all time, Hakeem Olajuwon. But I think the Bulls could have slowed him down enough with Wennington, Longley, and Cartwright who were the three headed monsters that rotated in and out of the center position. I liked the Bulls chances.

Now imagine these newspaper headlines: The Chicago Bulls are the 1994 NBA Champions! Bulls win without Jordan! Scottie Pippen wins NBA Finals MVP!

How would this of effected the future of Michael Jordan and the NBA? Would he have ever even come back to the NBA? Would he have gone to another team?

There were whispers and rumors going around at the time that MJ didn’t really retire because he wanted to play baseball. MJ had a raging gambling problem. He would frequently go to casinos after games or on off days and play high stakes black jack. He would also bet constantly on the golf course and while at shoot around after practice. MJ loved gambling as much a basketball. The rumors were that the NBA had suspended MJ for a year and a half due to some gambling issues. But they could not afford to ruin the face of the league so they kept this a secret. He figured that since he was going to be away from the sport, he might as well give baseball a shot.

Baseball wasn’t working out like MJ had hoped so in the spring of 1995 he decided to send out a “fax” that simply read, “I’m Back.” We may never know what the real reason that MJ left the Bulls. And we will never know what would have happened if that terrible call on Scottie Pippen would not have happened.

I do know this though. In the 1993-94 season for the Chicago Bulls, Scottie Pippen did this:

NBA All-Star Game MVP

All-NBA First Team

NBA All-Defensive First Team

And got really damn close at making another NBA Finals. Let me know what you think of this article. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!