“The Last Dance” Parts 3 and 4 recap, social reaction: Dennis Rodman steals the show

5 years ago

While Night One of “The Last Dance” highlighted just how much the Chicago Bulls hated Jerry Krause and Scottie Pippen’s frustrations with the team, Night Two was about Dennis Rodman, the Bad Boy Detroit Pistons, and an absolutely immortal quote from Ron Harper about “The Shot.”

Yet Night Two started with two back-to-back bombshell quotes from Rodman, and from that moment, you knew he was going to steal the show.

Of course, the whole documentary is really about Michael Jordan. But as we’ve learned four hours into this outstanding series, both His Airness and his squad were defined by the pieces around Jordan as much as they were by the superstar.

So with that in mind, here’s the best of what social media had to say on Night Two.

On Dennis Rodman

Parts 3 and 4 on Sunday focused largely on the rebounding and defensive maestro, detailing his journey to the NBA, his time as a member of the Detroit Pistons, how he got to the Bulls, and how he had to step up as Jordan’s No. 2 when Pippen took his ball and went home early in the 1997-98 season.

Pippen’s return forced Rodman into a bit of a spiral, as he went from being so desperately needed to a nice complementary piece, and the mercurial forward requested some time off to get his head right; after being so buttoned up for two months as Jordan’s second-in-command, he needed to be Dennis Rodman. So he asked if he could go to Las Vegas, and coach Phil Jackson agreed, stipulating that Rodman had 48 hours — after he received MJ’s permission:

“I said Dennis, ‘What are you going to do?’ He said, ‘I gotta go to Vegas.’”

Spoiler: He did not return after 48 hours. Instead, Jordan had to go to Vegas to gather Rodman.

But the lesson still stands: the Zen Master knew how to treat Rodman, and got the best out of him as a result.

Now, please take a minute of your time to watch this montage of Rodman rebounding — a highlight reel only The Worm could pull off.

On The Bad Boys

One of the amazing parts of “The Last Dance” is the way it unfurls the chapters that led to the Bulls’ final season — and perhaps no chapter in Jordan’s book is as pivotal as Chicago’s battles with the Detroit Pistons.

Isiah Thomas & Co. famously had a set of rules designed specifically for Jordan: “The Jordan Rules”. And for good reason; they worked.

The Jordan Rules had four components:

1. If Jordan is on the wing, force him to the elbow, not baseline.

2. If Jordan is at the top of the key, try to force him to his left.

3. If Jordan gets the ball in the low post, trap him from the top.

4. If Jordan gets to the baseline or in the pain, put him on the ground.

Which Thomas himself recently joined our Chris Broussard to explain:

But a funny thing happened as Detroit perfected the rules. Yes, the Pistons won back-to-back titles, stopping Jordan short in the Eastern Conference Finals. But after so much abuse, the Bulls decided they’d had enough. They hit the weight room as a group, put on muscle, and, as Jordan said, looked to deliver the pain instead of be the victims.

Iron sharpens iron, after all, and in trying to hold down the GOAT, the Pistons gave rise to their worst enemy. And in 1991, Chicago swept Detroit right out of the Eastern Conference finals.

But don’t expect Jordan or his former teammates to thank the Pistons for the “help.” In fact, the hatred the Bulls felt for their rivals was still palpable 30 years later, in part because of Detroit’s decision to leave the court after the conference finals without shaking Chicago’s hands:

Then again, maybe the Pistons weren’t alone when it came to playing tough, hard-nosed basketball.

When it came to trying to stop Jordan, did you really have a choice?

On Carmen Electra

Let’s circle back to Rodman and Las Vegas for a second, just for fun.

At the time, he was seeing Carmen Electra, who joined Rodman for his Vegas sabbatical. And according to the actress, when Jordan came to gather his teammate, she hid behind a couch, under the covers, because she didn’t want the greatest basketball player of all time to see her in a post-Vegas state. Understandable enough.

But Andre Iguodala thinks there’s something fishy about the whole story:

On Ron Harper

Last but certainly not least, we cannot forget Harper’s legendary comment on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ plan to have Craig Ehlo guard Michael Jordan on a potential game winner in the first round of the 1989 Eastern Conference playoffs, instead of Jordan’s future teammate:

Tell us how you really felt, Ron.

And with that, we bid you adieu until Night Three, when it’s time to talk Dream Team, Kobe Bryant, and much more. We’ll see you then!

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