Everyone's talking about Michael Jordan. What else is new? The guy's so good that any reference to him immediately brings images of slam dunks and shoe commercials.
Michael is Michael. Perhaps the best offensive weapon in NBA history. Need anyone say more?During the NBA Finals, though, more is being said. Like: Michael is so good offensively, it's easy to forget that he's a defensive wonder.
While his offense was limited because of a heel injury - he "only" had 26 points, 8.1 below his postseason average - Jordan's defense helped Chicago beat the Portland Trail Blazers 94-84 Sunday.
The Bulls have a 2-1 series lead going into Game 4 Wednesday night.
Clyde Drexler has noticed Jordan's defensive excellence. It would have been hard for him not to have noticed; Jordan is often so close to Drexler that the pair seem to be glued together.
Drexler, who finished second to Jordan in league MVP voting, is shooting 43 percent and has committed nine turnovers in the series.
"Michael's a pretty good defensive player," Drexler said Monday.
Pretty good?
"He's very good," Drexler said. "He's quick and active. He can gamble and he still has the speed to get back into the play."
Jerome Kersey has noticed, too. Because the Bulls do a lot of switching on defense, Jordan, 6-foot-6 and 198 pounds, often finds himself guarding the 6-7, 225-pound Kersey.
"Jordan's a hands-on defensive player," Kersey said. "He gets his hands and body into you and pushes you harder than you thought he could. He's always overplaying you, always looking for the steal."
And he often gets it. Jordan led the NBA in steals in 1988 and 1990, was sixth this season and is averaging 2.11 steals per playoff game.
Statistics, though impressive, don't fully measure his defensive impact.
Jordan wreaks havoc on an offense because he seems to be everywhere on the court - switching to double-team post players, scrambling to disrupt 3-point shooters, trapping along the baseline, blocking 7-footers' shots from behind.
All the while, he's keeping his own man in check and scoring 30-plus points at the other end.
"You've always got to keep an eye out for Michael," said Portland point guard Terry Porter, who also has been stopped by Jordan in the series.
In 1987-88, Jordan was the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year.
"It's one of the most valuable awards I've gotten because it told everybody that I didn't just play offense," said Jordan, who just completed his fifth consecutive season on the league's All-Defensive Team.
"Everyone says that defense is hard work and I've never walked away from hard work," he said. "It's a challenge to try to play well at both ends."