A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
It had been quite a ride for Utah Jazz fans in the mid-1990s.
With Jerry Sloan, Karl Malone and John Stockton as the cornerstones, the Jazz were all that, and the fans loved it.
The NBA franchise moved into the Delta Center in 1991 and made it all the way to the Western Conference finals, hosted the NBA All-Star game in 1992, traded for Jeff Hornacek during the 1993-94 season and again made the West finals.
The Jazz won 60 games in 1994-95 but injuries derailed their playoff push. In 1995-96, with rookie Greg Ostertag learning how to stay out of Sloan’s doghouse, the Jazz made it as far as the conference finals again.
In the 1996-97 season, Utah won 64 games and in dramatic fashion eliminated the Houston Rockets in the West to advance to the NBA Finals.
Besides Stockton, Malone, the league’s MVP, Hornacek and Ostertag, the Jazz roster included Byron Russell, Antoine Carr, Howard Eisley and Shandon Anderson.
Over the first 12 days of June 1997, the teams split the first four games, each winning at home. Fans at the Delta Center were so loud it became a national talking point in the series.
Game 5, known as the “Jordan Flu game,” was perhaps MJ’s most memorable game. He was deemed too sick to play, but still made the opening tipoff in Salt Lake City. The Jazz built a 16-point lead early but the scoreboard tightened up in the second half.
A late Jordan 3-pointer with 25 seconds left gave the Bulls an 88-85 lead, and despite an all-out effort in the final seconds, the Bulls prevailed in front of a stunned Delta Center crowd.
The Jazz would not give up though, and Game 6 on June 13 in Chicago was just as bitterly close
Another back-and-forth game went to the final seconds. With the score tied and 28 seconds to play, the Bulls called timeout. The Jazz expected Jordan to take the final shot, but he passed to a wide-open Steve Kerr, who broke the Jazz kingdom’s hearts. Final score after a final dunk, 90-88.
“Chicago heartbreaker” was the 1A headline in the Deseret News after the game. “Going down fighting; drive for title reaches end of the road” was the top sports headline the next morning
Here are some archived stories from Deseret News colleagues from that series:
“The 1996-97 Utah Jazz are champions after all. Here’s how — and what — that legendary team won”
“So Steve Kerr’s shorts from 1997 NBA Finals are currently up for auction”
“Sloan, Johnson have fond memories of 1996-97 Jazz team that made NBA Finals”
So while Jordan and the Jazz broke Utahns’ hearts, there was always next year.
Stay tuned.