1998 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, Game 7, Chicago Bulls vs Indiana Pacers

[@RA-hn6sk]

It's crazy how watching a 26 yr old game, where you know the outcome is 100x more exciting than this crap that they call NBA basketball today.

[@dandandkl9048]

Because back then, they had talent, toughness, heart and was so, so competitive! Great watches then, and just as fun now to see greatness! No five step layups, no palming, three seconds in lanes is respected, etc., etc.

[@banggoman7371]

I can even watch this all day..

[@PastorQuincyBarnwell]

Man, I wished the NBA were like this today. I missed these days. I remember during this era I would look forward to watching basketball on NBC. Brings back so many wonderful memories.

[@dionizymrowiec1661]

Dokładnie. Ja również oglądałem zresztą jak wszyscy. Szkoda że dzisiejsza NBA nie jest taka jak kiedyś :(

[@Absolute8384]

You watch this game, then you watch a game from today, and you can absolutely understand why since 2012 the viewership for the NBA is down 48%. Kids today have been absolutely ROBBED from what actual basketball looks like.

[@Zeronum2]

what does it look like

[@EugeneAmos-l7s]

Yeah up and down the court you get 3 turnovers 5 missed shots 3 ill advised shots and 2 makes. This shit is terrible I haven’t watched a game in 4 years. And once Durant and Steph kyrie and maybe 2 more players retire, they are not going to be able to get 89 views

[@Absolute8384]

@ I agree 1000% it’s crazy to think we went from these Bulls to the new Bulls who combined for 75 missed 3’s in one game. The game is getting out of control. Sad to see.

[@TheReelMcCoySC]

53% now

[@EEttu-c3s]

Man goodnight

[@pxlmvr7]

This is REAL BASKETBALL, REAL STRATEGY, REAL DEFENSE, REAL SCRAPPY HEART, REFS CALLING BY THE RULES.

[@joncabotxox9389]

I could watch these all day. Thank you so much for posting this. Just brings me back to the good old days

[@pinayhappylifeinParis]

Plumber era 😂

[@GregoryWilliams-di2dg]

I watched just about all his games . He's the only one I can say the first time you see him play you know he's on another level. Jordan and Kobe were just on there on level and then there was everybody else 😂😂

[@iamaman1168]

So did Michael Jordan stop dale Davis

[@pajepistv7361]

@@pinayhappylifeinParis all LeBum losses in the finals from plumbers era u say. Haha 🤡

[@KnowTheLedge08]

The Golden age of the NBA

[@mariobryant8803]

A classic game- Larry Bird had the Pacers ready but MJ had that heart and his teammates followed his lead, don’t forget about Special K (Kukoc)

[@ismjay5143]

bird should’ve left Jalen in

[@RA-hn6sk]

The only thing I hate about this era of NBA basketball is that tv's were not in HD

[@lonewolfstone6383]

Then youre not from that era

[@RestrictedAirspacePodcast]

It was better in real time. It’s a tape. 📼 Gives it a raw edge you can’t get with 8k or whatever we’re on now. I appreciate the good old tape days.

[@JackLalane-yt4iu]

Tape = Soul

[@banggoman7371]

I feel sorry for you, deeply..

[@chaunseybillings5381]

I miss theses days bulls on NBC

[@JayDay32]

I truly miss this day and age for life and the NBA.

[@12345fowler]

I don't miss the crap resolution TV broadcast of these days

[@avidsiman]

​@@12345fowler My source video is much better quality than what you see here. It has sharper picture and runs at 60 fps to match the original broadcast. KZbin's crappy re-encoding caps the frame rate at 30 fps and introduces blurriness and other artifacts.

[@garyfleming4101]

​@@avidsiman Nice to know, ALOT of old NBA games on KZbin look pretty bad. Now I know why

[@avidsiman]

The other videos are likely bad because the people doing the digitizing don't know what they're doing. KZbin re-encodes all videos uploaded to the site so they conform with certain specifications such as bitrate, framerate, color profile, etc... The re-encode won't be perfect as some details will get lost, but quality should not drop more than 10% in that process.

[@wcnitz]

This is physical, tough basketball. Not dirty, just hard hat, lunch box, roll-up-your sleeves stuff. Amazing the Bulls had enough to finish the finals after this series, one of the toughest 7 game series you'll ever see.

[@paulie2476]

As a fan, I probably didn’t appreciate this enough at the time. Thanks for taking me back.

[@ferg5406]

I love this era of basketball. 12/20/2024 and im tuned in like i was then. How special

[@ckfandor4300]

It's good to watch this classic great teams of Bulls and Pacers. It's good to see the legendary Croatian star, Toni Kukoc, too!

[@YEM_FIRENZE]

The Croatian sensation!

[@MacMittens-js9mb]

REAL BASKETBALL. Not a bunch of whining and flopping while jacking up 3s all game. Just real men playing ball

[@feriman6226]

Jordan era, whenever it is NBA final everybody in the office is watching I miss that time in NBA

[@KewonJackson]

Well I know onething and that's lebum win say that they will win!! It's bader than a bad flip of the coin

[@GahMorninJulia]

Thank you so much for this!

[@edisonsubandi7231]

Watch this too many times still not bored. We gonna win game 7 😅. We gonna win game 7. Come back from 16 points down. What a way. Sorry Bird and Reggie

[@rodneymckinnon9075]

To bad Larry bird wasn't playing the bulls lose.

[@italianstallion853]

Good old nbc nba days..maaaaan I really miss this. Sth like this will and can never ever be repeated

[@CAcutie1978]

Please, I wish for days like this again. I'm glad I appreciated and was aware of how good I had it. NBA in the late 80s and throughout the 90s was the best times ever.

[@neco341]

thanks for upload this bro, i love thee games of these chicago bulls

[@tuntuu]

Bulls ball movements are beautiful to watch.

[@nathanlentini8001]

These were the good old days indeed. I was in high school and watched every game of the playoffs in those days. After that I passively followed Jackson's Lakers with Kobe. Ever since the last years of Kobe I completely tuned out. NBA hasn't been worth anything for about 15 years. I was a Jackson, MJ, Pippen, Bulls fan, but liked the Pacers too. Reggie is a true legend with class and Bird is an all time great of course. Great matchup. I gaurantee you MJ was more worried about this game than any playoff game in his career solely because of Larry Bird, the one guy that MJ never got the best of as a player. If Bird were playing for the Pacers here my money would have been on them. Bird just knows how to win.

[@avidsiman]

Jordan got the best of Bird in 8 consecutive victories when Team USA beat the NBA Allstars in preparation for the 1984 Olympics.

[@eddy_8232]

These were the days, real NBA games with strategy, emotion, real excitement, intrigue and actual competitiveness

[@jondonson8136]

this is awesome, thx

[@waltd.952]

The NBA will NEVER be this way ever again. 😢😔

[@kidsleep2336]

I don't think there was a single 3 point attempt in the first quarter and that's with Reggie Miller playing. Crazy how much the game has changed (not necessarily for the better).

[@jaybanthony]

Back when nba basketball was worth watching.

[@hmhhmd4422]

I am stuck in this era

[@satarez5151]

2:02:47 So iconic...GOAT

[@berkhanogulcanakcay7336]

The effort, the dedication.

[@billpogi23]

💯💯💯

[@downtown9451]

Whar a beautiful atmosphere this was. Real competition and rivalry . So exciting to watch . Today it's not the same. It's plain

[@Alphasports576]

Jordan and pippen did not play great in this game they both shot a low percentage but played great defense however Toni offensively played very well

[@Yomammi84]

I think this is the most competitive game in final history. Well, maybe not including those Celtics in Lakers. Duels! I wish I could’ve live through that let alone Jordan’s era!

[@livelife4228TBAS]

Watching this new years eve miss this play of basketball

[@michaelmorton5131]

I remember this game it was all grit both sides until one team makes a crucial mistake at the wrong time

[@edmundoayala8912]

Darn! it was hard to score. Everyone was freaken quick to on defense. Even Kerr was hard to get by.

[@bestlexluthor7596]

@@edmundoayala8912 yeah but it was because all the grabbing and checking .

[@martacaleda7673]

See what Jordan did to Regie Miller..0 pts in 4th quarter..that's a great lockdown defense.

[@hmhm856]

One of two game 7 that the Bulls played during their 6-ring-seasons, with the other being against the Knicks in the second round of the 1992 playoffs

[@MrJoshbaby1]

Notice the excitement from the crowd from the jump. Fans were hanging on every shot because a 2 point lead was big back then.

[@padraiglocke8844]

Rodman was the X factor for The Bulls , the energy he brought too this Jordan Bulls team was extraordinary

[@emmsquared]

Larry Bird knew they were doomed since 1st game when Miller continously Bullied Jordan

[@prociferman]

When Worm got up in the first quarter, you could feel the energy was swinging over to the Bulls. What a player!

[@taboljokgames4182]

man, this reminded me the defense during the 90's and how it can affect the game. I wish the game right now is being played like this

[@tarzlegacy9446]

Kukoc was 🔥 in 3rd quarter

[@bestlexluthor7596]

@@tarzlegacy9446 I remember seeing kilos in the Olympics and thinking oh no the Bulls are gonna just keep winning . He was awesome. I think he mistakenly bulked up to where he had extra weight he didn’t need in the nba but still great player

[@paymyself1st430]

I remember going to sleep after these epic games feeling like I won the championship with the bulls everytime.. it was like MJ and the bulls didn’t let u down they cared about the game more then they’re name recognition

[@НикельМурманский]

Лучше всякого кино! Такой острый сюжет и до конца держит в напряжении. Спасибо НБА .🏀🥇

[@Jflex2321]

Reggie Miller had ZERO points in the 4th quarter. Absolutely insane

[@kirkfifer5226]

What the difference between this playoff and today they actually play defense.

[@rowonecollection]

A great NBA game! 🏀

[@dannytanner82]

I remember exactly where I was on this day

[@ModernongKepweng2]

Best game ❤❤❤

[@padraiglocke8844]

This is the true beautiful game of Basketball, RIP The NBA December 2024 Larry Legend Coached the hell out of these Pacers!!!

[@Alphasports576]

Toni kukoc was a great player

[@donkeyjoe4782]

The original 3 pointer, drive to the hoop,, get fouled,score, make the free throw.

[@frsbrice5257]

Jordan IS a GOAT of Basketball

[@tpdircks]

The amount of fatigue talk during this game is unreal. They are basically walking the ball up each possession with a whistle every other play.

[@edisonsubandi7231]

Harper faces after shot free throw gave respects for Pacers.

[@radamesrivera4193]

Tony Kukoc looks like a young Hugh Jackman LOL

[@24klee]

MJ won with his supporting cast the right way. Bron soft ass be having D Wade, Bosh, AD, Kyrie, Rondo, Dwight, Westbrook, Ray Allen, Carmelo etc just to chase rings and still end up 4 - 6 in the Finals(2-8 if Kyrie & Ray ain’t save him)… its levels to this shit 1.MJ 2.Kobe 3.Don’t even matter

[@kennybegeske8824]

Upload More Chicago Bulls Basketball Games From NBA On NBC

[@DeeVanTee612]

I remember watching this game. In the fourth quarter I got so nervous that MJ might actually get bounced out of the playoffs. We all know what happened. The 🐐

[@renelagura3744]

Its so amazing and crazing

[@ronalddechosa3048]

Vintage,nbc' lwz the only coverage in nba games,in those days!!!🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

[@edisonsubandi7231]

With old days basketball very critical, i think when Steve Kerr shot first three scored Bird should call time out so can stop momentum for Bulls. If this happened maybe Bulls missed bit momentum then game could be different.

[@RounelJaranilla-o5w]

Morning nfs idol...Ms u all... sorry I'm late... ❤😂🎉

[@Shaughn-pk3pe]

Reggie should have been clutch in the 4th but became passive

[@meekmeads]

Who was guarding him then?

[@ericellis1573]

Reggie had to go by the script nobody wanted to see Indiana an Utah in the finals the pacers where better than the bulls

[@avidsiman]

Ron Harper guarded Miller, but his back started acting up. Phil Jackson made a defensive switch at halftime and put Jordan on Miller for the 2nd half.

[@maurol8493]

Toni Kukoc!

[@maddawgjax]

The Pacers was fully loaded! They would beat any team in today's NBA

[@nunyabizznizz7326]

MJ is the only guy to say we're are going to win this game, and it not be controversial...you automatically go to how much you gonna win by

[@calebh9710]

1:48:42 for the jump ball sequence they talk about in “The Last Dance”

[@dandandkl9048]

Too bad for Indiana their best player was on the bench, caching…

[@Jack__________]

PEAK basketball! 💯💯💯

[@stefanvasilev9318]

The impact that a three-[pointer has, when it happens just where and there is astonishing - I had forgotten that, with today’s bombs-away style of play LOL

[@iam_geyed]

22:17 😤 Harper with a mean dime on the way down 😮‍💨

[@iamaman1168]

Also tell me why phill Jackson brought Dennis Rodman in the game as quick as he did because Toni Kukoc couldn't stop Dale Davis

[@HeatNattty999]

Why is Bob Costas wearing his dad's suit? 😂

[@avidsiman]

That was the style in the 90's - large relaxed fit. Watch Jordan in the postgame interviews and you'll see him wearing his 'father's suit' too.

[@HeatNattty999]

I know I lived the era as a teenager. I was just making a joke ​@@avidsiman

[@MGAF688]

@@HeatNattty999 Bob Costas is 5'3 with lifts.

[@MGAF688]

In the final 2+ minutes, Chicago scored 3 points. Indiana had 0 points. It was 85-83 and Chicago GAVE Indiana EVERY opportunity to win. Indiana said, "no thank you."

[@bettycazeau496]

I miss those days

[@iamaman1168]

Now what did phill jackson say before start of the game that micheal jordon couldn t win the game by himself

[@philipmoye4583]

Ain't nothing like home bulls baby WGN

[@Skyscraper330]

Costas and Ahmad... Great memories!

[@iamaman1168]

Without Rodman, they wouldn't have 3peat it

[@MichaelaAyanaFabellon]

Best NBA play old

[@djblakethesnake]

Reggie disappeared, and they should have left Rose in

[@CrazyDiamond7297]

I remember Jalen Rose explained back in Grant land I think that Larry talked to him after the game acknowledging he should have played him

[@avidsiman]

Ron Harper defended Miller in the 1st half, but his back started flaring up. Phil Jackson made a defensive switch at halftime and put Jordan on Miller in the 2nd half.

[@CrazyDiamond7297]

@@avidsiman and then in Reggie's words from Last Dance: "the rest is history" 😎

[@anthonypratt4292]

Could never understand how on one end of the court MJ drives among all those Indiana players and doesn't get the fool call but on the ensuing fast break on the other end they call a fool..SMH

[@tino0936]

2:00:36 Greatness

[@lclee2708]

Pacers is my team, we lost this game because of bad FT shooting, through the end of the 3rd quarter we’d shot 17 of 29. Pacers had this game but blew it because of the fundamentals of making FTs. Too many people overlook that part of the game along with rebounding.

[@avidsiman]

The Pacers only had 3 offensive rebounds vs. the Bulls' 26 in this game. That had more to do with the outcome than freethrows. Look no further than the final 2 minutes where Michael Jordan and Ron Harper come up with key rebounds to run an additional 40 seconds off the clock.

[@BastardCroatian]

Beautifull baskteball

[@orlandotocano1323]

This was Phil against Larry, just realized that

[@marshallartist78]

I just realized it too. Knicks vs Celtics

[@PETERODZZ]

Or another way for Michael to finally beats bird

[@avidsiman]

Before entering the NBA, Jordan played for TeamUSA against the NBA All-Stars in an 8 game series as preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics. This was when only amateur players were allowed to compete in the Olympics. The NBA All-stars had Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Isiah Thomas, Bill Walton, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, James Worthy, Moses Malone, Mark Eaton, and more. TeamUSA won all 8 games handily, lead by Jordan.

[@iamaman1168]

So tell me, did Toni Kukoc stop Dale Davis on the Indiana pacers team.

[@kiko-kb5hj]

This is what I watch on my DVDs nothing like

[@edisonsubandi7231]

4th quater game on the line MJ still believe Luc. This GOAT knows what to do. Not like one called GOAT but missed a lot of Q4 shots , air balls less assists, turnover 😅

[@nathanlentini8001]

Bird is the only player that dominated Michael Jordan in games that counted: season, playoffs, and championships while in the league together. MJ didn't win a title until Bird was out with injury and practically retired. Bird is the only player he feared and he feared him as a coach too. That's why this series gave MJ so much trouble, Larry Bird's legacy and presence.

[@avidsiman]

That's not entirely accurate. Bird had 5 HOF'ers in his starting lineup whereas MJ didn't even have a teammate that could draw a double team, yet MJ nearly single-handedly beat the Celtics in 1986 with only a handful of games under his belt due to injury. When you have 5 HOF'ers as your starting lineup, you should win handily, but the fact they didn't speaks to Jordan's greatness, not Bird's. If anything, Bird and co underperformed. Bird wasn't a factor in playoffs beyond 1987-88 season. MJ didn't win his first title until 1991 because Pippen and Grant weren't on the team until 1987, didn't hit maturity until the 90's, and they had to play the 2-time champion Detroit Pistons in the playoffs losing to them every year from 1988 through 1990 until finally breaking through with the sweep in 1991. During those years Bird and the Celtics were a non-factor. When Jordan was put on a level playing field with Bird in competition, Jordan won. First example was when TeamUSA challenged the NBA Allstars to an 8-game series as warmup for the 1984 Olympics. Jordan's team was all college players, many of whom wouldn't amount to anything in the NBA, but they won all 8 games.

[@Codesta]

If you watched this game, you can see how having a decent supporting cast can help your team win. Bird had a great supporting cast and MJ didn’t in those early days, yet MJ was the one that was scoring all over the Celtics, but he didn’t get many contributions from his teammates. So Bird did not domintae MJ. Otherwise, why would he call MJ “God disguised as Michalel Jordan”? The Celtics just had a great team. Same with the 80’s Lakers and Bad Boy Pistons. One great player alone can’t beat a whole great team.

[@avidsiman]

@nathanlentini8001 False. Jordan did not fear anyone. He was as confident as they come. Jordan didn't win until Pippen and Grant matured as team mates, not because of Bird retiring or being out with injury. Pippen and Grant were drafted in 1987. It takes a few seasons to develop and gel as a team. That's why it took until the 1990s before they took off.

[@larry-zw4mh]

Poor ft shooting i didn’t remember

[@MrJoshbaby1]

Watching this again now you can see how tired everybody was especially Jordan going through brutal series after brutal series. You can see how heavy his legs were and just think he still had to play in a championship series. No way today's teams could beat these guys they were fareal about the game of basketball none of this water down stuff we get today. Sorry young ppl y'all have been robbed of good basketball.

[@Boomtube215]

Jesus the Pacers were a big ass Team lol

[@CrazyDiamond7297]

This Pacers one of the best teams without a championship I think. But there are many such teams thanks to the BULLS. Really deep this Pacers roster indeed

[@joaovasco3059]

"...Michael Jordan only need 5 points to pass Kareem as the all time playoff scorer..." this is said as a side note, almost an insignificant stat...

[@terminat1]

Are the Pacers still stuck on three offensive rebounds in 2025? Man, get a rebound.

[@goofywill90]

44:47 pre Steph

[@TimVigilla]

McKie could have had tried Regie in the final possession.

[@MJ23GOAT_]

The Magic WORD " WE"