By Ed Mace, sub-edited by Lily Wells
Covering arguably the greatest dynasty in modern sports, ‘The Last Dance’ provides a deep-dive into the intricacies of the 1990’s Chicago Bulls basketball team. The franchise was spearheaded by Michael Jordan, regarded as the greatest player of the 20th century. Over the ten episodes, ‘The Last Dance’ offers unprecedented insight into the career of Jordan, his teammates, and his rivals.
The documentary’s access to footage, both on the court and behind the scenes, allows it to flourish as a fantastic microscope into Jordan’s place in the basketball world. It engages with his early setbacks, personal struggles with addiction and grief, and his on-court dominance which led the Bulls to six championships during the 90’s.
Prior to the release of the documentary, there was a mystique surrounding Jordan and his extreme mentality towards success and sacrifice. ‘The Last Dance’ illuminates this in a compelling way, framing early episodes around his relationship with fellow Bulls players such as Scottie Pippen, which open a dialogue into the ruthlessness of Jordan.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt becomes clear during the documentary that the mentality that Jordan has been routinely praised for became a source of conflict for the Bulls and coach Phil Jackson, who had to navigate clashing personalities to hold together the dynasty. Jordan addresses this directly in the seventh episode, saying “When people see this they’re going to say, ‘he may have been a tyrant.’ Well, that’s you, because you never won anything.” The documentary, which was fully approved by Jordan, frames him as the ultimate winner and those who challenged him, such as Pippen, as obstacles.
‘The Last Dance’ is a strong piece with great insight but at times, falls into the trap that NBA discourse is plagued with currently: an overstated emphasis on superstars. In the near thirty years since Jordan’s retirement, only five MVPs of the NBA have gone on to win the championship in the same year. The strength of a team’s role players is a far greater indicator for success than the ability of their best player, exemplified by the San Antonio Spurs dynasty in the 2000s. Despite this, ‘The Last Dance’ glorifies Jordan and arguably disregards the necessity of his supporting cast. The role of the eccentric Dennis Rodman, and the title-winning shot from Steve Kerr in 1997 received praise, but given the longevity of the Bulls dynasty, far more acknowledgement of coaching and supporting players could have been given.
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