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“I didn’t want to bust his bubble” – Bryon Russell finally breaks silence on why he wasn’t in Michael Jordan’s ‘The Last Dance”

Posted on June 28, 2024 - 1:09 am by

ESPN’s “The Last Dance” beautifully chronicled Michael Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls. That said, many expected to see former Utah Jazz lockdown defender Bryon Russell lift the lid on MJ’s so-called “The Last Shot” in the documentary. However, Russell did not appear in it.

For context, Byron was the player who guarded MJ when he hit the controversial series-clinching shot in Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, which some say was a push-off. With that in mind, Russell said he declined to be interviewed for the documentary because he knew he would’ve said something Jordan might not appreciate.

“I said no,” Russell said with a laugh in a press conference in Utah earlier this year. “I didn’t want to bust his bubble. It’s his documentary, his story to tell. So, let him tell the story.”



Bryon is grateful for the Jazz’s rivalry with the Bulls

It’s still a debate whether Jordan pushed Russell off in the historic play that solidified his legacy as one of the greatest players of all time. While Russell implied that he believes MJ did it, he also likes recounting the undebatable things that took place at the time.

For Bryon, the Jazz were phenomenal back then, and that’s something nobody can deny as they faced off against the Bulls two years in a row in the Finals. 

“We’ve been somewhere that a whole lot of teams haven’t been, and it was so electrifying,” he added. “The Finals, both years back to back. It was unbelievable.”



Russell believes MJ would dominate in any era

After guarding Jordan for two consecutive Finals series, Bryon witnessed firsthand the GOAT’s incredible scoring ability, unmatched work ethic, and competitive drive. As one of the better defenders during his time, Russell firmly believes that Jordan would have still dominated the league in today’s game, probably dropping 60 on any team on a nightly basis.

“My first thought was, ‘Thank goodness I can hand check,’ because if they had these rules now, for him, he’d average 60, easy,” Russell once said of MJ.

In conclusion, it’s quite interesting to know that despite being on the wrong end of one of Jordan’s greatest NBA highlights, Russell still has the utmost respect for MJ’s game.