Imagine that in another timeline:
Jordan lost all his Finals...
In the 1991 Finals, the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Chicago Bulls 4–1 to win their sixth championship in twelve years.
The Magicians won their sixth championship and fourth Finals MVP, ending the controversy that "all the Magicians won the championship next to the Skyhook", "The 1980 Finals MVP should actually be the Skyhook", and "Pat Riley made the Magician".
He left Bird behind and dominated the 1980s. The Los Angeles press said, "The 1980s belonged to magicians!" ”
That summer, the Magic was forced to retire due to HIV detection, but also ranked among the top three players in history with six championships in twelve years and seven MVPs in three and four in total.
Detroit media sneered: "Michael may have won the Pistons, but he finally couldn't cross another MJ; He was still not a big winner like the Assassin, the Magician and Bird. ”
In the 1992 Finals, the Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Chicago Bulls 4–2 to win their second championship in franchise history.
The glider won the Finals MVP, defeated Jordan, and avenged the loss of the regular season MVP to Jordan.
Portland media believes that leading the Blazers to the Finals in 1990 and winning again in 1992 proved that the glider may not be as good as Jordan, but it is a winner who can unite his teammates more. Jordan is undoubtedly the best shooting guard of all time, but the glider is second only to him, and even comparable to Jordan in some places. Glider said in an interview, "I'm not thinking about it, but in the previous selection of the American team, some people thought that with Michael, they didn't have to choose me... Well, I just want to prove that I'm not a substitute for Michael. Fourteen years later, when Wade and the Miami heat won the championship, the Portland press and the Miami media made a protracted statement: "Who is the better player in 1992 or Wade in 2006?" ”
In the 1993 Finals, the Phoenix Suns defeated the Chicago Bulls 4–2 to win the first championship in team history.
Charles Barkley won the Finals, plus the previous regular season MVP, plus his victory at the Barcelona Olympics a year ago as the leading scorer of the dream team (averaging 18 points per game), the media unanimously recognized that 1993 was Barkley's year, "Barkley began to rule the era", "Jordan may be more gorgeous, but Barkley is the most domineering player of this era." The Phoenix media also asked everyone to pay attention to the fact that Barkley surpassed Bob Petty as the greatest power forward of all time.
In the fall of 1993, Michael Jordan, who lost three consecutive Finals, retired to play baseball.
He made a comeback in the spring of 1995.
The New York media quipped: "Maybe Michael found that what he can't get in the NBA, he can't get in the baseball world; But watching Barkley, who entered the industry in 1984, and Big Dream both won the championship, maybe Michael couldn't sit still. ”
In the 1996 Finals, the Seattle SuperSonics defeated the Chicago Bulls 4–2.
With the Bulls record of 72 wins in the regular season, Seattle media considered it the best hit in history. The Chicago media bowed their heads and admitted that Jordan hit the historic Waterloo. "We thought Michael would grow old and hot, but it turns out that getting older doesn't make him murderous."
Sean Kemp won the 1996 Finals MVP, and was hyped for a while "whether the Rain Man has surpassed Barkley to become the best power forward in the world." ”
Gary Payton grinned: "Blocking Jordan in the Finals is not as hard as you think – after all, he hasn't won anything before." ”
In the 1997 Finals, the Utah Jazz defeated the Chicago Bulls 4–2.
Carl Malone won the Finals MVP, plus the previous regular season MVP, and the media generally believed that "Carl has replaced Barkley and Big Dream as the master of this era." ”
Rodman said after the game that Jordan's lethality only stopped at the regular season, "similar to David in San Antonio, they did a lot in the regular season, but when they needed them most... You know. ”
Stockton has been hailed as a team model: this year's regular season, he lost to Mark Jackson after winning nine consecutive assists, but ceded the ball to activate Hornacek, and the New York media ridiculed:
"Jordan is still the regular season scoring leader, but maybe Stockton knows better than he does that a player should prioritize championships over statistics... Now Barkley, Big Dream and Stockton, who entered the industry in 1984, have all won the championship, but Michael is still empty-handed... Now he may already understand why, but is it still time? ”
In the 1998 Finals, the Utah Jazz defeated the Chicago Bulls 4–2.
Carl Malone won the Finals MVP back-to-back, becoming the first Finals MVP in history to win the Finals in addition to Big Dreams. After the game, the media believed that Postman had become the greatest power forward of all time, and even the greatest forward of all time after Bird. At the same time, looking at Jordan, who was losing consecutive battles and was on the verge of retirement, the media began to sympathize.
The Magic has six championships in his 12-year career, three regular-season MVPs, four Finals MVPs, and the greatest guard ever.
Stockton holds all-time assists and steals titles, nine-time assists and two championships, beating Isaiah Thomas.
Carl Malone sat on 36,000 points and two Finals MVPs, overshadowing Petty, Hayes, McHale, and knocking Barkley over. Before Duncan appeared, they were the greatest No. 4 of all time.
The glider will have two championships and a Finals MVP, the greatest player in Trail Blazers history.
Jordan has a five-time regular-season MVP and ten scoring titles, but nothing in the Finals.
According to the Chicago Tribune:
"Yes, Michael lost again, he has lost six Finals, and it can't help but remind us of his beloved, former Lakers great forward Elgin Baylor. They're all great players, with great stats and fancy technical performances, but maybe they've never been born winners... Now we only hope that Michael will win a championship like Jerry West before retiring, otherwise we will inevitably face the most embarrassing and difficult to evaluate great career in history: Michael seems to win everything, and wins most, but always closes in the end; He had gorgeous statistics, but was short of a breath at the last minute; Of course, maybe it's because he happens to live in an era with the greatest guard magicians of all time, the greatest power forwards of all time, Postman and Barkley, the great guard gliders of all time, the greatest non-center players of all time, and he happens to meet those championship teams... Of course, thinking the other way around, maybe we are all too narrow-minded; It is true that competitive sports are so cruel and successful, but from a basketball point of view, perhaps champions and dynasties are not the most important qualifications of a great player, and we can also appreciate Michael Jordan from another angle: his statistics, his skills, his flying, those exciting and beautiful moments he brought us... It is precisely because Jordan is so great that the stars who beat him are outstanding enough. It's not even pity for the loser, just respect for a great but unfortunate basketball player..."
If a devil introduces this timeline to Jordan...
Jordan will tear him up and eat him alive.
Then he called and cursed all his teammates and drove himself to the training gym.