One by one, they walked off the court, surrendering the title like old sheriffs turning in their badges. Joe Dumars dropped on a table and tossed his head back. Isiah Thomas hugged Bill Laimbeer. Dennis Rodman, who looked stunned enough to cry, found Vinnie Johnson and slapped his hands. Then, with a few seconds left on the clock, they exited the Palace floor together, the deposed kings, heading down the tunnel where their wives stood clapping in the echoing silence.Say good-bye to glory.No tears.
Great. As if Michael Jordan wasn't enough, now we've got to deal with Bill Murray? That's right. Bill Murray. The actor. The comedian. Mr. Ghostbuster himself . . . A Bulls fan?He told me so. The other day. Said he might just show up at a Detroit-Chicago playoff game, ready to taunt the Pistons. "Maybe I'll wear one of those Bill Laimbeer masks," he said. "You know, I heard Laimbeer never really suffered a cheek injury. He's just having his face lifted. It's true. He's getting redone so he can do TV work when he's finished with basketball."
CHICAGO -- Pressure is a funny word. There is the pressure a sports team feels when it needs to win a playoff game, like the pressure the Pistons are feeling, celebrated, famous pressure that inspires big stories on the 11 o'clock news.
CHICAGO -- I must be honest. Before they ever jumped it up Sunday afternoon, I wanted the Pistons to send five YMCA guys out there and let them play the Bulls. Lose big. Why not? I figured Detroit would never win Game 1 anyhow, no way, not after playing so hard Friday night against the Celtics while the Bulls sat around, foaming at the mouth. Let the maniac fans here scream themselves hoarse. Let Chicago win by 400 points. Let the real Pistons rest. See ya in Game 2.
I don't want to sound like someone's grandmother here, but where does the time go? Wasn't it yesterday we were saying hello to two rookies, John Salley and Dennis Rodman, one a lanky, flamboyant kid from Georgia Tech, the other a complete unknown from somewhere in Oklahoma? Wasn't it? Yesterday? I remember when Salley first showed up, because he came on a local radio station, did a typical rookie interview, and then, when asked whether he had any messages to the city of Detroit, he said, "Yeah. Tell all the good-looking ladies that tonight, 8 o'clock, I'll be at . . . "
Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.
