Scott Burrell on 'The Last Dance', playing with Michael Jordan and more
Alex Kennedy is joined by 8-year NBA veteran Scott Burrell, who was on the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls team that’s featured in “The Last Dance.” He talks about the documentary, the 1997-98 season, what it was like playing with Michael Jordan, Jordan’s “bullying,” and more. Time-stamps are below!
:35: Scott talks about the first two episodes of “The Last Dance” and what he thought of them.
1:15: When Adam Silver pitched this idea to Jordan back in the ’90s, he said it’s like having high-quality home videos to show your kids. Scott talks about having his championship season immortalized in a documentary.
1:50: What was it like having a camera crew embedded with the team, filming everything 24/7?
2:20: Jordan told the director of “The Last Dance” that he was concerned he’ll look like “a horrible guy” when people see how he hard he rides Scott. Scott talks about how Jordan pushed him and how he responded.
3:10: Jordan said that he was trying to toughen Scott up and prepare him for the postseason. Scott discusses whether Jordan’s way of doing things actually toughened up and prepared him.
4:25: Scott said that Jordan’s “bullying” was never physical, just verbal. He jokes that he’s bigger than Jordan, so he never would’ve tried anything physical.
6:05: Would Jordan’s style of leadership be viewed as acceptable today?
7:10: Scott was traded to the Bulls prior to the 1997-98 season, after Chicago had won five of the last seven championships. He talks about what it was like being dealt to the Bulls.
8:00: At that point, Jordan was in his prime and viewed as a god. Scott talks about what it was like seeing Jordan’s greatness on a nightly basis.
8:50: Initially, Scott was scared to go hard when practicing against Jordan because he didn’t want to be known as “the guy who injured MJ.”
9:55: What was Jordan like off the court?
10: 25: Scott talks about traveling with Jordan and how fans reacted when they met him.
11:20: Scott praises Jordan’s work ethic, which he feels doesn’t get enough recognition.
12:00: Scott talks about the attention he’s been getting thanks to “The Last Dance” and how he hopes people don’t view MJ as a bad guy after watching.
13:45: Jordan and Scott still talk to this day. In fact, Scott lists Jordan on his resume.
14:05: Scott is now the head coach of Southern Connecticut State University. He talks about how today’s players react when they find out he played with Jordan. Also, he talks about how most players think LeBron James is the G.O.A.T. and don’t realize how good Jordan was.
16:10: How would Jordan fare in today’s NBA?
17:05: Scott talks about the internal battle that was taking place within the 1997-98 Bulls: Phil Jackson and the players vs. Jerry Krause and management. What was it like arriving in Chicago and experiencing that?
17:50: Scott discusses how he felt about Krause, who is being positioned as the villain in the documentary.
18:55: Scottie Pippen was frustrated with his contract that season, which is well-documented in “The Last Dance.” Scott talks about that situation and how he felt about it as one of Pippen’s teammates.
20:15: Dennis Rodman was obviously a character. Scott talks about playing with Rodman and what he was like.
21:15: Scott talks about how much he learned from Phil Jackson and how those lessons helped him transition to coaching after his playing days.
22:15: Scott talks about his transition to coaching, and how much fun he’s having coaching so close to home.
23:25: There are eight more episodes of “The Last Dance.” What does Scott hope to see in the remaining episodes of this documentary?
24:30: Is Scott getting some cool points with his players or his son from being featured in the documentary?
25:05: Scott talks about the moment when he jokingly asked Jordan for a hug and Jordan glared at him in response.
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