For hoops fans, and especially for those who followed the National Basketball Association through the Bulls鈥 Dynasty in the nineties, ESPN鈥檚 decision to move up the release of The Last Dance two months to April 19 is a welcome one. With the new coronavirus pandemic forcing most countries in the world to implement quarantine measures, the broadcast giant will most certainly be serving the 10-part documentary to a captive audience. As the Lakers鈥 LeBron James argued on The Road Trippin鈥 podcast of former teammates Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye last week, 鈥渋f I鈥檓 Michael Jordan, I鈥檓 going in there and I鈥檓 making a conference call and I鈥檓 like, 鈥極kay, what鈥檚 the reason that we鈥檙e going to hold onto it until June now? Compared to now when everybody is at home?鈥欌
To be sure, all and sundry would have tuned in even if The Last Dance stuck to its June playdate. Jordan鈥檚 status as the best of the best in NBA annals, his continued influence as owner of the Bobcats, and his contributions to the Jordan Brand make him a compelling figure on whom to hang the limited series. And, make no mistake; while the project purports to be about the Bulls鈥 1997鈥98 season, it makes no bones about its focus on the lead character. It鈥檚 why the initial teaser, posted via a 30 for 30 tweet way back in May 2018, carried a #MichaelJordan hashtag and used up just about all of its minute-long runtime on footage of him, and with him doing the voiceover.
In this regard, Jordan鈥檚 teeming followers will be pleased to note that he cooperated fully with the production bankrolled by Netflix and ESPN Films. In fact, Jump 23, his company, is a partner along with NBA Entertainment, which owns the 500-hours-plus worth of footage of the championship campaign acclaimed director Jason Hehir and his staff pored through. They then complemented their three-year effort with the conduct of over a hundred interviews to present, in his words, 鈥渢he definitive story of an era-defining dynasty.鈥
All things considered, The Last Dance looks to be a certified blockbuster. There鈥檚 already a lot of hype, fuelled in no small measure by anticipation. James couldn鈥檛 help but tweet to his 45.7 million followers 鈥淎pril 19th can鈥檛 come fast enough. I CAN NOT WAIT!! Yessir!#LastDance鈥 as soon as he heard the news yesterday. Yet, in the steady hands of Emmy Award-winning Hehir, it seems to be destined to live up to outsized expectations. Which is just as well. After all, its subject did, and more. Jordan ruled the nineties without equivocation, and, as the appetite for the foretaste shows, he rules still.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since 大象传媒 introduced a Sports section in 1994.
