Gary Payton: Then I began enjoying, and I began feeling higher and higher. We had been down an excessive amount of within the sequence, and I simply began saying: “Let me guard him.” And he [Jordan] was averaging 33 points at the time. Then I started becoming a pest for him. I brought it down to 23 points. And what do coaches do once they have an issue? They attempt to resolve it. Jordan was beginning to take it personally with me, which is what I wished to occur. Then Phil Jackson mentioned, “Nah, let me put any person greater on him and distract him—make it an issue.” And he put Scottie Pippen on me. Pippen is an even bigger participant than me—he’s 6’7″, he’s cell. And it began taking a toll on me— Attempting to attain and guard Jordan on the identical time—it took a toll. -via YouTube / Could 23, 2025
