Magic, Michael At Center Stage Duel Between Friends Eclipses Chicago’s Quest For Another Win

Michael Jordan. The Bulls and their long winning streak. A Forum sellout. National television.

In short, it’s everything Magic Johnson missed during 4-1/2 years out of the NBA and everything that thrills him about being back.

“It’s going to be wild,” Johnson said.

When the Bulls come to the Forum tonight, it will be a flashback to the 1991 NBA Finals and the last meeting between Johnson and Jordan.

Game 5 at the Forum gave Jordan and the Bulls the first of their three straight league championships and marked the last real game of Johnson’s career until his comeback this week.

It was just before the start of the next season that he learned he had contracted HIV and retired from the sport.

Potentially, this could be the last time the two great friends and rivals play against each other in the NBA because it’s unknown whether Johnson will play beyond this season.

It’s the last time the Lakers play the Bulls this season, and the only way the teams could meet in the playoffs is in the finals. So Johnson knows the matchup is just as important to Jordan as it is to him.

“He’s sitting back, licking his chops,” Johnson said. “You’ve got to put on a show in L.A. He wants to rub it in this boy’s face because we do a lot of talking in the summer. He wants to get the best of me just like I want to get the best of him. And it’s going to be fun.”

Beyond the good theater provided by the Jordan-Johnson reunion, Lakers coach Del Harris concedes the Lakers haven’t played long enough with Johnson to know if they can give the Bulls a more competitive game than they did on Dec. 16, when Los Angeles lost by 20 at Chicago.

“Earvin is trying to force feed himself and the team, trying to get ready for this one,” Harris said.

“They’ve lost three games. Who doesn’t want to pin No. 4 on them? But I’d hate for the success of this whole thing to rise or fall on our ability to pin No. 4 on them. I hope we can do it. But as I watch them play on film, they’re the hardest team I’ve seen to guard right now.”

Johnson, who will again come off the bench, will primarily be matched against Bulls forward Dennis Rodman, attempting to keep him off the boards. However, because the Bulls have a big backcourt, with 6-6 Ron Harper usually bringing up the ball, Johnson could play the point some, since starting point guard Nick Van Exel is just 6-1.

Chicago will be without starting center Luc Longley, who is out with a sprained left knee.

Despite the Bulls’ winning streak, 17 games after Thursday night’s win at Sacramento, and their 40-3 record, the game is essentially a showcase for the renewal of a long-running duel between two men who love to compete - and win.

The summer Johnson and Jordan were teammates on the original Dream Team, they spent countless hours testing one another’s skills during off hours in San Diego, Monte Carlo and Barcelona.

“We played so many games - shooting, free throws, left-handed shots, one-handed shots,” Johnson said. “We were mad when we lost. They were just fun games.”

And last summer, when Jordan was shooting a movie in Los Angeles, Johnson and a revolving cast of NBA players would play with Jordan in his specially built basketball court on the set.

This time, a lot more people will be watching.