Did Gary Payton’s defense take a toll on Michael Jordan in the 1996 NBA Finals?

Numbers somewhat back up Payton's claim about how impactful his defense on MJ really was

Gary Payton was an elite point guard and one of the ultimate trash-talkers in the NBA.

‘The Glove’ embraced the opportunity to lock down fellow guards on defense. Payton wanted to get an edge on his opponents, and he wasn’t afraid of taking his trash talk too far.

“I said a lot of bad things to a lot of guys and I hurt a lot of guys’ feelings and that was just me; it wasn’t personal, it was something to get them out of their game... nothing was off limits,” Payton said in an interview with Kristine Leahy.

Payton vs. Jordan in the 1996 NBA Finals

Payton had a lot of great battles with Michael Jordan, another player that enjoyed a little trash talk on the court. The two met in the 1996 NBA Finals, and even though Payton lost that series, he believes that his SuperSonics had a strong chance to beat the Bulls coming off their record-breaking regular season run.

“I think we needed a little bit more of a different planning... That’s what it was. We had all the players to play with them. We matched up with them very well. During the regular season, they won 72 games, we won 65. We were only seven games behind. Then in the regular season, they beat us in Chicago, we beat them in Seattle. When we come and get into the playoffs, and it’s a championship, I was hurt and didn’t nobody know it. So we made a decision not for me to guard him,” Payton explained.

Payton didn’t guard Jordan until Game 4 -- MJ averaged 31 points on 46.2 percent from the field in the first three games. He’s often said that his defense in Games 4 and 5 tired and took a toll on Jordan and that he wished he had guarded him before the SuperSonics went down 3-0 in the series.

“I was just coming off winning the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, first point guard to ever do it. Then all of a sudden, Jordan had got MVP. So Sports Illustrated put me on the cover of it – Mission Impossible, can I do it? And all of a sudden, they were putting the best defensive player in the NBA versus the best offensive player. I couldn’t guard him until Game 4. And I said forget this injury, we’re down 3-0, let’s try,” Payton said.

Did Payton’s defense take a toll on Jordan?

In Games 4,5 and 6, Jordan averaged 23.7 points on 36.7% from the field. Was that only because of Payton's defense?

Jordan entered the 1996 Finals after playing his first full season since 1992-93 -- back then, load management didn’t exist. He played in all 82 games in the regular season, leading the Bulls to a 72-10 record while averaging 30.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.2 steals in 37.7 minutes.

Jordan also played in all 18 games in the playoffs, including 15 games before the two losses in the NBA Finals against the SuperSonics. Jordan’s body felt the effects of that effort. But despite playing heavy minutes and facing one of the best defenders at the time, MJ still averaged 24.5 points in the two losses against the SuperSonics.

The Bulls eventually won the 1996 NBA Finals in six games. Jordan averaged 27.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.2 assists in 42.0 minutes, shooting 41.5% from the field. He was named NBA Finals MVP.