Episode II

Greetings from Lithuania.

"The Last Dance's" first two episodes were superbly involving. I have never seen MJ games before, but i read a lot about this team when i was younger, so it isn't like everything showed in this series are new to me. Yet i found this documentary being very skillfully done and insightful. Pacing is great and when you have such a great story to tell - its a must see series for all who enjoys sports in general and beyond. Great series so far.

This was a great episode showing rare, early Pippen footage of his time at Central Arkansas. The interview of President Bill Clinton (on his fellow Arkansan), and Pippen's own amazement at his NBA draft selection -- didn't quite capture the unlikelihood of his rise to stardom. But consider that it's virtually unheard of for an NAIA player to make the NBA, let alone become a Hall-of-Famer. When he joined the Central Arkansas Bears, the probability of his eventual success in professional basketball was truly miniscule. Jerry Krause found a gem on that one.

Good episode. I like the bit with Scottie Pippen in it

HOWEVER-

It was due to Pips own negligence that he was paid poorly, even Jer tried to talk him out of it, EVERYONE DID! It was entirely his own fault he was left dangling in the wind and he's still carrying salt over his own poor decisions.

This was absolutely an incredible climatic end to a dynasty I so enjoyed being a part of for a decade- watching the Bulls struggle being a season ticket holder before Mike came, I had unprecedented access to this awfulness exhibited by the team, and their lack of enthusiasm surrounding the game. MJ brought a new energy, excitement and enthusiasm to the UC, and man were those fun times to be a fan.

Watching MJ square off against Patrick Ewing as a senior in high school was one of my favorite memories ever of the NCAA tournament, and being an UNC grad made it even better- so when the Bulls actually hung on to him (they tried to trade him for a center) it was a miraculous moment in time to witness firsthand.

I always had an appreciation for what Scottie did for the team and for Michael, but resented his dramatic performances when it was completely his own doing.

Solid episode. Slowly building up that drama between the players and management.

One complain I have is that sometimes I couldn't keep up with the narrative, especially regarding time period. Perhaps it's obvious to basketball fans but I found myself losing track of the time period a couple times.