“We just took it to another level” - Human Highlight Reel Dominique Wilkins reveals how he nutmegged Michael Jordan in pickup game
During his legendary career, Dominique Wilkins had many run-ins with Michael Jordan. The Hall of Fame forward recently opened up on an occasion where he got one over on one of the game's greatest players.
While on "Vlad TV," Dominique Wilkins opened up on playing pick-up games during the offseason. He and many other players would travel to playgrounds all over the country and put on a show for the fans in the area. On one occasion, Wilkins found himself facing off against Jordan.
During the game, Wilkins gave the crowd a moment they'll never forget. The Atlanta Hawks legend nutmegged Jordan before blowing by him to throw down a viscious dunk.
Wilkins admitted these games got competitive at times, but the main goal was getting back to their roots of playing pick up basketball on the playground.
"That's where it starts. It starts on the playground," Wilkins said. "So we just took it to another level."
When the play on Jordan was brought up, Wilkins admitted the game wasn't serious and the NBA stars were just trying to give the fans a good show.
"We played a little serious now don't get me wrong, but it was more for them than for us," said Wilkins.
Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan faced off countless times in their careers
While these games in the park not have been serious, Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan have battled it out on numerous occasions. As two of the top players from the 80's and 90's, they were constantly matched up against each other.
For starters, the two Hall of Famers spent a majority of their careers in the same conference. While Jordan was leading the Bulls to multiple three-peats, Wilkins was cementing himself as one of the best players in Atlanta Hawks history.
One of their main battles came in the 1993 playoffs, when the Hawks and Bulls battled in the first round. Chicago won in a sweep, but they had no answer for Wilkins. In that series, he averaged 30.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
The most memorable time Wilkins and Jordan squared off wasn't even an actual game. Their battle in the dunk contest is still highly talked about to this day. Some even argue it was the best dunk contest in NBA history.
In 1988, Wilkins and Jordan had the crowd in a frenzy as the displayed an array of high-level dunks. "His airness" ended up taking home the trophy for his iconic free-throw line jump.