When Michael Jordan reportedly smoked a cigar before an elimination game against the Washington Bullets

Michael Jordan once smoked a cigar before an elimination game against the Washington Bullets in the first round of the 1997 NBA playoffs. Jordan was so confident about moving on to the next round that he decided to take his mind games to the next level.

In an interview on "The Dan Patrick Show" in 2013, Chris Webber shared how they were intimidated by MJ. Webber revealed that "His Airness" was smoking a cigar in his Ferrari before Game 3 of their first round matchup in 1997.

"I'll never forget, Jordan was sitting on his Ferrari and (Scottie) Pippen was right there and they have a cigar lit," Webber said. "We get off the bus and we have to pass them with a lit cigar. You want to talk about posturing? Forget Phil Jackson.

"You got Michael Jordan there behind the scenes smoking a cigar before the game, letting us know that he's the Red Auerbach before the game even started. It was almost like, 'I lit the cigar. I'm celebrating already. This is just a formality, you guys getting on the court tonight.'"

Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls were up 2-0 heading into Game 3 against the Washington Bullets. The Bulls went on to sweep the series by beating Chris Webber and the Bullets 96-95. All three games were close, but the Bulls were just too much for the young team back then.

Jordan and the Bulls faced the Atlanta Hawks in the second round. They made quick work of the Hawks, eliminating them in five games. The Bulls took on the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals, but it was also over in five games. In the 1997 NBA Finals, the Bulls defeated the Utah Jazz 4-2 to win their fifth championship.

However, the Bullets changed their names to the Wizards the following season. They failed to make it to the playoffs, and Chris Webber was traded to the Sacramento Kings in the 1998 offseason.

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Michael Jordan loves cigars

Michael Jordan at the 2006 Ryder Cup

Michael Jordan had his first cigar after winning his first NBA championship back in 1991. Jordan was hooked from that point on until the present day. He even started smoking cigars before every home game as a ritual starting in 1993.

"In Chicago, I tell people this, and they have to understand the context of what happened," Jordan told Cigar Aficionado in 2005. "We had to be to the stadium at 6 o'clock for home games, and traffic was so bad it would take us an hour and 15 or an hour and 30 minutes to drive. So now I'm sitting in a car for almost an hour and a half, and I'm very tense.

"I'm worried about the traffic. So I started smoking a cigar going to the games. In 1993, it became a ritual for every home game."

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