Back In The Day NBA

George Gervin Turned Back Clock For One Half While Michael Jordan Was Sidelined

Shandel Richardson

Apr 1978; Milwaukee, WI, USA; FILE PHOTO; San Antonio Spurs (44) forward George Gervin in action during the 1977-78 season against the Milwaukee Bucks. Mandatory Credit: Photo By Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports Copyright (c) Malcolm Emmons
Apr 1978; Milwaukee, WI, USA; FILE PHOTO; San Antonio Spurs (44) forward George Gervin in action during the 1977-78 season against the Milwaukee Bucks. Mandatory Credit: Photo By Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports Copyright (c) Malcolm Emmons / Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
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The 1985-86 regular season was a nightmare for Chicago Bulls fans.

Michael Jordan only played 18 games after breaking his foot early in the year. The Bulls won just 30 games but still made the playoffs. That was when Jordan had the memorable 63-point performance against the Boston Celtics.

There was, however, another shining Bulls moment during that dark cloud of a regular season. Hall of Famer George Gervin spent one year with the Bulls. He was on the tail end of his career but had one more big game left in the tank.

At 34, Gervin scored 35 of his game-high 45 points in a 124-116 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 28. Bulls coach Stan Albeck even took Quintin Dailey out of the rotation because Gervin was so hot.

”I felt he was on such a roll,” Bulls coach Stan Albeck said after the game. ”When he`s on a roll, hey, you go with the guy. When we're having a bad night, there are times when he can get it going. I didn't want to bring 'Q' in cold. It was a tough situation for 'Q' to come off the bench without having played any. He wasn`t even warmed up.”

The above clip features comments from Jordan and Gervin on the performance. Guess Gervin was just showing Jordan how things used to be.

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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Shandel Richardson

SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com