MJ's Birthday Present to Chicago

Today is the 179th anniversary of Chicago's incorporation as a city. Happy Birthday, Chicago! To mark the occasion, I bring you this highlight video of the city's favorite basketball player scoring 61 over a division rival on its 150th anniversary.

March 4th, 1987, Pontiac Silverdome, suburban Detroit. Michael Jordan leads the Bulls to a 125-120 overtime victory over the Pistons. He scores 61 points on nothing but two-pointers and free throws, and neutralized a combined 63 points from Hall-of-Famers Adrian Dantley (32) and Isiah Thomas (31, along with 18 assists).

This video is 9 minutes of fun for any non-Pistons fan. MJ was a scoring machine, getting buckets in any way imaginable within the three-point line. He was en route to the highest scoring season of his career: 3,041 points in 82 games, and he only did it on 12 made three-pointers. MJ would go on to score 61 points again in the penultimate game of the '87 season. Unfortunately, there wasn't much else around him, and the team was swept in the First Round by the Boston Celtics. Those same Celtics would beat these Pistons in seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Video courtesy of Balthus23. Jim Durham and Johnny Kerr on the call. Enjoy!

Remembering Cobo Arena (w/ Videos)

Photo courtesy stadiumpostcards.com

I visited Cobo Arena when the National Baptist Congress of Christian Education came to Detroit in 2003. The convention took up much of Cobo Hall, with the big speaking engagements and services taking place in the Arena.

Upon stepping in the arena, I was enamored. It was different than any venue I had been in up to that point. It looked like a major arena with its two decks, but there were only seats on three sides. On the fourth side was a big, intriguingly designed wall. This place was so cool to me, unlike any place I had ever seen. So it's particularly interesting that while many notable concerts and speakers have come through the arena Cobo is an arena that the basketball world forgot.

It hosted the Pistons from 1961 to 1978, the University of Detroit Mercy Titans from 1988 to 1993, and ABA2000's Detroit Dogs for their 2000-2001 season. I also remember it being a destination on the AND 1 Mixtape Tour when they had their own show on ESPN. But good luck finding any videos from any of these eras.

Dave Bing played 9 seasons for the Detroit Pistons, all of which were during the team's tenancy in Cobo Arena

However, I recently came across one. The video - a Bucks/Pistons game from the 1969-70 season - was posted over a year ago by Hal15Greer and is the first extensive video I've seen from inside the arena. The only other time I've seen Cobo on YouTube in game form was for a few seconds in this DePaul Blue Demons video yearbook from 1992.

As I said above, the basketball world seemed to just forget about Cobo Arena. The Pistons bolted for Pontiac in 1978 then moved to Auburn Hills in 1988. When they needed an alternate venue in the city, they used the bigger Joe Louis Arena next door. The Shock would use either Joe Louis Arena or Eastern Michigan's Conovocation Center. Cobo Arena was torn down in 2009 and renovated into a grand ballroom with a view overlooking the Detroit River. While Cobo the sporting venue no longer stands, it will always leave an impression on me.