Gameday notebook: Ali visits the champs
ESPNET SportsZone
CHICAGO -- Scottie Pippen arrived at the United Center at about 5:55 p.m. ET. He said his injured foot is still sore, but he expects to play.
Pippen said whether or not he starts is up to coach Phil Jackson.
When asked whether Pippen would play, Bulls general manager Jerry Krause said the decision will be made by Pippen and the team doctor.
First big non-Jordan celebrity sighting
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Muhammad Ali delivers the game ball to the officials before tip-off of Game 1.
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Muhammad Ali was spotted in the tunnel, heading toward the locker rooms. Ali stopped to exchange a few words with Laker-turned-broadcaster James Worthy before continuing on his way.
Each member of the Bulls has a paperback copy of Ali's book, "Healing: A journey of tolerance and understanding," in his locker.
First Jordan sighting
Michael Jordan arrived shortly after 6 p.m. ET, wearing a beige suit and a smile on his face."There's a lot of people here!" he said in mock surprise upon entering the tunnel and seeing the horde of reporters. "Don't y'all have better things to do?"
From the Jazz locker room ...
Early on, Jeff Hornacek and Antoine Carr were the only Jazz players accessible to the media. Most of Utah's young players already were on the court; most veterans were suiting up behind closed doors, similar to what the Bulls were doing.
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Hornacek
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Carr
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"With a regular player, you might get frustrated if he scores on you," Hornacek said. "But with Michael, you expect him to get his points."
Hornacek also said it would be tough trying to score against Jordan.
"He's so explosive and quick," Hornacek said, "he can play off you two or three steps and then close on you so quickly."
Being guarded by Ron Harper isn't much better, Hornacek said, because Jordan and Harper both have the height advantage.
However, Utah isn't going to stray from its game plan.
"We've been running the same plays since long before I got here," said Hornacek, who joined the Jazz in 1994. "We're not going to change now."
When asked if Utah has any tricks up its sleeves, Carr said with a smile, "If I told you, I'd have to kill you."
Mailman at ease
Reporters converged on Karl Malone, who said he was surprisingly relaxed. He expected to be more edgy.
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Harper
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Harper kicks back
Harper was the only Bull to make an extended appearance in the locker room. He sipped a cup of coffee and joked with reporters, although he said he didn't want to talk about basketball.
Less pressure for Utah centers
About 40 minutes before tip-off, Utah centers Greg Ostertag and Greg Foster talked about how their roles have changed from the Western Conference finals to the NBA Finals.In the conference finals, Utah had to contend with All-Star center Hakeem Olajuwon of the Houston Rockets. The Bulls don't have a dominant center.
Ostertag said on defense he would now be "the helper instead of the helpee."
Ostertag said he didn't take offense to Chicago center Luc Longley's comment that he would rather play against Ostertag than Olajuwon.
"If I were him," Ostertag said, "I'd rather play me than Olajuwon."
