THERE WAS NO GARDEN HIM
Jordan’s greatness came out in double-nickel return to MSG
It was four games — 10 days — into his comeback from retirement and Michael Jordan hadn’t yet played worth a dime.
The Bulls were 2-2 and Jordan was shooting 39 percent. Then March 28, 1995, happened at the Garden — and the phrase “double nickel’’ was forever etched into the NBA lexicon.
Twenty-five years ago, Jordan hung 55 points under the Garden’s pinwheeled ceiling — ending the historic evening with a pretty, game-winning assist.
“Greatness is greatness,’’ former Knicks point guard Derek Harper told The Post on Sunday. “Regardless how much you struggle coming out of retirement, sooner or later it’s going to click. Looking at the stage, it was set up for MJ to be MJ.
“That particular night he made the game look easy and you saw it from the start. There’s something about Madison Square Garden that brings out the best out of the best.”
ESPN’s “The Last Dance” — the well-received Jordan documentary — brought the 113-111 spectacle back to life Sunday night.
“Hewasabletocomebackand have one of his best games in the Garden,’’ Knicks center Patrick Ewing says in the documentary. “It’s unfortunate because I had a great game [36 points, seven rebounds, four blocks, three steals] as well, but no one remembers that.”
Not really. The hype for Jordan’s first game back at the Garden since a stint as a White Sox minor leaguer was enormous. And Jordan made sure it lived up to every droplet.
John Starks, Anthony Bonner, Greg Anthony and Harper took turns attempting to slow down Jordan’s silky drives and dead-on jumpers.
“I remember we were trying to give him a different look,’’ said Harper, who played for the Knicks from 1994-96 and now is TV analyst for the Dallas Mavericks. “But we couldn’t stop him that night. He was on fire. He was on a different planet. There was no answer for him. I’m a decent defender, but I guarded him too late. He was already hot.”
Jordan poured in 20 points in the first quarter — 35 by halftime on 14-for-19 shooting. And the Garden crowd started cheering for a colossal number.
“A guy gets going like he did, the fans are going to get behind him,’’ Harper said. “New York is New York. The World’s Most Famous Arena. There are basketball connoisseurs in New York — people that just love the game and they like performance.”
The performance marked the most points scored by a Garden opponent, broken by Kobe Bryant’s 61 that James Harden later equaled.
The stunning encore came when Jordan won the game by sauntering into the lane on Starks with Ewing stepping up on the double team. Jordan flicked an overhead pass to an open Bill Wennington for the game-winning stuff with 3.4 seconds left.
“I don’t think he gets enough credit for his intellect as a player,’’ Harper said. “We marvel over his skill set, but the thing he had that he didn’t get credit for was intelligence and making that play. When he started to trust his teammates, he became invincible.
“You put guys like John Paxson, Steve Kerr, BJ Armstrong, around that guy and he accepted what they brought to the table, it wasn’t always making the basket but making the play. That’s what resonates to me. You got to make the right play to be great.’’
And Harper doesn’t want to hear about LeBron James’ eight straight trips to the NBA Finals putting him on par with Jordan.
“He’s the GOAT,’’ Harper said. “I like everything about LeBron. He’s up there. When it comes to winning, Michael is like Tom Brady. For my buck, MJ is the best basketball player to ever play — bar none.”