Paxson

I've enjoyed seeing his clutch performances revisited.

There was his off-balance jumper to beat the Pacers in 1986 that put the Bulls into the playoffs, despite MJ missing more than 60 games and enduring Krause's demand that Stan Albeck yank Jordan off the floor for the last 30 seconds of that game. Without Pax's bucket, there never would've been a Jordan 63-point game in the opening round of the playoffs against the Celtics.

In the 1991 Finals, Pax's 20-point effort, including his finishing kick (5 jumpers in the last 4 minutes), to help clinch the Bulls' first title against the Lakers was a blast to see again.

And while everyone knows about Pax's three-pointer to win the third title after every player on the floor touched the ball, few probably recalled that those were the only points scored by any player other than Jordan during Q4 of the win against Phoenix.

Behind that wonderful moment, Pax was getting close to the end. During the 92-93 season, BJ Armstrong had taken over as the Bulls starting PG. Pax's minutes declined as he lived through serious knee pain, a surgery that failed, and a number of weeks on the sidelines. Even during the Finals, Pax's minutes were limited. In Phoenix's epic 3 OT win during Game 3, Pax played 5 out of the 63 minutes.

Yet Jackson played him in Game 6 for 20+ minutes. But when Phil took him out of that game with less than 6 minutes to play, Pax was not sure he'd re-enter the game. Of course, he did and he was ready to deliver when presented with the opportunity of a lifetime.

One year later, his career on the court was done.

John Paxson remains one of the true class acts in ND history.