Gary Payton explains how he made life tough for Michael Jordan in Games 4 to 6 of 1996 NBA Finals

Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls defeated Gary Payton and the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1996 NBA Finals to win their fifth championship. However, Payton made life difficult for Jordan in Games 4 to 6. "The Glove" explained how Jordan went from averaging 33 points down to 24 when he defended the latter.

In an appearance on KG Certified podcast, Payton said that he had an injury in the NBA Finals against the Bulls. He didn't defend Jordan for the first three games but was forced to do so when the Sonics went down 3-0.

"I got hurt, and I couldn't guard him," Payton said. "I couldn't guard in the first couple of games. I had a torn calf. George (Karl) wouldn't let me guard him, and then we go down 3-0. I guarded him ,and then all of a sudden, it changed the game around."

Gary Payton went on to explain how he made it difficult for Michael Jordan to score. Payton's work at the defensive end paid dividends, as the Seattle SuperSonics won Game 4 and 5 to make the series interesting.

"His numbers dropped from 33 to 24," Payton said. "I just made it hard for him to get the basketball. ... I just worked hard and tried to prevent him from getting the basketball."

"The Glove" also thought that the team would have approached the matchup against the Bulls differently if given the chance. Had Payton defended Jordan at the start of the series, the Sonics might have won at least once in the first three games.

Payton did a great job on Jordan in Game 6, limiting him to just 22 points. However, the Sonics went cold the entire game and were beaten 87-75.

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Did Gary Payton really stop Michael Jordan?

Michael Jordan (Photo: Thrillist/Twitter)

One of the memes born from The Last Dance was Michael Jordan laughing at Gary Payton in episode eight.

Jordan reacted to a video of Payton saying that he locked him up in Game 4, 5 and 6 of the 1996 NBA Finals. Here's what "The Glove" said:

"A lot of people backed down to Mike, I didn't," Payton said. "I made it a point. I said, 'Tire him out. Tire the f**k out of him. You just gotta tire him out.' And I kept hitting him and banging him and hitting him and banging him; it took a toll on Mike."

So, did Payton really stop Jordan at the time? Sam Quinn of CBS Sports analyzed the numbers from Game 4, 5 and 6, and it showed that Jordan averaged just 23.7 points on 36.7% shooting in that span. He was scorching hot for the first 15 games of the postseason, averaging 32.1 points on 47.6% shooting.