SALT LAKE CITY — In a who’s who of NBA legends, Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Karl Malone and John Stockton would certainly be four names on just about any list, as would coaches Phil Jackson and Jerry Sloan.
Rusty LaRue, now a restaurant executive from North Carolina and former NBA player, didn’t reach the 100-games-played mark during a career that spanned five NBA seasons, but he does hold this unique distinction: He was a teammate of all four players and played for both Jackson and Sloan.
As a 24-year-old rookie on the Chicago Bulls’ 1997-98 championship team that is the subject of the ESPN documentary “The Last Dance,” LaRue had a perfect view of the sequence of plays at the end of Game 6 that is still painful for Jazz fans everywhere.