"I got to work tonight; Jesus is coming" Dominique Wilkins recalls Michael Jordan looking "possessed" during their matchups

Nique explained why playing against MJ was unique.

Michael Jordan was hands down the best player of his era. But if there was a guy who came close to matching Mike head-to-head, it was Dominique Wilkins. While MJ won matchups 30-18, including 3-0 in the playoffs, The Human Highlight film held his own against the Chicago Bulls legend, averaging 29.8 points per game against Jordan's 31.8.

"I played against some of the most hard-nosed, talented players that ever played this game," Nique said on the All The Smoke Podcast. "But he was a phenomenon, and then he had an attitude to go with it. I mean when you played against Mike, his eyes was bloodshot red every game, like he was possessed. And I used to say to myself, 'Alright, I got to work tonight; Jesus is coming.'"

Highest-scoring game vs. MJ

Aside from having the highest-scoring average against Mike, Dominique also had the highest-scoring game against the legendary guard.

MJ wasn't just known as an all-time great scorer; he was also an elite defender who was named to nine All-Defensive Teams and was a one-time Defensive Player of The Year winner. Despite that, Wilkins dropped 57 points against the Bulls on December 10, 1986. In that game, Nique shot 19-28 from the field and 19-21 from the foul line in 40 minutes of action. Jordan, meanwhile, put up 41 points on 15-25 shooting, including 11-12 from the charity stripe.

That 57-point game is also the only time an opposing player dropped a 50-point game against prime MJ. Later, the late great Kobe Bryant recorded a double-nickel game against Mike, but that was in 2003, when he was old and with the Washington Wizards.

Michael kept his receipts

Mike kept his receipts after Nique's iconic performance. When it was time for the Atlanta Hawks to play the Bulls in the regular-season rematch, he came prepared.

"We went back to Chicago a little while later," Wilkins continued. "We in the locker room, suit and tie, MJ walks in our locker room, suit and tie, I was like 'What's he coming in here for?'... He walks by me, walks by Kevin Willis, gets to Randy Wittman, taps him in the a** and said, 'Lace 'em up, it's going to be a long night.'"

True enough, it was a long night for the Hawks as Jordan dropped 61 points on 22-38 shooting, including 17-21 from the foul line. Atlanta, however, ended up with the 117-114 win, and Wilkins had a big night with 34 points.