The San Antonio Spurs had won the first championship of the Tim Duncan era back in 1999, but the previous three seasons had been dominated by the Shaq-Kobe Lakers. The 2003 San Antonio Spurs made two big additions—20-year-old Tony Parker and 25-year-old Manu Ginobli, to strengthen a cast where 37-year-old center David Robinson was in decline.
The Bulls were the 5-seed in the Eastern Conference bracket and beat the Charlotte Hornets in the first round. Orlando, with not only Shaq, but guard Anfernee Hardaway, was seen as the new rising power in the NBA and held the top seed in the East. The Magic knocked out the Boston Celtics in four games—the first round was then a best-of-five—to set up the Shaq vs. MJ battle.
The 1987 NBA Finals were the third time in four years that Larry Bird and Magic Johnson would play for a championship at the NBA level—in addition to their 1979 NCAA final battle–and as it turned out, it would be the final time.