Michael Jordan at 60: God dressed up as a basketball player

53-year-old Kevin is a staunch Chicago Bulls fan. He doesn’t miss a game of his favorite team at the United Center like he did in his youth and always pursues the same mysterious traits. He’ll pay his respects to the Michael Jordan statues, get his lemonade and sit in the second row behind the team bench. But something… has been nagging at him for about 25 years.

When the lights go out and the iconic “Sirius” by the great British band The Alan Parsons Project (now identified as the most iconic team presentation in the NBA) starts playing, Kevin still feels uneasy, he told local media at the forthcoming showing of the Film’s “Air”: “It’s a dead end, but when the presentation gets down to the last player of the five, he’s always waiting to hear from the announcer… from North Carolina“.

It really is a dead end. The… guy from North Carolina who first saw the light of day exactly 60 years ago. In a Brooklyn borough, he can’t turn the Bulls’ presentation off, clenching his fists and high fives with Pippen, mad Rodman, Harper, Kukots and Aussie giant Luke Longley. But his star will never fade, he will always remain relevant.

In dead-end debates about whether LeBron James or the late Kobe Bryant surpassed him, he will remain active in the unique highlights he left us, in children’s posters, in an entire industry of products that bear his signature, but before all in – beyond the human limit – its flights.

When Jordan was the subject of a human anatomy study, his body fat percentage was only 2%. His old Bulls teammate, Bill Cartwright, met the revelation with disarming humor, alluding to his legendary elbows: “Impressive! In my own body, this should be the percentage of muscle mass“.

The great rival but also teammate in the unique Team USA. entitled to bear the weighty nickname of the Dream Team (Barcelona 1992), Larry Bird defined Jordan in one sentence: “He’s God disguised as a basketball player“. While John Paxon provided another interesting dimension: “Magic Johnson is the best player ever on the floor, Michael Jordan is the best player ever in the air“.

From 1984, when he was drafted by the Bulls, to 2003, when he retired for the third – and final – time as a Wizards player at the age of 40, Jordan has achieved it all. He led Chicago to six unique titles with two unrepeatable trebles (1991-1993, 1996-1998), won two Olympic gold medals (1984, 1992) and was named MVP five times (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998). ) was awarded the Medal of Liberty, the highest honor for an American citizen, by then-President Barack Obama.

The unpredictable Midas

Jordan’s net worth wasn’t just limited to his unique athletic accomplishments, but also to… endless zeros in his bank account. At one point, in response to a journalist’s question “if he wants to be Mike,” his fellow Chicago passenger Scottie Pippen said: “No, I’m Scottie Pippen, but I’d like to switch bank accounts.”

At the time of his fame, only famous golfer Tiger Woods could be compared in terms of earnings. MJ’s net worth is estimated at over $2 billion, not only from his NBA earnings and contract with NIKE, of which he was the number one ambassador, but also from his business ventures.

Although he was highly disciplined as an athlete (Bulls point guard BJ Armstrong claims he’s never seen a more energetic player in training), his business dealings haven’t always been the same.

For the past 12 years he has owned the Charlotte Hornets and the team’s failures are a testament to the company not doing very well. As well as the first attempt, when he took over the baton of the Washington Wizards, to finally go back to court until the last goodbye in 2003.

After the Bulls’ third consecutive title in 1993 and under the weight of his father’s murder, Jordan shocked the sports world by announcing that he was quitting basketball to play baseball! He feuded with the Chicago White Sox, but rumors that a major return to the ballpark wouldn’t last long had started early on.

An incident involving his eldest son Geoffrey is said to have sealed his final decision. Jeffery played basketball at home with his friends and pretended to be Shaquille O’Neal.because he was the tallest active basketball player“. It was hard on Air’s ego. He hid the baseball bat and immediately found his way back to the United Center and the Bulls. The sequel is more or less known.

Another threesome and finale befitting its size with the unforgettable Buzzer Beater at Delta Center, Utah. It was June 14, 1998 when Jordan put Russell on the floor, leaving the jazz crowd speechless until the “clutch” of the win (87-86) and title for the Bulls was heard.

The two faces of the black Jesus

Behind the impeccable presentation, the bright smile, and the carefree chewing of the obligatory gum, Michael Jordan had the killer instinct that defines all greats and was truly merciless to anyone who (thought he thought) challenged him. The love affair with Isaiah Thomas and Gary Payton remains timeless.

The latter recently revealed an adorable story from 1990 when he was a (very promising) rookie in his freshman year with the Seattle SuperSonics. “As the trainer put me in, Mike gave me a wild look. He turned to BJ Armstrong and said leave the damn newbie to me. I couldn’t catch my breath. Played about 8 minutes without scoring a point. Mike hit 33 that night. At some point, when the game was against us, he went to the bench and said, This is the shit you’ve been talking about all year. And he chewed that bitch, gum!

Another Sonics ace, Sean Kemp, gives his own version of the Jordan phenomenon: “Even if all the circumstances are in your favor, even if you’re playing at home and having the game of your life, even if it’s your birthday, this guy will come in and rack up 25 points in one half to beat you. complete! I’m lucky to have survived that“.

His fight with Indiana Pacers legend Reggie Miller, a well-known trash talker, also went down in history: “He taught me a hard lesson and said you will never challenge Black Jesus (one of Jordan’s famous nicknames) again. I never challenged Mike again. Nobody compares to him. I hear a lot of people say about Kobe Bryant, but Jordan was way better on his worst day than Bryant was on his best“

John Starks was also Jordan’s favorite victim. The dynamic New York Knicks guard often challenged MJ and “eventually took off,” saying on the eve of the game: “Jordan will not score more than 12 points“. Eventually, Jordan put on a 54 and just before the final decided to draw Starks as he refused to hit the safe basket in the upset, choosing to turn back, dribble him with the well-known crossover and close it nail.

On the other hand, Jordan has been generous with those who have earned his respect, such as recent NBA stars Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, as well as Giannis Antetokounmpo, as he revealed when they first met.

Also encouraging is the story of Ron Artest, who at the age of 19 tagged Jordan in a Bulls practice and broke his ribs. “I took my agent and tearfully told him I broke Mike’s ribs and that my career was over before it even started. God what have I done! I didn’t leave the house for three days, I didn’t eat, I didn’t sleep. One night the phone rang: Come on man, it’s Mike! Don’t worry, these things happen, it wasn’t your fault. Go to training tomorrow“.

His relationship with Greece

As a pro (because it happened as a college kid) Michael Jordan never met the national team, but on October 18, 1997 he did meet Olympiakos (that year’s European champion) Dusan Ivkovic at the “McDonald’s Championship” in Paris.

The Bulls prevailed 104-78 with MJ scoring 27 points and Milan Tomic revealing that “During one of Jordan’s jumps, I could see what size shoe he was wearing“. As a reminder, Olympiako’s top scorer in that game was Lithuanian Arturas Karnisovas.

In August 2022, Michael Jordan chose Greece and Chalkidiki for his vacation, where he almost met Nikos Galis, he revealed to Sportish, and Vassilis Skoundis, the legend of Greek basketball.

10 famous Air Jordan quotes

“I’ve missed over 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost over 300 games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the last shot and missed. I’ve failed again and again in my life. And that’s why I succeeded“.

“Talent can win games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships“.

“I can accept failure. Everyone fails at some point. But I can’t accept that you don’t try“.

“Some people want to do it, some wish it, and some just do it“.

“Don’t let obstacles stop you. If you run and hit a wall, don’t turn around and put it down. Find a way to climb it, go through it, or go around it“.

“Always turn a negative situation into a positive one“.

“To be successful you have to be selfish, otherwise you will never succeed. And when you reach your highest level, you have to stop being selfish. Be approachable. Don’t isolate yourself“.

“I never thought about the consequences of a big shot. When you think of consequences, always think of a failed outcome“.

“If you push me into one of my weaknesses, then I’ll make that weakness my strength“.

“I never missed a game, I just ran out of time.”