This Saturday marks the twentieth anniversary of the second return of Michael Jordan to NBA, which many believe should never have occurred. The best player of all time was 38 years old and had not played as a professional for three years. In addition, he returned to the courts not with his mythical Chicago Bulls but enrolled in a mediocre Washington Wizards. It was difficult for the play to go well. And did not do it.
[+] Relive Michael Jordan’s re-debut match
Of course, that October 30, 2001, the expectation was maximum in the Madison Square Garden in New York. The 19,763 seats were occupied, although that was the norm for the facility, which accumulated its 392nd consecutive full house. Of course, in resale those days one million pesetas were paid at that time (about 6,000 current euros without applying inflation) and the first rows were full of VIPs. To the filmmaker Spike Lee, you don’t miss a Knicks game, the actors joined this time Kevin Bacon, Richard Dreyfuss O Michael Modine. In a city still in shock from the attacks of the previous September 11, the obligatory reference to ‘everyday heroes’ could not be missed. The prolegomena of the game were used to pay an emotional tribute to all of them. Spike Lee he had auctioned a front row seat a few days earlier. An anonymous buyer acquired it for 19 million pesetas, who gave it to the daughter of a firefighter who died on the day of the attacks.
Michael Jordan rises to pitch in his second NBA return game.
Also they media turned to the game, with more than 500 representatives in Madison, 218 of them from outside the United States. Due to the high demand for accreditations, more than half of the journalists present did not watch the game live, but instead did so from the press room on television monitors. Mundo Deportivo was the only Spanish media outlet that was present this historic night in the press box of the mythical New York pavilion.
There were many doubts about the ability to Jordan to live up to his myth after three years of retirement and now in his late thirties. And the game, as after the entire season, agreed with the most skeptical. ‘Air’ he finished the game with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 recoveries after 37 minutes on the court. They weren’t bad numbers for an average player, not even a top-tier one. But yes for what was expected of the best player of all time on a date as important as his return to the NBA, and more scoring only 7 of his 21 pitches. The WizardsDespite everything, they were about to open the season with a surprising victory over the Knicks, who did not manage to secure their victory until the last minute (93-91).
Jordan tries to outmaneuver a defender under the watchful eye of fans at Madison.
Jordan he started off wrong, missing three of the four shots he made in the first five minutes. A penetrating layup was his only basket from less than four meters. The rest of his points came from jump shots from medium distance, in further proof that the Jordan From that third stage he was going to try to compensate for the decrease in his physical explosiveness with his good aim. But in his debut this one also failed him, perhaps due to nerves, perhaps due to lack of training the previous two days due to knee problems.
Another way to harness his talents while regaining physical form was to work for the team. And in that he did. Jordan almost always channeled the attack of the Wizards, looking for the free teammate when they doubled him in defense, and contributed rebounds, recovered balls, forced fouls …
The good work of his colleagues allowed Washington enter with options at the last minute. All eyes turned then to Jordan. Nobody ruled out a final blow. But the triple with which he tried to tie, in the absence of 18 seconds, did not enter.
“Obviously, things have turned out a little different tonight than I would have wanted, but I feel very good about myself”
“Obviously, things have turned out a little different tonight than I would have liked, but I feel very good about myself and about what my team has done,” he said. Jordan shortly after in the press room. Dressed in an impeccable brown suit over a navy blue shirt adorned by a gold tie, ‘Air’ did not lose his composure even when someone compared how good he was before and the discreet match he had made on his return. “Surely the biggest difference is that now I’m a little older than the last time I shot for a basket in an NBA game. My game is a little different, also my teammates are a little different. But I think we are working in the right direction ”.
Jordan he averaged 22.9 points that season and 20 the next, after which he decided to hang up his boots again, this time permanently.
