Michael Jordan

Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17 1963, in Brooklyn, New York) is a former American National Basketball Association player, and is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time.

"I'm Back": Return to the NBA

Jordan's underwhelming performances in baseball, and the professional baseball player's strike of 1994, prompted him to consider rejoining the Bulls. On March 18, 1995, Jordan announced his return to the NBA through a two-word press release: "I'm back." The next day, he donned jersey number 45 (his number with the Barons, as his familiar #23 had been retired) and took the court with the Bulls to face the Indiana Pacers.

Related Topics:
Baseball - Strike - 1994 - March 18 - 1995 - NBA - Indiana Pacers

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Although Jordan was on a two-year absence from the NBA, he played well in his return, including a 55-point performance against the New York Knicks on March 29, 1995. He led the Bulls to a 9-1 record in April of that year, propelling the team into the playoffs. During this drive, Jordan incurred fines from the NBA by again wearing his own number, 23. He would wear the number for the rest of his basketball career. The Bulls advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals, against the Orlando Magic. Jordan averaged 31.5 points a game against the Magic, but Orlando prevailed in six games.

Related Topics:
NBA - New York Knicks - March 29 - 1995 - Orlando Magic

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Freshly motivated by the playoff defeat, Jordan trained aggressively in preparation for the 1995-96 season. That year, the Bulls dominated the league, finishing a record of 72-10, to date the best regular season record in NBA history. Jordan won the league's regular season and All-Star Game MVP awards. In the playoffs, the Bulls lost only three games in four series, defeating the Seattle Supersonics in the NBA Finals to win the championship. For his performance in the series against Seattle, Jordan was named the Finals MVP.

Related Topics:
NBA - Seattle Supersonics

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In the 1996-97 season, Jordan led the Bulls to a 69-13 record. The team again advanced to the Finals, where they faced the Utah Jazz. The series against the Jazz featured two of the more memorable clutch efforts of Jordan's career. He won game 1 for the Bulls with a buzzer-beating jump shot. In game 5, with the series tied 2-2, Jordan gamely scored 38 points despite suffering from a stomach virus that had rendered him feverish and dehydrated at the start of the game. The Bulls won the contest 90-88 and went on to win the series in six games. For the fifth time in as many Finals appearances, Jordan received the Finals MVP award.

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Jordan and the Bulls compiled a 62-20 record for the 1997-98 season. During that year, he led the league in scoring with 28.7 points per game, securing his fifth regular-season MVP award. Jordan also received honors for All-NBA First Team, First Defensive Team and the All-Star Game MVP. The Bulls won the Eastern Conference playoffs for a third straight year, moving on to face the Jazz again in the Finals. However, because the Jazz had beaten the Bulls in both of their regular-season matches, Chicago would not have home-court advantage for the series. After losing the first game, the Bulls won game 2 in Utah to capture the advantage, and seemed poised to win the championship after victories in games 3 and 4. But Utah prevailed in game 5, sending the series back to Utah. Chicago now had to beat the Jazz once more on their home court to claim the series. The prospect of losing the series to the rejuvenated Jazz suddenly appeared very real.

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Jordan, however, refused to allow the Bulls to fail. In game 6, he trumped his performances in the 1997 Finals with a series of plays that may compose the greatest clutch performance in NBA Finals history.

Related Topics:
1997 - NBA

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With the Bulls trailing 86-83 and less than a minute remaining in the game, Chicago called a timeout. On the inbound, Jordan cut to the basket, received the inbounds pass and laid the ball in, trimming the Utah lead to 86-85. The Jazz brought the ball upcourt and fed the ball in to forward Karl Malone, who was set up in the low post. As Malone cradled the ball, Jordan sliced in front of him and swatted it out of his hands for a steal. Jordan then slowly dribbled upcourt and paused at the top of the key, eyeing his defender, guard Bryon Russell. With less than 10 seconds remaining, Jordan started to dribble right, crossed over to his left, gave Byron Russell a shove, pulled up, and fired his shot. The two-point jumper went in with 5.2 seconds left, giving the Bulls a controversial 87-86 lead. After a desperation three-point shot by the Jazz missed, Jordan and the Bulls had won their sixth NBA championship. Once again, Jordan was voted as the Finals' MVP.

Related Topics:
Karl Malone - Bryon Russell - NBA

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Jordan's Game 6 heroics seemed to be a perfect ending to his career. Uncertain whether the Bulls would fire his coach, Phil Jackson, or certain of his teammates, such as forward Scottie Pippen, and in the latter stages of an owner-induced lockout of NBA players, Jordan retired again on January 13, 1999.

Related Topics:
Phil Jackson - Scottie Pippen - Lockout - NBA - January 13 - 1999

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