Bitterness a la mode: Michael Jordan
9/12/09, 03:14 PM
#1
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Bitterness a la mode: Michael Jordan
Jordan’s night to remember turns petty
By Adrian Wojnarowski,
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The tears tumbled, flooding his face and Michael Jordan had yet to march to the microphone at Symphony Hall. He had listened to the genuine stories and speeches of a remarkable class. He had watched a “This is Your Life” video compilation of his basketball genius. Everything flashed before him, a legacy that he’s fought with body and soul to never, ever let go into yesterday.
Yes, Michael Jordan was still fighting it on Friday night, and maybe he always will. Mostly, he was crying over the passing of that old Jordan, and it wouldn’t be long until he climbed out of his suit and back into his uniform and shorts, back into an adolescent act that’s turned so tedious.
This wasn’t a Hall of Fame induction speech, but a bully tripping nerds with lunch trays in the school cafeteria. He had a responsibility to his standing in history, to players past and present, and he let everyone down. This was a night to leave behind the petty grievances and past slights – real and imagined. This was a night to be gracious, to be generous with praise and credit.
“M.J. was introduced as the greatest player ever and he’s still standing there trying to settle scores,” one Hall of Famer said privately later.
Jordan didn’t hurt his image with the NBA community, as much as he reminded them of it. “That’s who Michael is,” one high-ranking team executive said. “It wasn’t like he was out of character. There’s no one else who could’ve gotten away with what he did tonight. But it was Michael, and everyone just goes along.”
Jordan wandered through an unfocused and uninspired speech at Symphony Hall, disparaging people who had little to do with his career, like Jeff Van Gundy and Bryon Russell. He ignored people who had so much to do with it, like his personal trainer, Tim Grover. This had been a moving and inspirational night for the NBA – one of its best ceremonies ever – and five minutes into Jordan’s speech it began to spiral into something else. Something unworthy of Jordan’s stature, something beneath him.
Jordan spent more time pointlessly admonishing Van Gundy and Russell for crossing him with taunts a dozen years ago than he did singling out his three children. When he finally acknowledged his family, Jordan blurted, in part, to them, “I wouldn’t want to be you guys.”
Well, um, thanks Dad. He meant it, too. If not the NBA, he should’ve thought of his children before he started spraying fire at everyone.
No one ever feels sorry for Isiah Thomas, but Jordan tsk-tsked him and George Gervin and Magic Johnson for the 1985 All-Star game “freeze-out.” Jordan was a rookie, and the older stars decided to isolate him. It was a long time ago, and he obliterated them all for six NBA championships and five MVP trophies. Isiah and the Ice Man looked stunned, as intimidated 50 feet from the stage, as they might have been on the basketball court.
The cheering and laughter egged Jordan on, but this was no public service for him. Just because he was smiling didn’t mean this speech hadn’t dissolved into a downright vicious volley.
Worst of all, he flew his old high school teammate, Leroy Smith, to Springfield for the induction. Remember, Smith was the upperclassman his coach, Pop Herring, kept on varsity over him as a high school sophomore. He waggled to the old coach, “I wanted to make sure you understood: You made a mistake, dude.”
Whatever, Michael. Everyone gets it. Truth be told, everyone got it years ago, but somehow he thinks this is a cleansing exercise. When basketball wanted to celebrate Jordan as the greatest player ever, wanted to honor him for changing basketball everywhere, he was petty and punitive. Yes, there was some wink-wink teasing with his beloved Dean Smith, but make no mistake: Jordan revealed himself to be strangely bitter. You won, Michael. You won it all. Yet, he keeps chasing something that he’ll never catch, and sometimes, well, it all seems so hollow for him.
This is why he’s a terrible basketball executive because he still hasn’t learned to channel his aggressions into hard work on that job. For the Charlotte Bobcats, Jordan remains an absentee boss who keeps searching for basketball players on fairways and greens.
From the speeches of David Robinson to John Stockton, Jerry Sloan to Vivian Stringer, there was an unmistakable thread of peace of mind and purpose. At times, they were self-deprecating and deflective of praise. Jordan hasn’t mastered that art, and it reveals him to be oddly insecure. When Jordan should’ve thanked the Bulls ex-GM, Jerry Krause, for surrounding him with championship coaches and talent, he ridiculed him. It was me, Jordan was saying. Not him. “The organization didn’t play with the flu in Utah,” Jordan grumbled.
For Jordan to let someone else share in the Bulls’ dynasty will never diminish his greatness. Just enhance it. Only, he’s 46 years old and he still doesn’t get it. Yes, Jordan did gush over Scottie Pippen, but he failed to confess that he had wanted Krause to draft North Carolina’s Joe Wolf. Sometimes, no one is better with a half a story, half a truth, than Jordan. All his life, no one’s ever called him on it.
Whatever Jordan wants to believe, understand this: The reason that Van Gundy’s declaration of him as a “con man” so angered him is because it was true on so many levels.
It was part of his competitiveness edge, part of his marketability, and yes, part of his human frailty.
Jordan wasn’t crying over sentimentality on Friday night, as much as he was the loss of a life that he returned from two retirements to have again. The finality of his basketball genius hit him at the induction ceremony, hit him hard. Jordan showed little poise and less grace.
Once again, he turned the evening into something bordering between vicious and vapid, an empty exercise for a night that should’ve had staying power, that should’ve been transformative for basketball and its greatest player. What fueled his fury as a thirtysomething now fuels his bitterness as a lost, wandering fortysomething who threatened a comeback at 50.
“Don’t laugh,” Michael Jordan warned.
No one’s laughing anymore.
Once and for all, Michael: It’s over.
You won.
By Adrian Wojnarowski, SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The tears tumbled, flooding his face and Michael Jordan had yet to march to the microphone at Symphony Hall. He had listened to the genuine stories and speeches of a remarkable class. He had watched a “This is Your Life” video compilation of his basketball genius. Everything flashed before him, a legacy that he’s fought with body and soul to never, ever let go into yesterday.
Yes, Michael Jordan was still fighting it on Friday night, and maybe he always will. Mostly, he was crying over the passing of that old Jordan, and it wouldn’t be long until he climbed out of his suit and back into his uniform and shorts, back into an adolescent act that’s turned so tedious.
This wasn’t a Hall of Fame induction speech, but a bully tripping nerds with lunch trays in the school cafeteria. He had a responsibility to his standing in history, to players past and present, and he let everyone down. This was a night to leave behind the petty grievances and past slights – real and imagined. This was a night to be gracious, to be generous with praise and credit.
“M.J. was introduced as the greatest player ever and he’s still standing there trying to settle scores,” one Hall of Famer said privately later.
Jordan didn’t hurt his image with the NBA community, as much as he reminded them of it. “That’s who Michael is,” one high-ranking team executive said. “It wasn’t like he was out of character. There’s no one else who could’ve gotten away with what he did tonight. But it was Michael, and everyone just goes along.”
Jordan wandered through an unfocused and uninspired speech at Symphony Hall, disparaging people who had little to do with his career, like Jeff Van Gundy and Bryon Russell. He ignored people who had so much to do with it, like his personal trainer, Tim Grover. This had been a moving and inspirational night for the NBA – one of its best ceremonies ever – and five minutes into Jordan’s speech it began to spiral into something else. Something unworthy of Jordan’s stature, something beneath him.
Jordan spent more time pointlessly admonishing Van Gundy and Russell for crossing him with taunts a dozen years ago than he did singling out his three children. When he finally acknowledged his family, Jordan blurted, in part, to them, “I wouldn’t want to be you guys.”
Well, um, thanks Dad. He meant it, too. If not the NBA, he should’ve thought of his children before he started spraying fire at everyone.
No one ever feels sorry for Isiah Thomas, but Jordan tsk-tsked him and George Gervin and Magic Johnson for the 1985 All-Star game “freeze-out.” Jordan was a rookie, and the older stars decided to isolate him. It was a long time ago, and he obliterated them all for six NBA championships and five MVP trophies. Isiah and the Ice Man looked stunned, as intimidated 50 feet from the stage, as they might have been on the basketball court.
The cheering and laughter egged Jordan on, but this was no public service for him. Just because he was smiling didn’t mean this speech hadn’t dissolved into a downright vicious volley.
Worst of all, he flew his old high school teammate, Leroy Smith, to Springfield for the induction. Remember, Smith was the upperclassman his coach, Pop Herring, kept on varsity over him as a high school sophomore. He waggled to the old coach, “I wanted to make sure you understood: You made a mistake, dude.”
Whatever, Michael. Everyone gets it. Truth be told, everyone got it years ago, but somehow he thinks this is a cleansing exercise. When basketball wanted to celebrate Jordan as the greatest player ever, wanted to honor him for changing basketball everywhere, he was petty and punitive. Yes, there was some wink-wink teasing with his beloved Dean Smith, but make no mistake: Jordan revealed himself to be strangely bitter. You won, Michael. You won it all. Yet, he keeps chasing something that he’ll never catch, and sometimes, well, it all seems so hollow for him.
This is why he’s a terrible basketball executive because he still hasn’t learned to channel his aggressions into hard work on that job. For the Charlotte Bobcats, Jordan remains an absentee boss who keeps searching for basketball players on fairways and greens.
From the speeches of David Robinson to John Stockton, Jerry Sloan to Vivian Stringer, there was an unmistakable thread of peace of mind and purpose. At times, they were self-deprecating and deflective of praise. Jordan hasn’t mastered that art, and it reveals him to be oddly insecure. When Jordan should’ve thanked the Bulls ex-GM, Jerry Krause, for surrounding him with championship coaches and talent, he ridiculed him. It was me, Jordan was saying. Not him. “The organization didn’t play with the flu in Utah,” Jordan grumbled.
For Jordan to let someone else share in the Bulls’ dynasty will never diminish his greatness. Just enhance it. Only, he’s 46 years old and he still doesn’t get it. Yes, Jordan did gush over Scottie Pippen, but he failed to confess that he had wanted Krause to draft North Carolina’s Joe Wolf. Sometimes, no one is better with a half a story, half a truth, than Jordan. All his life, no one’s ever called him on it.
Whatever Jordan wants to believe, understand this: The reason that Van Gundy’s declaration of him as a “con man” so angered him is because it was true on so many levels.
It was part of his competitiveness edge, part of his marketability, and yes, part of his human frailty.
Jordan wasn’t crying over sentimentality on Friday night, as much as he was the loss of a life that he returned from two retirements to have again. The finality of his basketball genius hit him at the induction ceremony, hit him hard. Jordan showed little poise and less grace.
Once again, he turned the evening into something bordering between vicious and vapid, an empty exercise for a night that should’ve had staying power, that should’ve been transformative for basketball and its greatest player. What fueled his fury as a thirtysomething now fuels his bitterness as a lost, wandering fortysomething who threatened a comeback at 50.
“Don’t laugh,” Michael Jordan warned.
No one’s laughing anymore.
Once and for all, Michael: It’s over.
You won.
Last edited by 1 COBRA; 9/12/09 at 03:19 PM.
9/12/09, 10:46 PM
#2
Legacy TMS Member
Until Michael Jordan plays center, forward, and guard, all in the same game, and that game is a Finals game... and WIN it? No, not the greatest player in NBA history.
/Magic Johnson for the win... although I concede even that can be argued for many other outstanding players too.
//And you can bet Magic wouldn't be doin' that stuff like that up there either, so +2.
/Magic Johnson for the win... although I concede even that can be argued for many other outstanding players too.
//And you can bet Magic wouldn't be doin' that stuff like that up there either, so +2.
Last edited by houtex; 9/12/09 at 10:49 PM.
9/13/09, 06:36 AM
#4
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Jordan will always be considered by most as the greatest player in history. Many will come and go but his legend will always precede him. Babe Ruth's numbers have been passed however he is still the baseballs biggest legend. When a person in any given field excells at what they do, that person is more often than not referred to as "the Michael Jordan of...". His career wasn't only his numbers but in the way those numbers were achieved.
9/14/09, 01:30 PM
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Jordan is a pompous *** and a total jerk. He always has been. Some would say this is what made him such an unstoppable force on the basketball court. He had to win at all costs, and this continues even after his retirement. He took the opportunity to call out anyone who'd slighted him at any point in his life. It is always all about him, and the world revolves around him.
Still the greatest competitor in basketball history. Both Kobe and Lebron have better natural gifts, yet neither has shown the overwhelming need to win that made Jordan so great. By the time they retire this may change, but as of now Jordan is still the greatest.
Still the greatest competitor in basketball history. Both Kobe and Lebron have better natural gifts, yet neither has shown the overwhelming need to win that made Jordan so great. By the time they retire this may change, but as of now Jordan is still the greatest.
9/14/09, 02:57 PM
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Hey George, you got a beef with Jordan or something? Are you a Jazz fan, or a Knicks fan and he distroyed your team's chance of a title? Let it go. I have been a ENORMOUS MJ fan, since 1988, when I 1st saw him play. Since that day, I rooted for the Bulls and kept rooting for them. When he retired, it was hard as my class mates would mock me (I graduated in '95, just before he returned). But he returned and showed the world, that he still was the king of basketball. I followed him still to this day. His stint with the Wizards, was in all honesty, not good for his legacy, but the fan in me wanted more MJ and I'm glad I got my wish. I saw his last game vs the Sixers, and let me tell you, in a building that idolized Iverson (at the time), there were more MJ jerseys that night than I EVER SAW in the 3 other times I saw MJ play in Philly.
So he got a pot shot in at Van Gundy, and Russell, so what? Its like that whenever someone gives a speech. Its not meant literally. If you really want to discuss verbal jabs, look at what Van Gundy did when Jordan was still playing. Saying he was washed up when we came back for the 2nd run with the Bulls. He and George Karl both said Jordan's best times were past, and Karl mentioned Jordan was only a jump shooter. What happened? Jordan burned them both for games over 45 points! Don't wake him up and give him incentive to kill you even more.
Hey V8Mike, if you think Jordan was so wrong for wanting to win at any cost. What difference is it when Tiger throws his temper tantrum, throwing clubs and looking like a horse's *** when he does it? NO DIFFERENT! Kobe was and still is a pompous jerk too! Personally, he should have done jail time for what happened in Colorado!! Those two may have better natural gifts, but the question is, will they do what they need to do, to win multiple times? In sports, your legacy is defined by how you succeded. Does LeBron wan to get better every year? For all I have seen, MJ is the best player ever to play basketball.
So he got a pot shot in at Van Gundy, and Russell, so what? Its like that whenever someone gives a speech. Its not meant literally. If you really want to discuss verbal jabs, look at what Van Gundy did when Jordan was still playing. Saying he was washed up when we came back for the 2nd run with the Bulls. He and George Karl both said Jordan's best times were past, and Karl mentioned Jordan was only a jump shooter. What happened? Jordan burned them both for games over 45 points! Don't wake him up and give him incentive to kill you even more.
Hey V8Mike, if you think Jordan was so wrong for wanting to win at any cost. What difference is it when Tiger throws his temper tantrum, throwing clubs and looking like a horse's *** when he does it? NO DIFFERENT! Kobe was and still is a pompous jerk too! Personally, he should have done jail time for what happened in Colorado!! Those two may have better natural gifts, but the question is, will they do what they need to do, to win multiple times? In sports, your legacy is defined by how you succeded. Does LeBron wan to get better every year? For all I have seen, MJ is the best player ever to play basketball.
9/14/09, 03:24 PM
#7
Jordan is a pompous *** and a total jerk. He always has been. Some would say this is what made him such an unstoppable force on the basketball court. He had to win at all costs, and this continues even after his retirement. He took the opportunity to call out anyone who'd slighted him at any point in his life. It is always all about him, and the world revolves around him.
Still the greatest competitor in basketball history. Both Kobe and Lebron have better natural gifts, yet neither has shown the overwhelming need to win that made Jordan so great. By the time they retire this may change, but as of now Jordan is still the greatest.
Still the greatest competitor in basketball history. Both Kobe and Lebron have better natural gifts, yet neither has shown the overwhelming need to win that made Jordan so great. By the time they retire this may change, but as of now Jordan is still the greatest.
9/14/09, 03:33 PM
#8
Jordan was a great Player, the greatest at his game, but he is a small man and I truly feel sorry for him. An example of how it should be done? Try Barry Sanders on for size.
Easily as dominant as Jordan was Barry's peers, even the great ones, were and are in awe of his talent. Yes, unlike Mike, Barry never won a championship because in football it is simply impossible for one man to carry the entire show.
Is he a jackass about it? No. Is he a jackass about anything that happened during his career? No. Not then, and not now.
Easily as dominant as Jordan was Barry's peers, even the great ones, were and are in awe of his talent. Yes, unlike Mike, Barry never won a championship because in football it is simply impossible for one man to carry the entire show.
Is he a jackass about it? No. Is he a jackass about anything that happened during his career? No. Not then, and not now.
9/14/09, 03:38 PM
#9
Barry Sanders is an incredibly awesome person of character and professionalism. Few could ever do what he did for so long, and then when it wasn't in him anymore he stepped away from the game. He should own the all-time rushing record, but the individual accomplishment didn't mean enough for him to keep losing to do it. Barry Sanders has class. Great point jsaylor. 
9/14/09, 04:05 PM
#10
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Barry Sanders is an incredibly awesome person of character and professionalism. Few could ever do what he did for so long, and then when it wasn't in him anymore he stepped away from the game. He should own the all-time rushing record, but the individual accomplishment didn't mean enough for him to keep losing to do it. Barry Sanders has class. Great point jsaylor.
I met Reggie White at a charity signing. I payed $30 (when I was in junior high school age 14). It was my own money, going to his charity, and he didn't even have the insight to say hello to me, or look at me (No it wasn't crowed, as I was one of 2 kids next to him getting his autograph). He could have said hello and thank you for the donation. Didn't say a word!
9/14/09, 04:09 PM
#11
Michael Jordan is the most competitive person I have ever seen. I think he'd rather die than lose. And it shows in his gambling habits. He says its not a problem. But you have gamblers that play because they are so competitive they'll bet on anything just to get that winning feeling.
9/14/09, 04:59 PM
#12
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Being competitive and having class apparently do not mix well with MJ. Like everyone else, bad things happen to all people such as the murder of his father. If my recollection is accurate there were two people involved with the crime not the entire United States. Other stuff he's brought on himself.
I've been following pro basketball since the early sixties and IMO he is clearly the best of the best. With that said, I was a fan who rooted for him until the Bulls won their second championship then he became an arrogant snob.
I guess one can say Michael traded class and grace for competiveness and arrogance. In other words, he is no Derek Jeter.
I've been following pro basketball since the early sixties and IMO he is clearly the best of the best. With that said, I was a fan who rooted for him until the Bulls won their second championship then he became an arrogant snob.
I guess one can say Michael traded class and grace for competiveness and arrogance. In other words, he is no Derek Jeter.
Last edited by 1 COBRA; 9/14/09 at 08:36 PM. Reason: typo
9/14/09, 08:49 PM
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Hey V8Mike, if you think Jordan was so wrong for wanting to win at any cost. What difference is it when Tiger throws his temper tantrum, throwing clubs and looking like a horse's *** when he does it? NO DIFFERENT! Kobe was and still is a pompous jerk too! Personally, he should have done jail time for what happened in Colorado!! Those two may have better natural gifts, but the question is, will they do what they need to do, to win multiple times? In sports, your legacy is defined by how you succeded. Does LeBron wan to get better every year? For all I have seen, MJ is the best player ever to play basketball.
THAT SAID, Jordan is a total ***. Stories abound in Chicago that are not repeated in the media. If you get a chance to speak to any newspaper reporter or anyone that is on the inside of the sports scene in Chicago you can get the full story of what kind of person he really was. His competitiveness extended to every area of his life. He is a compulsive womanizer, a drunk, a compulsive gambler, and an absolute nightmare to all of his teammates. He is a horrible father and husband, and an all around bad guy. This information is pretty readily available on the net, and his speech pretty much sums up what makes this guy tick. He's a total jerk.
This in no way, in my opinion, tarnishes his legacy as the greatest competitor to ever step on a basketball court. Love the man's game, but don't turn the man into something he's not.
9/19/09, 03:46 PM
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I think some people forget that he is being acknowledged by his NBA professional career not his personal life. People can critize him as a person or even as a player but at the end of the day, numbers speak. Lets see some of his stats.... Six-time NBA champion (1991-93, 1996-98); NBA MVP (1988, '91, '92, '96, '98); 10-time All-NBA First Team (1987-93, 1996-98); All-NBA Second Team (1985); Defensive Player of the Year (1988); Nine-time All-Defensive First Team (1988-93, 1996-98); Rookie of the Year (1985); 14-time All-Star; All-Star MVP (1988, '96, '98); One of 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996); Two-time Olympic gold medalist (1984, '92).NCAA Championship. No matter if you like him as a personal or not, he is the best player of all times. There was no one in his era that dominated the game like he did. Yes you can say that Larry Bird dominated his era but he had Magic Johnson to compete against. Michael Jordan had no competition.
9/19/09, 04:22 PM
#16
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Without a supporting cast MJ would be on the soup line right beside Dan Marino.
9/20/09, 03:35 AM
#19
Kobe has tired to emulate Jordan since he entered the NBA.