That third consecutive playoff defeat to the Pistons prompted many to think out loud that a scoring champion like Jordan could not lead his team to a title. Were they ever wrong. The redemptive blow was the sweep of the Pistons in the conference finals. Jordan, who by now shaved his head completely bald, triggering another trend and making him recognizable by just the dark rounded silhouette of his head, was now known as a champion.
He was also known to be ultra-demanding of his teammates, ruffling more than a few feathers with his critiques. But winning was the soothing elixir. The Bulls would go on to successfully defend their title for two consecutive seasons, defeating both Drexler and the Blazers and the Charles Barkley-led Phoenix Suns in six games. By the end of that three-year run, Jordan had eclipsed stardom and approached folk hero status.
Early into his career, he drew Peter Pan-like admiration for his gravity defying leaps and belief that he would remain youthful forever. However, during the three-peat, players and teams seemed to concede that the title was Jordan. In the Finals, Jordan opened up Game 1 with a record setting point first-half performance to lead the Bulls to a rout.
The Blazers bounced back and seemed poised to force a Game 7 as they took a lead into the fourth quarter of Game 6. However, the Bulls roared back for a series-clinching win. That summer, Jordan was the key figure in forming the Dream Team that competed in the Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.
In , Jordan led the Bulls past the Patrick Ewing-led Knicks for the fourth time in five postseasons — this time in the Eastern Conference finals in six games without the home court advantage. Jordan scored 54 points in a Game 4 win.
The Bulls sealed the series with a victory in Game 6. In the Finals, Jordan set a Finals record as he posted a In the decisive Game 6, the Bulls again stormed back to overcome a fourth-quarter deficit.
This time, Jordan scored nine straight points down the stretch. But trouble was brewing. Jordan was under scrutiny for what was thought to be poor decisions with respect to his gambling endeavors. But that paled in comparison to the loss of his father who was murdered during an armed robbery.
Emotionally drained and seeking new challenges, just one day before the start of training camp, Jordan stunned the basketball world by announcing his retirement. After much speculation about his plans, Jordan returned to the spotlight in a baseball uniform. Attempting to fulfill a dream inspired by his father, the younger Jordan set his sights on Major League Baseball. He was a competent if unspectacular performer. He was back, albeit with the unorthodox No. The most memorable game of the initial comeback occurred six games in when he scored 55 points against the Knicks in the Garden.
MJ was a serviceable deep shooter for his day, particularly for the three seasons when the NBA shortened the 3-point line during the s, but he was no Steph Curry or James Harden. Only 7. And he still managed to get to the line roughly once out of every three shots he took from the field, making 84 percent of his free throws.
Only two qualified players in NBA history had a career usage rate of at least 30 percent with a turnover percentage under 10 percent — Jordan and Dominique Wilkins rivals in a couple of iconic s dunk contests. And with apologies to the Human Highlight Film, Jordan was asked to do a lot more on offense for the Bulls than Wilkins was for the Hawks.
MJ assisted on nearly 25 percent of teammate baskets when he was on the court, on top of his scoring responsibilities. That made Jordan one of the better playmakers in the NBA, even as he simultaneously led the league in scoring 10 times during the 11 seasons he played between and And indeed, Chicago had three seasons — , and — where its offense cleared the league average by 7 points per possessions.
Jordan ranks 18th on the all-time leaderboard for steal percentage, a testament to the quickness of his famously huge hands which probably played a key role in his low turnover percentage as well. NBA Media. NBA Trade Rumors. NBA 2K. Sports Empire Shop. Join The Team. Home NBA. By Titan Frey. By Orlando Silva. By Charles Eluemuno. In any profession the question that is always asked is, "Who is the best?
In many cases there is no definite answer, but we spend our time debating who excelled to the greatest extent. The NBA is no different. For years basketball fans have argued over who is the greatest player of all time. However, the one player who defined greatness was Michael Jeffrey Jordan.
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