The pros and cons of MJ's return - From Courtside - Michael Jordan, basketball player - Brief Article

Basketball Digest, Dec, 2001 by Brett Ballantini

NO BASKETBALL FAN IN HIS OR her right mind would begrudge the best basketball player in history his right to make a comeback. Even if the whole "comeback" thing is getting a little old. Even if seeing No. 23 in a Washington Wizards uni is stranger than seeing Jerry Rice slinking about in a No. 80 silver-and-black or Bobby Orr stumbling through pain in a No. 4 Chicago Blackhawks jersey.

Sure, it's exalting to see Michael Jordan playing again. Who isn't curious to find out if the best ever has anything--or everything--left on the hardwood? Simply following through on his threats to return says something in itself. (Does anyone else remember Wilt Chamberlain's dalliance with the Chicago Bulls several years after his retirement?)

All things told, I'm probably on the fence with regard to this comeback I can get past MJ trading his red-and-black for Washington's blue, black, and bronze. I don't expect the elevation of old or the tip-to-horn intensity on both ends of the floor.

Admittedly, what's soured me a bit on the comeback has little to do with Jordan's skill on the court. It's the self-serving attitude I see that, yes, has always been there with Jordan, but is all-too-evident on this go-around.

Two things predicate my bad vibes about MJ's return. One is his stated goal to "teach" the young Wizards. How the man who in effect hired all the on-court personnel of the Wiz is going to find time to teach players and evaluate talent at the same time he's busting his behind to keep up with the whippersnapper superstars of the today's NBA, I don't know. Three hats are at least one too many. If Michael wants to teach, he should coach the Wizards (as he likely will after his two seasons are up and Doug Collins submits to his umpteenth case of burnout). If he wants to play, he should play the game and keep that his aim. Yes, any veteran--much less The Greatest veteran--has a lot to teach the NBA's big batch of young pups. But Michael needs to choose who he's making this comeback for.

The second, more troubling aspect of MJ's return is the disingenuous nature of the comeback The "itch" that Jordan is so eager to scratch has cast him in some unfamiliar light. For a man so protective of his public image, his perplexingly awful run of new ads endorsing 1-800-COLLECT, complete with "wacky" hairstyles and--gasp--Mini-Me, is inexplicable. The timing of that very campaign, after Jordan and Nike had so painstakingly crafted more mature, "ownership-oriented" ads with no less than a Stevie Wonder-penned soundtrack, riddles this comeback with the disturbing scent of opportunism. We all know that MJ is not a political man, but sometime during his three-year-itch it would have been nice for Jordan to have followed through on his promise to investigate Nike's child labor practices. For a man so very willing to make a buck as a huckster, such a look-see would have been more than mere lip service. It could have represented a status change when MJ next occupies the chair of ownership.

We offer up an issue chock-full of special features this month. First, as our cover teases, we take a hard look at the whys of MJ's comeback. Jim Cleamons, an assistant coach under Phil Jackson for four Bulls titles, supplies the "Pro" side--an especially gracious act considering his Los Angeles Lakers will have to solve the MJ riddle at least twice this season--while John Smallwood Jr. weighs in with a "Con."

We're also dragging the former "Who's Better?" back, with a new handle--"One-on-One"--and a new writer, Reggie Theus. Reggie's first task is breaking down Kobe Bryant vs. Tracy McGrady.

Finally, Tom Kertes provides us with an exhausting 21 pages of college basketball coverage, yet still can't find a reason why the usual suspects won't finish No. 1, for our 2001-02 Men's NCAA Preview. But in referencing everything from Toscanini to the NYC East Side singles scene, we'll give Tom a pass.