Saturday, September 12, 2009

Shaq calls Jordan the "hip-hop Dr. J"

A couple of leftovers from Michael Jordan's enshrinement ceremony that I attended Friday night in Springfield, Mass, which inspired me to write the following column:

To Jordan's credit, he didn't do a sugary speech. That's not him. He cried beforehand after watching an extended highlight video of his career, which was interspersed with some entertaining interviews. I thought the best quote came from Shaquille O'Neal, who when putting Jordan into perspective called him the "hip-hop Dr. J."

As I wrote in today's column, Jordan reminded us of what it is like to be like Mike -- eloquent, honest, occasionally arrogant. There were a few uncomfortable moments in the speech, as when Jordan called out Isiah Thomas, who was in the audience and allegedly orchestrated a "freezeout" of Jordan in his first All-Star Game.

While Jordan said he has never known if that was true (Thomas has denied it in previous interviews, but it is true MJ rarely got the ball in that game), he said it fueled his fire. "I wanted to prove to you, Magic [Johnson], Larry [Bird], George [Gervin], everybody that I deserved [to be there] just as much as anybody else, and I hope over the period of my career I've done that without a doubt," Jordan said, looking directly to Thomas.

Jordan also told his three kids in the audience that he loved them but understood how difficult their lives were, growing up in his long shadow. He also fondly mentioned Buzz Peterson -- his close friend, former roommate in college and the player Jordan tried to whip every day as a freshman because Peterson had been chosen as N.C.'s high school player of the year over him.

It was classic Jordan -- he cried before the speech, but then righted himself and ripped his way through 22 minutes worth of a magnetic, "What's he going to say next?" address. It felt like a game night -- as I wrote in today's paper, you couldn't take your eyes off him.

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13 comments:

kendallmeeks said...

Jordan the Man above all others in the NBA will definetly go down as the most entertainer of all time in the NBA as earned the right to speak to all his oppontents in this way. we all know tha isiash thomas played a big part in allstar game in keeping the ball michael that game and not shaking hands with him in the bulls outsing the pistions from the champsionship game. from that point on they never made it back as long as michael played for the bulls. love you mike from kendall meeks you have certainly deserved it. my sister who works at bobcat areana say hello from sandra sadler

snarled said...

"Space Jam"- what a celluloid adventure, Michael. Congratulations on your triumphs but most of all your ascendancy to prominence in NC.
Re: your induction on the day of days, 9-11 don't go there. "The Powers that Be" organized the clockwork, least of all you or the Harrah's NO service area staff.

Anonymous said...

Those are two weird comments

Anonymous said...

It's a weird media outlet.

Anonymous said...

His speech was full of arrogance. Real lack of respect for others.

Anonymous said...

he is just a man who happened to play basketball well,,, theirs nothing so special about Michael jordan,,, trust me he's no Muhammed Ali,,,

truth718 said...

anonymous 2:03--i agree. he could've handled it a bit better. i've always thought he was such an intelligent, classy man, but his display really disappointed me... but we all make mistakes. i still love you, mike!!... :)

Anonymous said...

Jordan at 46 still doesn't get it. His speech had more spite and bitterness and displayed an arrogance that has proven to show why he has been unsuccessful in his retirement years. Instead of focusing on the negatives of his career, he should have focused on the people that mattered to him like Dean, Roy, his trainers, Phil, etc. Telling his kids that he's glad he's not them capped the night off for me....I turned the channel and have lost all respect.

Anonymous said...

what an arrogant jerk. the guy still doesn't get it. why was he so rude to others during his speech. and he was less than nice to his kids with the comments about having to be "them". jordan was an amazing player, but he has always been an arrogant jerk and it looks like that still hasn't changed. i am sure most unc fans were proud though (sarcasm intended)

Anonymous said...

I didn't get Mike. I have had contact with the man. He is not a nice person. He is a pinhead. At this point it is still all about him. Love his DATE.

Anonymous said...

This yahoo story perfectly sums up Michael to a tee. He is a loser who could play basketball.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-jordanhall091209&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

rakeback said...

Michael Jordan's a loser? Now Ive heard it all. Being attractive, successful, stylish, and charismatic suddenly makes you a loser?

viagra online said...

Michael Jordan is not just the best basketball player, he is one of the bests in any other sport in the last century! Who does not know who MJ is?