Michael Jordan became acquainted with John Thompson after his NCAA run in 1982. John Thompson was the head coach at Georgetown. He was a pioneer for black coaches in basketball, and in 1982, he was the first black coach to ever make it to the final four in NCAA history. In the 1982 championship game, Jordan faced Georgetown, led by freshman Patrick Ewing.
After his retirement from coaching in 1999, Thompson became a commentator for TNT. He then got an opportunity to sit down with Jordan and interview him before he retired from the league.
Michael Jordan’s greatest moment in basketball
In 2003, Michael Jordan had an interview with John Thompson during the All-Star break. The former coach asked His Airness about his time in basketball. John asked him, “You have had fantastic moments in this sport, but what’s your greatest moment?”
The 1982 NCAA championship match had 3 future Hall of Famers in it. Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, and James Worthy. James Worthy led all players in scoring and had 28 points. But Jordan took the go-ahead shot and made it with 14 seconds left on the clock.
So when asked about the greatest moment, Jordan said it was the shot that started everything. As soon as he said that, Thompson understood what MJ was referring to and said, “Don’t say the shot against us”.
Michael Jordan replied, “If I had any doubts about playing on the college level or playing with the big guys, that shot gave me the confidence that I belonged where I was”.
Jordan went on to say that it was what gave him the confidence to be better than anyone thought he could ever be. He realized with that one shot at the buzzer that he was on the right path. Jordan went on to hang up his boots shortly after. However, this was not the first time that His Airness bid farewell to NBA.
Michael Jordan retired for a third time in 2003
Jordan retired for a second time in 1999 when Phil Jackson left the Chicago Bulls. Even though he had mentioned earlier that he wouldn’t play under any coach besides Phil Jackson, the real reason behind his retirement is still uncertain. He has mentioned that he lost the drive for the game. But Jordan made a return to basketball in 2001.
In 2000, he acquired ownership of the Washington Wizards. One year later, he started as a player for the team. Though he never made the playoffs with the Wizards, Jordan scored his 30000th point on the Wizards. He later retired for the third time in 2003.
