Legends of Sports

Michael Jordan Came Out of Retirement at 38 to Play for the Washington Wizards. He Told His Coach Not to Treat Him Like an Old Man. His Coach Actually Had to Tell People He Didn't Need to Be Motivated.

Let's be clear about something first.

Michael Jordan retired in 1998 as the greatest player who ever lived. Six championships. Five MVPs. The most culturally dominant athlete in the history of sports.

Then he came back to play for the Washington Wizards.

The Wizards. A franchise that hadn't made the playoffs since 1997. A collection of young players who had no idea what professionalism looked like. A city that got excited about a 38-year-old with one functional knee because the alternative was watching what they already had.

Jordan told Doug Collins exactly how he wanted to be handled:

"I expect you to motivate me to get to run that extra line and do those extra things. I'm 38 years old now and maybe things that would have come easier for me before, I'm gonna need you to push me a little bit."

Collins described what he actually found when he arrived:

"The one thing about Michael Jordan is you don't have to motivate him. This is one of the most self-driven human beings I've ever been around my entire life."

So Jordan asked to be pushed. Then didn't need to be pushed. Showed up before everyone else. Worked harder than every 22-year-old on the roster. Averaged 22.9 points his first season back after three years away from the game.

His knee was being drained of black tar after every game.

Jordan's response was to play all 82 games in his second season at 40 years old and become the oldest player in NBA history to average over 20 points per game.

The Wizards still missed the playoffs both seasons.

60 years ago NBA players had no rights.

No free agency. No pension. No say in where they played or what they earned. The owners held all the power and the players had no choice but to accept it.
Until they didn't

Oscar Robertson. Spencer Haywood. Chet Walker. These are the men who fought the system so that every NBA player today can earn what they are worth.

Most fans have never heard this story. It starts in a dressing room in Boston in 1964 and ends with the most powerful labour victory in American sports history.

Read the full story at the link in the comments.

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