Michael Jordan
Posted: February 11th, 2024, 12:19 pm
Who better to kick off the 5th annual SLN HoF inductions than the Airness himself, Michael “Himothy” Jordan! Born and raised in Wilmington, NC, MJ was famously cut from his varsity team in high school (he just like me fr) before going on to stamp his name as the next great NBA star by winning a national championship at UNC his freshman year (okay not like me at all). He was drafted 3rd overall by the Chicago Bulls in the 1984 draft and the rest as they say was history. His Basketball Reference page is almost comical with the number of accolades and statistical honors, many of which need no introduction; there’s the 6-0 record in Finals, 10 scoring titles, 5 MVPs, ROY, 11 All-NBAs and more. He also gets a special nod for the Last Dance which singlehandedly kept me going back in spring 2020.
Though he was already 33 at the time of the SLN creation draft, Nav saw the future of the Knickerbockers and his name was Air Jordan. MJ averaged more than 30 PPG during his 3 seasons on the Knicks on efficient shooting, he rebounded extremely well for an SG, and was a Steals monster with a flat stocks/TO ratio as a top option throughout. He combined with his old buddy Steve Kerr and the Grain God Glen Rice to form a devastating perimeter trio and bring the Knicks to promised land as the inaugural SLN champions, with MJ winning Playoff MVP in the process. He was an All-Star, All-League, and All-Defensive guy all those 3 years, living up to all the hype attached to his name.
During the 1999 season, Bobby took a swing for the fences and traded for MJ – he was often deployed at the 4 and still put up solid numbers during his time on the Clip (definitely a less depressing denouement than his time on the Wizards) and was a key midseason addition that propelled the Clips to a Finals appearance where they ultimately fell to the Cinderella Heat. He retired as a plus player and can now spend his retirement wearing heinously large pants and smoking infinity cigars; rumor has it he was enjoying the LA nightlife a little bit too much in these final years. Welcome to the HoF MJ!
Though he was already 33 at the time of the SLN creation draft, Nav saw the future of the Knickerbockers and his name was Air Jordan. MJ averaged more than 30 PPG during his 3 seasons on the Knicks on efficient shooting, he rebounded extremely well for an SG, and was a Steals monster with a flat stocks/TO ratio as a top option throughout. He combined with his old buddy Steve Kerr and the Grain God Glen Rice to form a devastating perimeter trio and bring the Knicks to promised land as the inaugural SLN champions, with MJ winning Playoff MVP in the process. He was an All-Star, All-League, and All-Defensive guy all those 3 years, living up to all the hype attached to his name.
During the 1999 season, Bobby took a swing for the fences and traded for MJ – he was often deployed at the 4 and still put up solid numbers during his time on the Clip (definitely a less depressing denouement than his time on the Wizards) and was a key midseason addition that propelled the Clips to a Finals appearance where they ultimately fell to the Cinderella Heat. He retired as a plus player and can now spend his retirement wearing heinously large pants and smoking infinity cigars; rumor has it he was enjoying the LA nightlife a little bit too much in these final years. Welcome to the HoF MJ!