Michael Jordan retired from the NBA in 1998 after winning his sixth NBA Championship with the Chicago Bulls. It was Jordan’s second retirement, and most believed that ‘His Airness’ would never play in the league again.
However, in 2001, Michael Jordan joined the Washington Wizards as a 38-year-old. At the time, LeBron James was still in high school. In his diary with SLAM Magazine, LeBron shared his honest views on Jordan’s return to the league.
“One other thing — people been asking me about Jordan’s comeback,” James wrote. “Me, I’m loving it. A man 38 years old and still averaging 25-plus points? I mean, they losing a lot, but they on pace to win more than they did last year. I give props to him than anybody right now.”
Prior to Jordan’s arrival, the Wizards finished with a 19-63 record in the 2000-01 season. Jordan couldn’t carry the organization to the playoffs, but he improved the team drastically. During his stint, the Wizards flaunted a 37-45 record in the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons.
Jordan averaged 21.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG, and 4.4 APG in two seasons for the team. Unfortunately, MJ’s time with the Wizards was tainted by injuries. It was still enough for a young LeBron James to give props to arguably the greatest basketball player of all time.
Michael Jordan Admitted Coming Out Of Retirement And Playing For The Wizards Was A Big Mistake
Michael Jordan’s time with the Washington Wizards is usually regarded as a stain on an otherwise near-perfect NBA career. While Jordan is a top-10 scorer in Wizards history, he failed to advance to the postseason in back-to-back seasons.
Even the six-time champion himself called coming out of retirement and playing for the Wizards one of the biggest mistakes of his career.
“One of the bad decisions I made was to go back and play. Even though I was soothing an itch that I had, I also thought I was being innovative in my job by going down and evaluating the talent firsthand. … That was one of the biggest mistakes that I feel I made in Washington.”
Jordan retired for a third and final time in 2003. Many believe Jordan’s NBA career was over in 1998 when he donned a Chicago Bulls jersey for the last time.
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