All good things must come to an end, and Michael Jordan’s iconic NBA career ended on April 16, 2003. The Washington Wizards lost 107-87 to the Philadelphia 76ers that night, but the result was largely irrelevant. Jordan was the center of attention, and Ronny Leber recently looked back on that special night.
“So many times in Michael Jordan’s career, he had left [76ers fans] heartbroken,” Leber said. “He had killed them in the last minute or last second with a buzzer-beater. So, each and every player was being announced, Michael Jordan last.
“Player after player got booed from the Philadelphia crowd,” Leber stated. “And then, they actually brought, just for the one announcement, the old stadium announcer of the Chicago Bulls to Philadelphia to announce one player on that evening. The crowd went nuts. Minutes of cheering, standing ovations.
“And then I remember, end of third quarter, he was being substituted out and in the fourth quarter, he was sitting on the bench in the beginning,” Leber continued. “And everybody was like, ‘Well, that cannot be it. He still got to come in. That was it?’ And then the crowd was chanting, ‘We want Mike.’
“Just three and a half minutes before the end, he actually got substituted in,” Leber added. “A Philadelphia player fouled him intentionally, so that Michael Jordan would have two free throws, which were the last two buckets of his career.”
Leber recounted how players from both teams and the fans applauded as Jordan subbed out. He finished the game with 15 points (6-15 FG), four rebounds, and four assists. It wasn’t quite the spectacular end that you’d have hoped for, but it was memorable nonetheless.
As for that final season, as a whole, it didn’t go according to plan for Jordan. The Wizards missed the playoffs as they finished 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 37-45 record. One last postseason run for Jordan would have been incredible, but it wasn’t to be.
After this game, Jordan thanked the 76ers crowd for giving him a wonderful ovation.
“The Philly people did a great job. They gave me the biggest inspiration, in a sense,” Jordan said. “Obviously, they wanted to see me make a couple of baskets and then come off. That was very, very respectful, and I had a good time.”
Jordan walked away from the game with a spectacular resume that included six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, a DPOY, and 10 scoring titles. He had dominated the league with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s in a way that few others ever had, and as a result, was widely recognized as the greatest player of all time.
Jordan continues to be regarded as the GOAT, in general, today, although LeBron James is giving him some competition for that title. James is going to need to win another title or two to dethrone the great man, though.
