The NBA Slam Dunk Contest has become an institution in modern basketball. But for years dunks were outlawed in college and high school games

“The people who made that decision probably never played basketball before,” he says. “In their minds, it wasn’t fair. But this is something to this day that goes on in sports – people make the wrong decisions.”

‘Defense is a lost art’: has the NBA’s offensive explosion gone too far?

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Tyler says he first dunked a basketball when he was 13. He hadn’t started playing organized hoops in high school yet, but when he stuffed the ball through the basket, he almost couldn’t believe what he’d done. “It was a great feeling,” he says.

It’s believed that the first-ever dunk in organized basketball occurred in 1936 (before that it was all one-legged push shots and layups). Joe Fortenberry, a 6ft 8in Texan, performed one in the Berlin Olympics for the US basketball team on the way to winning the sport’s first-ever gold medal. At the time, the shot was likened to a roll dipped into coffee by Pulitzer Prize writer Arthur Daley of The New York Times. Less than a decade later, in 1944, the first dunk was recorded in college basketball when 7ft center Bob Kurland of Oklahoma A&M threw one down. “It wasn’t planned,” Kurland told the Orlando Sentinel in 2012. “Just a spontaneous play.”

At that time, the dunk wasn’t considered a highlight. Rather, it was often seen as a sign of disrespect to your opponents. Celtics Hall of Famer Satch Sanders played for Boston from 1960 to 1973. According to Sanders, if a player went up for a dunk, defenders would try to injure him by running under his legs as soon as he left his feet. “It was an unwritten rule,” Sanders once said.

“The people who made that decision probably never played basketball before,” he says. “In their minds, it wasn’t fair. But this is something to this day that goes on in sports – people make the wrong decisions.”

‘Defense is a lost art’: has the NBA’s offensive explosion gone too far?

Read more

Tyler says he first dunked a basketball when he was 13. He hadn’t started playing organized hoops in high school yet, but when he stuffed the ball through the basket, he almost couldn’t believe what he’d done. “It was a great feeling,” he says.

It’s believed that the first-ever dunk in organized basketball occurred in 1936 (before that it was all one-legged push shots and layups). Joe Fortenberry, a 6ft 8in Texan, performed one in the Berlin Olympics for the US basketball team on the way to winning the sport’s first-ever gold medal. At the time, the shot was likened to a roll dipped into coffee by Pulitzer Prize writer Arthur Daley of The New York Times. Less than a decade later, in 1944, the first dunk was recorded in college basketball when 7ft center Bob Kurland of Oklahoma A&M threw one down. “It wasn’t planned,” Kurland told the Orlando Sentinel in 2012. “Just a spontaneous play.”

At that time, the dunk wasn’t considered a highlight. Rather, it was often seen as a sign of disrespect to your opponents. Celtics Hall of Famer Satch Sanders played for Boston from 1960 to 1973. According to Sanders, if a player went up for a dunk, defenders would try to injure him by running under his legs as soon as he left his feet. “It was an unwritten rule,” Sanders once said.

Nevertheless, some of the league’s best would use the dunk as part of their repertoire, including Sanders’ teammate Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain, who could reportedly dunk from the free-throw line without much of a start. The tallest and most athletic players in the NBA only increased their dominance by taking advantage of the dunk. Dunks were worth the same amount of points as any other field goal – three-pointers had yet to arrive in the league (1979 in the NBA, 1986 in college) – but they were very different from other shots. Their value was – and is – as psychological as it was mathematical. A sign of superiority of the opponents a player soars over.

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Michael Jordan’s dunks became part of his legend. Photograph: Nathaniel S Butler/NBAE/Getty Images

But when Lew Alcindor (later Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) began making headlines in high school and college in the 60s, basketball officials began to fret. So, the ban began. In fact, the decade-long “no dunk rule” is often cited as the “Lew Alcindor Rule.” Some, including its namesake, considered the ban – which never reached the NBA – to have racial motives. While the rulemakers who outlawed the shot said they did so because it caused injuries and did not “display basketball skill – only height advantage,” Alcindor thought otherwise. Back then, he told the Chicago Defender, “To me the new ‘no-dunk’ rule smacks a little of discrimination. When you look at it … most of the people who dunk are Black athletes.”

Further adding fuel to that fire, about a year before the dunk was banned, Texas Western’s men’s team, which included an all-Black starting lineup, beat an all-white University of Kentucky team for the collegiate national championship. This added to the belief that the ban was racially motivated.

Tyler does not believe race was a factor. Instead, he saw the ban as simply taking away certain players’ advantages, particularly Abdul-Jabbar’s. “Black guys weren’t the only guys who could dunk,” Tyler says. “White guys could dunk, too. Bobby Jones, Tom Chambers – these were guys who came into the league who could dunk. Period. Even Larry Bird could dunk!”

One thing was sure though: college and high school players had to develop different skillsets around the basket when the dunk was removed from the game. “It made me focus more on the fundamentals of making what we called ‘power layups,’” Tyler says. “We had to concentrate on taking the ball to the hole and going through the defense, getting used to the contact and laying the ball in.”

Abdul-Jabbar, on the other hand, relied on finesse more than power. Though tall, his frame was slighter than, say, Chamberlain’s. So he developed his “skyhook” in college. The shot was almost unguardable when he took it to the NBA, and he used it to become the league’s all-time scoring leader, a record he kept until LeBron James broke it this month.

In 1976, the dunk was brought back to the high school and collegiate game. Perhaps not coincidentally, pro basketball soon held its first-ever dunk contest. The ABA put on a dunk showcase during its All-Star game in Denver that year. Julius Erving won, leaping from the free-throw line, flying 15ft in the air, and slamming the ball home. The following season after the ABA and NBA merger, the NBA held its own dunk contest, won by former ABA player Darnell “Dr Dunk” Hillman. The NBA brought it back in 1984 (again in Denver, won by Larry Nance). It’s been going ever since, featuring winners such as Jordan, Wilkins, Kobe Bryant, Carter and Webb.

“The more creative the dunk, the more people gave attention to you,” says Tyler. “And these young men today are making it that much more exciting. It’s like going to Yankee Stadium and watching Aaron Judge hit home runs.”

Over the decades, the dunk remains epic, beloved. A moment of TNT explosiveness. Other legendary dunkers include Darryl Dawkins, the player who said he was from Planet Lovetron, named his dunks and shattered backboards (leading the NBA to develop the break-away rim). The “Big Aristotle,” Shaquille O’Neal, also broke his share of backboards while dunking. Jordan earned his nickname “Air” because he could leap and slam like no other. Wilkins was the “Human Highlight Film,” and Carter was “Half-Man Half-Amazing” for his aerial antics.

But when it came to his own career, Tyler says he loved both seeing and finishing ally-oop dunks –a play made famous later by the likes of Kemp and Gary Payton. “One of my all-time favorite dunks would always be from the lob,” Tyler says. “And dunking it backwards.”

While men get the most shine for dunking, female players have thrown down slams with authority too. Lisa Leslie of the LA Sparks did it first in the WNBA in 2002. Since then, players like Michelle Snow, Candace Parker, Elena Delle Donne and Brittney Griner have showcased the skill. As a high school senior, Griner, the women’s game most prolific dunker, did so 52 times in her final season.

Basketball is constantly evolving. From its origins via the game’s creator Dr James Naismith, to innovations like slam dunks, the Eurostep, the killer crossover and now the step-back three-pointer, creativity is always part of the equation. With the dunk – from the windmill to the tomahawk to the 360 jam – that’s especially been the case.

“It’s exciting to watch,” says Tyler. “Basketball fans from high school to college to the pros, they come to see it. I hope they never do anything dumb like that again and outlaw it. The dunk will always be part of basketball – it always should have been part of basketball. So, keep doing it!”

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The Guardian is funded by readers like you in Vietnam and the only person who decides what we publish is our editor.

If you want to join us in our mission to share independent, global journalism to the world, we’d love to have you on side.

This is what we’re up against

Teams of lawyers from the rich and powerful trying to stop us publishing stories they don’t want you to see.

Lobby groups with opaque funding who are determined to undermine facts about the climate emergency and other established science.

Authoritarian states with no regard for the freedom of the press.

Bad actors spreading disinformation online to undermine democracy.

***

But we have something powerful on our side.

We’ve got you.

The Guardian is funded by readers like you in Vietnam and the only person who decides what we publish is our editor.

If you want to join us in our mission to share independent, global journalism to the world, we’d love to have you on side.

It seems impossible to believe, but there was a time when basketball largely forbade the dunk. From 1967 to 1976, high school and college players were outlawed from slamming the ball through the rim. Instead, they would have to lay the ball up or simply drop it through the hoop as they soared through the air. Now, as we look forward to this weekend’s NBA Slam Dunk Contest, the ban seems silly, especially when considering the eye-popping highlights created by the likes of Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Shawn Kemp and Vince Carter.

But such was the state of things a half-century ago. In an era when the game was changing rapidly, when players like the 7ft 2in Kareem-Abdul Jabbar were dominating instead of the shorter, more ground-bond hoopers like Bob Cousy, the dunk was seen as taboo among “purists,” against the very nature of basketball itself. Though that perspective wasn’t shared by many of the players.

“It didn’t make sense,” says Terry Tyler, a former Pistons double-digit scorer, who played for the University of Detroit under coach Dick Vitale when the dunk was banned by the NCAA. Tyler later participated in one of the first-ever NBA dunk contests in 1986 (won by the diminutive 5ft 7in guard, Spud Webb, over teammate Wilkins).

Before we kick things off, I would just like to thank all of our readers for participating in this week’s Jordan Week. We thought this would be a really fun week of reflecting on the greatest basketball player of all time, and we hope you had just as much fun reading as it was for us writing. Please let us know through your communication channel of choice what you thought of the event, and feel free to share any ideas that you may have.

With that out of the way, let us move on to to the fun.

Michael Jordan was one of the greatest dunkers of his generation, and the things he did on the court were mesmerizing. Some of his dunks defied gravity itself, whether it was a dunk off of a fast break, or if it was getting his revenge on Alonzo Mourning (oh yes, we’ll get to that).

To help cap off Jordan Week, let’s take a look five dunks that I feel were the best dunks of His Airness’ career. These will be in no particular order, as it is really difficult to try rank all of these amazing feats of athleticism. Let’s get started.

Michael Jordan Posterizes Jack Sikma

Michael Jordan can make a very strong case as the most disrespectful dunker in history. Whenever you saw him with the ball in his hands and the tongue came out, you knew he was on a mission to embarrass someone. 6’11 Milwaukee Bucks center Jack Sikma learned this lesson the hard way in this game from 1990, when Michael Jordan essentially tried to dunk the soul out of Sikma once he got to the rim.

MJ’s Revenge on Alonzo Mourning

Oh Alonzo Mourning, you were so young. You had so much ambition to knock the king off his throne, and you indeed managed to get a couple of good plays on Jordan. The crucial mistake that you made, however, is you started talking trash to the king of trash talk. What transpired following Mourning and his Hornets teammates giving Jordan the business, is His Airness taking flight, making sure Alonzo’s pride was shattered into a million pieces and maybe a few hundred more for good measure. The rage scream that followed was also nothing short of epic.

The Wag

Dikembe Mutombo was a monster of a player, and was the rim defender to end all rim defenders. His signature wag as he obliterated basketballs with his Thor hammer-like hands was always the cherry on top of what was many a many soul-crushings of opposing teams. He was such a dominant defender that even Michael Jordan hadn’t gotten a dunk on him prior to what I am about to show you. Mutombo very much made that fact known to Jordan as well, and let’s just say MJ took it as a challenge. To top off putting Mutombo on a poster, he made sure that the signature finger wag was reciprocated. No no no Mutombo, you do not jump with the GOAT.

Patrick Ewing, aka Michael Jordan’s Punching Bag

What else is there to say here? Former New York Knicks star had a terrible time dealing with Michael Jordan. His chances of winning a NCAA championship were destroyed by Michael Jordan’s shot back in the 80s, and throughout his professional career, Jordan made sure that Ewing never made it to the NBA Finals with him on the court. Jordan literally had to retire before the Knicks could make it to the NBA Finals, and even then they weren’t able to seal the deal.

Michael wasn’t the only one that did horrible things to Ewing — Scottie Pippen had one of the most disrespectful dunks in NBA history on Ewing, and I’m sure it’s one that still gives him nightmares. Jordan’s was pretty spectacular as well, as is evidence in this video. The amount of air that he got over Ewing alone makes me wonder if he actually does have the capability of flight.

The Cradle Dunk

Last but not least, one of the most iconic dunks in Michael Jordan’s repertoire: the cradle dunk. The first time we ever saw this dunk was during his playing days at UNC against Maryland, and it was a dunk that to this day is one of the most impressive dunks in UNC history. The fact that this happened at Maryland makes it all the more sweeter.

What do you think of the list? Do you think these were indeed the top five dunks in Michael Jordan’s career? What would your ranking of the dunks be? Let us know in the comments below.

With All-Star Saturday night just a few hours away, Michael Jordan reminisced on the best dunk he’s personally ever seen in the contest.

Among the best dunkers and high-flyers, it’s Vince Carter who takes the cake with his elbow slam from the 2000 dunk contest.

“The most amazing dunk I have ever seen is probably Vince Carter when he hung his elbow in the rim,” Jordan said, via the Star Tribune. “To me that was, without question, just unbelievable.”

For those that haven’t seen the dunk, it really might be the best of All-Time.

Pretty unreal athleticism from Carter and we have yet to see anything similar. But today, two decades later, we’re faced with a contest that may very well live up to the hype. With Aaron Gordon, Derrick Jones Jr., and Dwight Howard, it’s sure to be a good time.

But perhaps nothing will live up to the legendary performance in 2000. The elbow dunk wasn’t the only spectacular sight that day.

And while it’s a shame we’ll never get to see Carter and MJ duel it out in a contest (MJ won one against Wilkins over three decades ago), we’ll always have this clip to remind us that — even for a moment — Vince Carter was able to do the impossible.

The legend of Michael Jeffrey Jordan was built on his otherworldly skill to levitate and perform feats of aerial artistry never before seen on a basketball court. As a two-time Slam Dunk Contest champion, the Chicago Bulls icon solidified his reputation among the greatest dunkers ever by winning his second trophy in 1988 when the All-Star festivities took place in Chicago.

It was a fantastic duel with fellow high-flyer Dominique Wilkins, who put together an incredible performance. But despite his display of power and grace, Wilkins would walk away with the silver medal as Jordan was awarded the victory by the slimmest of margins in a highly controversial decision.

Keep Watching

Dubious final score for Wilkins’ final dunk

Jordan and Wilkins battled in the final round and the two got perfect scores of 50 on their first dunks. Their second and final attempts were when things got a little awkward. For his second dunk, Wilkins unleashed a ferocious windmill slam that rocked the Chicago Stadium and everyone in attendance.

“I said, ‘I got it.’ Because I thought my last dunk was my best dunk. I knew my last dunk that I’m going to get a 50. It was just a two-hand windmill off two feet. And I brought it from my knees. It ain’t too many guys who can do that,” said Wilkins.

However, the judges included:

– Chicago Bears Hall of Fame running back Gale Sayers

– Los Angeles Dodgers Vice President Tom Hawkins (a Chicago native)

– Hall of Famer Gail Goodrich

– former NBA player and Dunbar High alum Johnny Green

-former NBA player Randy Smith

Much to Wilkins’ chagrin, they gave him a 45.

“I got a 45. And I’m like, ‘Uh oh. Is the fix in?’ I knew I was in trouble. I would’ve been happy with a 47 or 48. But a 45? C’mon, man,” said Wilkins.

Jordan claimed the trophy

Sensing that he had an opening to win it all, Jordan pulled off something sensational to claim the victory. He jumped from the free-throw line and slammed it home, earning a perfect score of 50.

“I was nervous, the only time in the contest I was nervous. I knew I needed something really spectacular to win. I was searching the crowd for something to do. Then, I saw the man who started it all, Julius Erving. He indicated to me I should go the length of the floor and take off from the free-throw line,” Jordan said in a talk with the reporters after the contest.

However, deep down, Jordan knew that being in his home city probably played a role in the win. According to Wilkins, Jordan told him:

“He [Jordan] said ‘Hey, you know, you probably won. You know it; I know it. But hey, you in Chicago. What can I tell you?’”

Lionel Messi’s move to PSG not only has a football impact but also a commercial one. And this will be good news for NBA legend Michael Jordan.

The former Chicago Bulls star’s fortune has been significantly affected during the Covid-19 pandemic. Forbes magazine points out that Jordan lost about 24% of his net worth during the pandemic, with his net worth falling from $2.1 billion to $1.6 billion. But Messi’s arrival at PSG could allow him to regain some of the money he lost.

Messi is one of the most famous athletes around the world and fans always crave to own one of his shirts. Meanwhile, PSG’s jersey carries Nike’s Jordan sub-brand.

The Jordan brand has been the product of PSG’s kits since the 2019/20 season, and Michael Jordan receives 5% of the profits for each shirt sold.

After Messi joined, it is expected that about 2.5 million of his jerseys will be sold this season. This will help Jordan earn a decent amount of money.

So far, PSG has earned about 120 million euros since Messi’s shirts were sold. According to statistics, Jordan earned 6 million euros in just one weekend. In the coming time, this number will continue to increase.

Messi was introduced with the iconic song of the Chicago Bulls

PSG introduced new recruits in the summer of 2021 including Messi, Achraf Hakimi, Georginio Wijnaldum, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Sergio Ramos with the iconic theme song of Chicago Bulls, the basketball club that Jordan played for. That is the song “Sirius” by the group Alan Parsons Project.

Mіchael Jordаn’s рresence on the bаsketbаll сourt ѕtruck feаr іnto hіs oррonents. But Kwаme Brown buсked thіs trend. In fаct, not only dіd the 6’11” сenter ѕhow no ѕignѕ of іntіmіdatіon uрon meetіng the Chіcago Bullѕ legend, but he went on to сhallenge hіm for а 1-on-1 ѕhowdown.

Kwаme сlaims to hаve beаten MJ

In hіs іntervіew wіth “B Hіgh TV,” Brown reсalled the exрerience of рlaying аlongside Jordаn аt 19 wіth the Wаshington Wіzards. When аsked аbout the detаils, he reсounted hіs fіrst сonversation wіth Mіke аnd dіsclosed how he held hіs own аgаinst “Hіs Aіrness” іn а 1-on-1 ѕcenario.

“It wаs fun. I beаt hіm іn 1-on-1, too. The fіrst thіng I wаnted to do wаs рlay hіm 1-on-1… The fіrst thіng I ѕaid wаs, ‘I heаrd а lot аbout you, but I thіnk I’m better thаn you.’ So we ended uр рlaying bаsketbаll 1-on-1,”  Brown ѕaid.

” It wаs а fun gаme, good gаme. I jumрed out on hіm quіck аnd then he ѕtarted doіng the MJ thіng, fаding аwаy everywhere. He wouldn’t let you bаck hіm down,”  he аdded.

A dіfferent verѕion of the ѕtory

Whіle Kwаme сonfidently аsserted thаt he defeаted MJ іn а 1-on-1 mаtchup, Mіchael Leаhy’s book, “When Nothіng Elѕe Mаtters,” offered а dіfferent рersрective on а bаttle between theѕe two рlayers. In fаct, Leаhy detаiled how Jordаn humіlіated Brown аfter he wаs іnstіgated by the former No. 1 рick.

“He рroceeded to humіlіate Brown, moсking hіm whіle ѕcoring аt wіll, deсlining to helр hіm uр when the teenаger fell hаrd to the floor, wіnnіng loрsidedly аnd а t the end, yellіng аt Brown to аcknowledge hіs ѕuperiority іn front of the teаm,”  he wrote .

Not сontent wіth juѕt beаting the South Cаrolinа nаtive, Mіke аlso reрortedly demаnded Kwаme to аddress hіm аs  ‘dаddy.’

The 6’11” сenter аverаged а mere 5.9 рoints аnd 4.4 reboundѕ рer gаme. MJ, deѕpite beіng 39 аnd 40, рut uр 21.4 рoints аnd 5.9 reboundѕ over the two ѕeaѕonѕ the two were teаmmаtes.

Jordаn аlso reрortedly took Kwаme under hіs, tryіng to ѕhow hіm the roрes of beіng а domіnant NBA рlayer аnd deаling wіth exрectations of beіng the No.1 рick. However, Brown’ѕ work ethіc (or lаck thereof), аs well аs hіs іnabіlіty to tаke сritiсism, reрortedly dіdn’t ѕit well wіth MJ. Thаt’s why he deсided to be extrа tough on the rookіe. Unfortunаtely, hіs effortѕ dіdn’t рay dіvіdends.

It іs no ѕecret thаt Kobe Bryаnt іs one of the greаtest аnd moѕt сompetitive рlayers іn the world of bаsketbаll. Hіs сareer wіth the Loѕ Angeleѕ Lаkers аnd the рerformance he ѕhowed wіth the teаm іnspіred а lot of рeoрle.

It wаs evіdent from the wаy Kobe рlayed thаt he іs аn іndіvіdual who сares deeрly аbout thіs ѕport, аs evіdenced by the wаy he рlayed for hіs teаm. Hіs wаy of dіsplayіng hіs knowledge on the bаsketbаll сourt wаs а refleсtion of whаt he hаd leаrned from Mіchael Jordаn.

Aѕ а reѕult of yeаrs of рlaying on the сourt, theѕe two рlayers formed а ѕtrong bond. Although theіr relаtionship develoрed when Bryаnt joіned the NBA аnd Jordаn wаs аt the end of hіs сareer іn the NBA, іt wаs unmаtched.

Even though Bryant was often сompared to Jordаn, hіs love аnd reѕpect for Jordan were аlwаys evіdent. The two were also referred to аs  “lіttle brother”  аnd  “bіg brother” durіng іntervіews or on the сourt. At Bryаnt’s рublic memorіal, he gаve а ѕpeech thаt touсhed the heаrts of everyone.

Bаck іn 2020, Jordаn’s kіds were feаtured on “ The Breаkfаst Club ” dіscussіng theіr growіng uр, the fаmily emрire thаt Jordаn hаs buіlt, аnd the doсumentary “ The Lаst Dаnce. “ In the episode, Jordan’s dаughter Jаsmine M. Jordаn reveаled detаils of hіs ѕpecial relаtionship wіth the Lakers legend thаt hаd рreviously remаined а ѕecret.

Jаsmine M. Jordаn reveаled thаt Kobe Bryаnt wаs а role model to her fаther

Tаlking on the ѕhow аbout the relаtionship Kobe аnd Jordаn hаd over the рast yeаr, Jаsmine dіscussed how Jordаn hаs ѕhaped Bryаnt’s рlay on the сourt. It wаs іnterestіng to heаr Jordаn’s kіds tаlk аbout theіr exрeriences аnd how they vіew theіr relаtionship, аs well аs ѕome іnsіde ѕtorieѕ.

In her ѕtatement, ѕhe mentіoned how Bryаnt’s relаtionship wіth hіs dаughter іnfluenced her relаtionship wіth her fаther.  “The memorіal took рlace, he textѕ me rіght аfter іt. I love you lіke I’m рroud to be а gіrl dаd. And you mаke me you know hаppy to be your fаther every ѕingle dаy аnd thаt іt сame from Kobe. So whіle my fаther wаs gіven hіm аll you know the knowledge іn the ѕenѕe аnd everythіng he needed on the сourt I thіnk Kobe рlayed а bіg role іn who he іs аs а fаther,” ѕhe ѕaid.

Aѕ they hаd а greаt relаtionship on аnd off the сourt, they tаught eаch other whаt they сould for the betterment of otherѕ. Let uѕ know your thoughtѕ іn the сomment ѕection below.

LeBron James and J.J. Redіck have brought а totаlly dіfferent аspect to the рodcast сulture wіth theіr ѕhow,  Mіnd the Gаme . Unlіke other fаmous NBA іcons, the two hаve delved deeр іnto іnterestіng bаsketbаll рlays, untouсhed аngles, etс. thаt hаve сaught the аttention of the bаllers. In theіr рilot eрisode, Jаmes аnd Redіck ѕhared the nаmes of ѕome of the moѕt іnfluentіal рlayers іn the NBA, but ѕurpriѕingly, they dіd not hаve Michаel Jordаn‘s nаme іn them.

And іt lookѕ lіke thіs wаs enough for former LA Clіpper ѕtar Auѕtin Rіvers to сall them out. Rіvers joіned аs а gueѕt on Steрhen A. Smіth’s fаmous ESPN ѕhow,  Fіrst Tаke.  When аsked аbout the bіggest іnfluence on the NBA todаy, the 31-yeаr-old ѕaid,  “If we’re tаlking аbout todаy, then Steрh Curry…If we’re tаlking hіstorіcally, іt ѕtartѕ аnd endѕ wіth Mіchael Jordаn.  I thіnk we аre quіck to juѕt forget   аbout whаt he hаs done for the gаme .  It wаs іnterestіng to heаr LeBron on thаt рodcast wіth J.J. tаlk аbout the moѕt іnfluentіal аnd not nаme M.J . Thіs guy ѕtill outѕellѕ аnybody todаy іn ѕneaker ѕaleѕ for а reаson.”

The 4x NBA сhampion Jаmes hаd only two ѕuperѕtarѕ on hіs іnfluentіal рlayers lіst. It wаs Allen Iverѕon аnd Steрhen Curry, but he dіd mentіon,  “Obvіously we know whаt Mіke dіd for the gаme”  before he gаve hіs flowerѕ to otherѕ. However, he dіd not deeрly аnаlyze why the Chіcago Bullѕ icon wаs one of the moѕt іnfluentіal, whіch Rіvers thought сould hаve been mentіoned аnd аdded to the рodcast.

Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan was a dominant personality on the basketball court. Leading his team to six championships and being the Finals MVP each time, many people wondered whether the success of the Bulls lay solely on His Airness’ shoulders. After Jordan bid adieu to the franchise in 1998, it gave rise to speculation. Taking the topic into consideration, a considerably younger Stephen A. Smith shared his opinions during an interview back in the 2000s.

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A Twitter handle by the name of ‘Uncovering The Truth’ recently uploaded a video highlighting Smith sitting down for an interview on ‘The Top 5 Reasons You Can’t Blame…’. It was a television series shown on ESPN that used to examine players, coaches, and/or fans who had allegedly been involved in a team’s poor performance or outright failure.Stephen A. Smith claimed that the Bulls deteriorated with Michael Jordan’s exit

During this particular episode, the focus turned toward Jerry Krause, the general manager of the Bulls for over 18 years. When discussing why he shouldn’t be blamed for the way the Bulls turned out to be in the future, the attention shifted to one of the biggest names in the NBA: Michael Jordan.

Smith brought up Michael Jordan’s exit from the Bulls and credited the move as the thing that led to the championship team’s eventual demise. “It never would have gone from a world championship to 15-17 victories in one season,” said Stephen A. Smith during a segment of the show.The ESPN Host’s remarks were probably made after Jordan retired for a second time from the Bulls in 1998. After his exit, the morale of the team reportedly went down. Many key players, like Steve Kerr, also made their exit at the same time due to the absence of their leader.

By claiming that the Bulls started to meet their downfall after Jordan’s exit, Stephen A. Smith was in one way praising His Airness. His words were used to state how Jordan’s presence and prowess on the basketball court held the team together.

The ESPN host still continues to advocate for Michael Jordan

Two decades after his remarks on ‘The Top 5 Reasons You Can’t Blame…’, Stephen A. Smith continues to be a vocal advocate for Michael Jordan. Back in August, a few pedestrians in Italy mimicked a goat in front of MJ who was on a vacation with his wife.

Smith took the video as a means to bring out his own opinion to the limelight. Highlighting it in one of his shows, Smith expressed his sadness over Jordan not receiving the same amount of ‘respect’ in America.“It saddens me that we have to travel across the ocean to see people from another country recognizing what everyone in America should already know. Michael Jordan is the greatest ever,” said Smith during a segment of his show. “And the fact that that sound has to be echoed in Italy as opposed to throughout the streets of America.”

What are your thoughts on Stephen A. Smith’s respect for Michael Jordan? Let us know in the comments below.

Michael Jordan changed the fashion game, one beret and gold hoop at a time

Michael Jordan was once the epitome of cool. As of late, he’s been sartorially categorized with middle-aged father figures, the neighbor who waters the lawn at 6 on a Saturday morning and every AP Calculus teacher ever.

Michael Jordan shuffled papers as he sat overlooking the basketball court on the Charlotte Bobcats sideline. It was March 2010, and the five-time NBA MVP was awaiting a final decision on league approval for him to be a majority owner of the Bobcats. As a camera panned down, you could see that his black leather-heeled boots landed well above the ankle. They paired with wide-leg jeans frayed at the bottom and a penny-brown corduroy blazer with epaulets and elbow patches.

An image of Jordan in his Chelsea-style boots, commonly referred to on social media as “brunch boots” because of their popularity among men who get decked out to ingest a carafe of mimosas with a side of waffles on the weekends, littered sports television shows, blogs and newspaper sections the next morning. At that moment, I knew this childhood idol, who once defined my understanding of cool — a man who famously sourced cotton from Egypt for custom dress shirts — would henceforward be sartorially categorized with middle-aged father figures, the neighbor who waters the lawn at 6 on a Saturday morning and every AP Calculus teacher ever.

With time, Jordan, now 57, leaned in further than Sheryl Sandberg to this retirement aesthetic. He fully embraced dad jeans, Canadian tuxedos, billowing golf shorts and boat-sized pant legs. I cringed with each meme poking fun at his wardrobe and every mention of his ongoing style dive.

Jordan opted to wear heeled boots, frayed jeans and a corduroy blazer to take in a Bobcats game in 2010. Sam Sharpe/Imagn
“The Last Dance,” a 10-part series that explores the Bulls’ dynasty through the lens of the 1997-98 season and that will be available on Netflix starting Sunday after a run on ESPN and ABC, served as a reminder of his style icon status. This is a man who turned male-pattern baldness into a shiny aerodynamic masterpiece. The most popular sneaker of all time was branded in his likeness. Jordan made a pirate accessory a must-have item and wore a beret better than Claude Monet. His superstitions helped change the length of NBA regulation basketball shorts.

“His economy of movement was always extraordinary. He wasn’t a player who was flinging himself around all over the place,” Vanessa Friedman, fashion director at The New York Times, said of Jordan. “His dressing is the same. It has that sort of economy of choice, ‘I’m going to have one earring that’s going to look like this. I’m going shave my head, and it will look like this.’”

How could a man with the highest points-per-game average of all time in the regular season and in the playoffs, who was known to be obsessive about greatness — extending to his wardrobe, branding and stats — shed his cool? I didn’t want this to be a part of his legacy. I had questions that Jordan’s boots would never dare to answer, but maybe a revisit of his closet past could provide some insight.

How did sneakers, shorts and two gold chains forever change the game?

Jordan going in for a dunk at the 1985 NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Competition at the Hoosier Dome. His two gold chains swung in the air as he neared the rim. Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
“At the time, the NBA tried their best to keep hair and what the players wore from head to toe as uniform as possible,” said Jeff Staple, founder/CEO of RAD and designer of the famed Nike SB Dunk “NYC Pigeon” sneaker. “But that rebellious influence of hip-hop is there.”

And the chain might have also been a subtle jab at his opponents, Staple suggested. “Jordan walks onto a court, and you — as a competitor — see him with two gold chains that he doesn’t care if it gets ripped off. He’s so good that he knows it won’t happen.”

As reported on The Undefeated in 2018, Jordan wore his UNC practice shorts under his Bulls uniform for every game in his early days. To accommodate the extra “layer of luck,” Jordan asked for longer game shorts, which were a few inches above the knee in the early-to-mid-’80s, so the blue and white didn’t peek out from under the red, black and white. MJ’s longer and loose-fitting shorts caught on. The NBA gave the regulation shorts a little more legroom from then on. And when Mars Blackmon (Spike Lee) asked Jordan in another Nike ad whether it was “the shoes” and “the extra-long shorts” that made him great, the baggy basketball shorts moved beyond the court to a men’s streetwear staple.

“Michael in those tiny shorts, his swag doesn’t even fit in those,” said Jermaine Hall, director of Medium Editorial Group, who previously held executive editorial posts at Vibe, XXL and BET. “Mike gets a bad rap now based on how he dresses. But Michael in his prime was a fashion-forward dude, both on and off the court.”

The baggier and balder, the better?

Jordan’s signature suiting silhouette included an extra-long jacket and billowing pant legs. Pascal Le Segretain/Laureus/Getty Images
Jordan racked up endorsement deals with Hanes, Gatorade and Upper Deck, among others. His image became a multimillion-dollar business. (He’s now a billionaire.) His attire reflected the shift from star player to one of the most marketed images on the planet. In the early ’90s, Jordan transitioned out of the walk-up warm-up T-shirts and pants. Suiting became his off-court armor.

According to GQ magazine, Chicago tailor Alfonso Burdi created a suit prototype for Jordan that included “baggy pants, jackets extra long and extra full.” Burdi had planned to adjust the suit to a traditional slimmer cut upon fittings. Jordan preferred the loose look. The NBA All-Star ordered more than a dozen of the style. This became his power suit. While the ’80s favored volume, like exaggerated shoulder pads, the ’90s ushered in minimalist suiting with breathable fabrics that moved in unison with the body. It’s as if Jordan combined both eras to project his desired image. It would be baggy like the shorts he wore on the court, with shoulder pads to provide his slender frame an illusion of width.

“When Jordan started wearing loose-fitting suits, they were immaculate. Every crease was crisp and wrinkles escaped,” Friedman said. “He was always impeccable and calculated. In the same way that he was utterly calm when he was playing, completely in control and dominant, his clothing said the same thing.

“If his suits were oversized, they were oversized for a reason. The line of his jackets was perfect. [His look] was incredibly consistent, and it all had integrity.”

Jordan pierced his ear when he was 18, but the gold hoop didn’t make its appearance until the mid-’90s. Jeff Haynes/AFP/Getty Images
Giorgio Armani’s menswear collections of the late ’80s and early ’90s are widely credited for creating a new interpretation of the suit. Armani thought the standard suit of that time stifled the body. He wanted to create movement and comfort, which made sense for a pro athlete. This influenced menswear designers around the globe. Many pro athletes employed tailors and garment makers to personalize the look for their frames. But why weren’t Jordan and other top athletes of the era front row at the international fashion week presentations and donning garments as soon as they graced the runway, just as Russell Westbrook and Dwyane Wade have done in recent years?

“The disconnect was there were not people like me or Rachel Johnson [LeBron James’ stylist who also has worked with other notable athletes such as former NFL player and current ESPN analyst Victor Cruz] there to educate the fashion houses,” said Calyann Barnett, a wardrobe stylist and creative director whose client list includes Wade, Usain Bolt, Zion Williamson and Donovan Mitchell. “We had to explain to these houses, which most of them are based in Europe … we had to translate how the clothes they design for stick-thin models would work on men who are over 6-foot-6 and muscular.

“There wasn’t a line of communication during [Jordan’s era]. When stylists really came into play [in the early 2000s], we explained, ‘These are the people who will look great in your clothes and sell them.’” (Jordan did employ the services of designers, tailors and branding managers but did not have a full-time stylist. He worked with stylists on photo shoots.)

Regardless of whose name was on the garment — be it his trusted tailor or a Milan-based designer, Jordan became a master of power suiting. So much so that he had Nike designer Tinker Hatfield, who designed many of his Air Jordan sneakers, make the Air Jordan “Concord” XI, which was released in 1995, more formal. The sneaker featured a patent trim, which mimicked a pair of spats. Wearing the sneakers with a suit would work just as well as wearing them with his uniform.

To afford my first pair of Air Jordans in the late 1990s, I’d pocket about $3.75 of the $5 my mother handed me for lunch money each day. For two months, I ate 50-cent Linden’s Butter Crunch Cookies and 75-cent soggy fries, the cheapest combo of eats in my high school cafeteria that would stave off hunger until I returned home for dinner. The Concords were about $120 in my size after taxes, and I knew my mother would never want to spend that much on gym shoes. As I opened the black-and-silver box, I recalled His Airness soaring above the court at the United Center with these patent-leather-trim wonders on his feet as he clinched his fourth ring in Game 6 of the 1996 NBA Finals. The sneaker brought a piece of Jordan’s talent, style and showmanship to my then-15-year-old self. Decades have passed and trends have changed, but the sneakers, the stats and his overall image still represent that greatness.

Jordan wore a beret while in Paris for the 1997 McDonald’s Championship. He was frequently seen in hats ranging from baseball caps to Kangols. Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
Jordan’s style innovation extended beyond suiting and sneakers. His bald head, which he shaved clean in 1989 after managing a receding hairline, was a thing of beauty. Others, like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, had done it. But no one owned the branding of bald head quite like MJ.

“Previous to Jordan, we saw players like Dominique Wilkins and Karl Malone rock fades,” Staple said. “Jordan’s baldy felt streamlined and efficient.”

“When Chris Webber did it in Michigan, that was a style choice,” Hall said. “For Michael, it was done out of necessity. And it gave him a branded look that was very safe and approachable to everyone.”

There was also the gold hoop earring that dangled from Jordan’s left earlobe. The jewel made its debut in the mid-’90s and lives on today. He had dropped the two chains in favor of an understated interpretation of bling. While athletes and celebrities were weighing themselves down with gold chains and diamond-encrusted watches, a stereotypical purchasing habit of the newly monied, Jordan opted for a delicate hoop. Again, it was clean and steered clear of the stereotype, making it easily digestible to mass audiences who might have seen anything more as gauche.

At the 1996 Hollywood premiere of “Space Jam,” Jordan wore a gray suit, the jacket grazing his knees as he walked. A collarless buttoned shirt lay flat underneath, and his pant leg spilled over onto his black shoes. Jordan’s head shined, and the hoop earring twinkled. This was a man who looked as if he could carry your team to glory and play one-on-one with Bugs Bunny. And surely, that was done with intention. None of it was left to chance.

Did the brunch boot help turn the myth into a man?

Jordan in washed-out dad jeans as he shakes hands with former Ohio State forward Othello Hunter after pre-draft workouts for the Bobcats in 2008. Chuck Burton/AP Photo
Jordan won at everything — basketball, branding and style. He was the standard because he fought to be so. And that fight can be a young man’s game. The heeled boots, the endless pockets on his cargo shorts and his Easter-ready golf ensembles triggered a yearning for the Jordan of yesteryear. Jordan comfortably moved on from being the standard of cool, and we weren’t prepared to accept that. Our childhood heroes have the right to evolve. We have to accept that they aren’t just symbols of our youthful ideals but fully formed humans.

Jordan is the GOAT of GOATs, but his success is no longer directly associated with his physical appearance. He has grown beyond that. The Jordan brand will be forever revered regardless of what the man himself wears on the sideline or anywhere else. He’s aware that he’s a meme and has publicly gotten in on the joke. He knows that you’ve crudely critiqued his dadcore wardrobe. But will you still buy his shoes? Stream the docuseries about his greatness? Of course you will. And he knows that too.

“MJ is comfortable in his skin and with the style that he’s in,” Hall said. “It would take a quick phone call to revamp himself to what would look cool in 2020. I don’t think he cares. I think he’s fine.”

A young MJ with the Air Jordan I sneaker slung over his shoulder. Back then, we wanted to be like Mike. We still do. Courtesy Jordan Brand
Jordan flirted in the 1990s with the wide-leg pants and washed-out jeans that he’s partial to now. The trends changed; his taste didn’t. Like many of us, he likes what he likes and sticks with it. He’s entitled to peer over his iPad, as he did in the docuseries, to poke fun at Scott Burrell while wearing khaki shorts. There’s a Zen-like beauty to this level of self-acceptance.

“This is a part of his messaging: ‘I’m not going to change who I am because the times have changed, and you’re just going to accept it,’” Barnett said. “It’s a boss mood.”

“The Last Dance” serves as a reminder that Jordan expected nothing less than greatness from himself and his teammates. It solidified him as this godlike figure for a new generation of fans. The series also provided us the space to embrace the Jordan of then and now at the same time. It humanized him. It made our idol feel real. And he has earned the right to be here, dad jeans and all.

The former North Carolina star showed up to the 1984 draft at MSG in a job-interview-appropriate pinstriped suit. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images
The 1984 draft was the start of Jordan’s public style narrative. The former University of North Carolina guard, who left for the draft a year before his scheduled graduation, entered the Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in a pinstriped suit, cropped hair and a simple tie. The North Carolina native — and the No. 3 pick that year (Akeem Olajuwon, who became Hakeem Olajuwon in 1991, was No. 1) — presented as the kid next door, the college student out on his first job interview as he held up his No. 23 Bulls jersey. It was like dangling dollar bills in front of eager marketers. Jordan signed with Nike in his rookie year.

Jordan debuted the prototype Nike Air Jordan sneaker during a preseason game in ’84. The shoe was a black-and-red colorway of the Nike Air Ship silhouette, which he wore while awaiting his signature sneaker. That shoe drew a warning from the league. The same colorway of the actual Air Jordan was banned for the regular season. The NBA mandated that players wear shoes that not only matched their uniforms but matched the shoes worn by their teammates. That policy led to the “51 percent rule” — shoes had to be majority white and in accordance with what the rest of the team was wearing. Jordan continued to violate the rule. It was widely rumored that MJ had been hit with a $5,000 fine for violating the rule. ESPN previously reported that there was no evidence that Nike ever paid a fine.

Jordan went on to wear his banned shoe in the 1985 All-Star dunk contest, where he topped off the look with two gold chains that flew through the air as he released the ball through the hoop. The cachet of being banned spoke to the swagger and bravado of hip-hop fashion. It gave Jordan a little edge and helped evolve his backstory and brand. The ban went on to become a promotion for Nike. The television spot’s voice-over noted, “On Sept. 15, Nike created a revolutionary new basketball shoe. On Oct. 18, the NBA threw them out of the league.”