In the first of a revealing three-part series of columns, BJ Armstrong talks exclusively to Sky Sports about former team-mate Michael Jordan
Tuesday 29 March 2022 17:45, UK
The comeback of Michael Jordan in the 1995 season is an event which was unprecedented in the NBA and perhaps across all sports.
As the biggest sporting icon in the world at the time, the news that he was returning to the Chicago Bulls more than two-and-a-half years after retiring to go and pursue baseball sent shockwaves throughout the league and across the globe.
His 'double-nickel' game 27 years ago, just 11 days after resuming his NBA career, proved that he was very much back - but he also showed on that famous night that he could be great in a whole new way.
There is no bigger stage than Madison Square Garden and to drop 55 points on the Knicks in New York was truly spectacular. I am not sure anyone other than Michael Jordan could have pulled off that feat but to be great once again required him to be adaptable and channel different attributes.
To those of us, like myself and Scottie Pippen who knew him from before he retired initially in 1993, he was a very different player during those 17 regular season games and 10 playoff games he had in his comeback year. That might sound like an odd thing to say, but please let me explain why.
First of all, though, it's important to understand the scene and circumstances at the time. The furore caused by him coming out of retirement was colossal. There was a tremendous amount of excitement around his return in the NBA as a whole and the excitement in Chicago was just incredible.
Surrounded by all that excitement, we were working with him, trying to get him caught up physically to where he needed to be. He hadn't played enough games to be in the proper condition he wanted to be in. We wanted to get his basketball conditioning back to its best and his return also raised our level of expectations of what we could be and that was a big thing for the whole team, the vast majority of whom he'd never shared a floor with.
For him to return at that particular time was also great for the game. I remember the very first game back in Indianapolis, it was a very special occasion. As for MJ himself, he was just really happy to be back and be around the guys, back being himself in a situation where he could be Michael.
One thing I cherish more than anything, over the years where our lockers were close by and often right next to each other, is getting to know the person that is Michael Jordan. I understand this character that was built up: Air Jordan, the global superstar - but by being part of our group you got a chance to see him for who he truly was.
I'll write in one of my upcoming columns in more detail about the differences between that character and the man himself, but in reference to his comeback, it's important to identify the headspace he made for himself. Most of us find ourselves in a headspace, Michael could make his own.
What I also noticed from him was there was a level of innocence that he came back with. When you get accustomed to playing and particularly to winning, the regular season can become a dance. Then the next night you dance again. You become a bit immune to it all, you just go about your business - unlike, say, when you're a rookie and everything is exciting, even when teams boo you as well as when they're cheering for you.
When he returned to the NBA, he was absorbing the experience, drinking it in, and there was a greater appreciation for all of it. I think it was because he played in the minor leagues of baseball, he saw how hungry those kids were to get to the major leagues. He probably also had the realisation, 'I can't do this forever', so the sense of urgency that he was working with when he came back was far greater.
The truth is, he had to work much harder to be as successful as he had been previously. He also had to change his game because he could no longer just physically dominate opponents like he could earlier in his career, he had to add a few things. MJ always had great footwork but he had to probably use it a little more than he had ever needed to use it before after his comeback. He had to figure out ways now to separate himself from the defense. At one point, he could just blow by everybody - now he had to have a fadeaway and utilise more post moves, and pick and choose his opportunities to win the game.
In the run of three titles which we won together, I'd seen him dominate games on both ends. I think the double-nickel night was the first time he realised he would have to dominate the game in a different way to achieve that same level of success.
That was a realisation for me too and the whole experience felt very different because he wasn't an offensive player instinctually. MJ was a defensive player first, second, and third. The offense was just the icing on the cake.
With time, he got back to the level where he could dominate the game on both ends and that's why they were able to win the championship the following three years after that. Yes, he won scoring titles, but for all of us who knew him, defense was where he took the most pleasure. That's where he won the game. All of our talking was about 'how are we going to stop them?' and as he would say: 'Anybody can talk on the offensive end, but only a few of us can talk on this end.'
He needed that summer to get back to his best defensively and there was so much structure which went into doing so. When he came back, every workout was thought out and planned. All his practice times were thought out and planned. He had a game plan of what this was all going to look like, as if he envisioned it and now he was executing it. Before, he was doing it - this time, he was going to do it and enjoy doing it.
I think it was down to the fact that he had such an innate understanding of where he was at both physically and mentally, what was possible for him and then decided he was going to push his limit in those three years. The fact he was able to and implement everything so precisely and be so successful is testament to the absolute greatness of the man.
BJ Armstrong is a regular pundit on Sky Sports Heatcheck every week. Watch more live NBA games (TV listings here) on Sky Sports this week, subscribe to view the live action.
