Michael Jordan is a fraud
What if thats what tomorrow’s newspapers read? What if tomorrow, all over the internet, it was read in big bold letters that MJ was a fraud?
Tomorrow, as any orange-blooded basketball fan knows, is the day that MJ will be inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame. But, as we look back at his legacy, we have a tendency to glamorize him, to remove his faults and only remember his “Hollywood” moments. To de-humanize him and turn him into a perfect person, incapable of error. Is it because if we saw his faults it would somehow diminish his accomplishments? Because if we realized he was human just like us we would feel worse because of our lackluster accomplishments? Why do we do it?
MJ wasn’t perfect. He was ferocious, an All-NBA defender and scorer, a fantastic dunker, incredibly athletic, the greatest of all time, and the list goes on and on. But he wasn’t perfect. He gambled. He had mistresses. He humiliated teammates and organization executives. He tormented opponents and their fans. He didnt know when to call it quits. He was far from perfect.
But isn’t that what makes him great? He had so many mistakes along the way in his career, yet his accomplishments are so massive they dwarf those minor mis-steps. Isn’t that a testament to the man’s greatness? Being like Mike entails a silky smooth jumper, tenacious D, clutch shooting, and being a winner. Its synonymous with his name No kid on earth would associate gambling or mistresses with being like Mike. But being Zidane means headbutting people when you dont like them. Being Vick means having dog fights. Being Kobe means being egotistical. When you look at his peers even in other sports, you realize MJ really stood head and shoulders above the competition.
He could do almost anything he wanted and no one would care. Heck you only need to find an MJ hater (and there are quite a few of those) to know MJ had his faults. But on top of everything else, his greatness lies in the fact that he was flawed. Deeply flawed. But for those 40 or so minutes that he was on the court, his performance was so scintillating, his charisma so charming that you forgot his misdemeanors (or atleast they didnt matter as much anymore). If you found out that half the stories about him were exaggerated, would you think any less of him? I wouldnt. He still played better than everyone else, still won 6 rings, still dominated on both ends of the court like no one else has since.
Tomorrow MJ will be enshrined in the HOF. He will take the final step in achieving immortality. But when everyone is singing his praise, lets not exaggerate or get caught up in the Space Jam moments, lets remember him as he really was. An awesome and truly unique talent, who comes around once in a blue moon, but so great that he was able to overcome even his own demons to win us over.
