“Both their fathers were murdered”: How Michael Jordan and Steve Kerr’s lives were related other than Championships

Michael Jordan and Steve Kerr might have had a rough start to their relationship as teammates in Bulls uniform but they went on to win 3 consecutive championships together.

Michael Jordan assisted for that famous 3-point shot by Kerr with 5 seconds remaining in the regulation to win Chicago Bulls their 1997 Finals. The two legends do not just have multiple championships in common, they also share a dark personal story.

As shown in the last dance, both Jordan and Kerr have one common story in their lives which instilled that fire in them. While Kerr believes both of them have lived life very different, the one thing they had in common was their fathers getting murdered.

Also read: “Hakeem Olajuwon dominated Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen”: When the Rockets legend dropped an otherworldly statline including 5 blocks and 4 steals against the Chicago Bulls

Fathers of Michael Jordan and Steve Kerr were both killed in Murders

While James R. Jordan’s murder propelled his son to retire from basketball after just winning 3-championships, Malcolm H Kerr’s murder made Steve Kerr realize what he could and should do.

“Michael lived a different life than the rest of us, out of necessity,” Kerr said. “He couldn’t live that normal life. It was very difficult to reach him emotionally. We never discussed that (fathers being killed). I think it was probably too painful for each of us.”

Both these murders were very different though, Jordan’s father was killed for the sole purpose of robbery while Steve Kerr’s father Malcolm Kerr was a university professor the president of the American University of Beirut.

When he began serving his time in that role in 1982, it was the middle of the Lebanese Civil War. It was especially unsafe to be an American citizen living there at the time, marked by two separate bombings at the local U.S. Embassy around that time. On January 18, 1984, Kerr was shot and killed by two gunmen outside his office, marking another possible attack against the United States in Lebanon.

Both of them even dealt with their losses in different way,

Also read: “Chicago Bulls relied on Michael Jordan too much”: Magic Johnson believes his Lakers with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the mid-80s would’ve beaten any version of Jordan’s Bulls

While Jordan’s dad death might have made him retire, it also made him comeback and repeat the three-peat with Kerr who was also in the league and Bulls because of the anger he channeled in the right way after his father’s death.

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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