“Do You Think I Can Still Play?”: When Michael Jordan Rewarded Doug Collins’ Trust With 96 Points in 2 Games

After dominating the 90s with the Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan took up part ownership in the Wizards post-retirement, hoping that it would keep his competitive fire lit. Unfortunately, the Wizards were not the dominant Bulls team Jordan had grown used to, and it got so bad that No. 23 had to come out of retirement and suit up. But re-starting his career at the age of 41 is never easy, and for the first time, Jordan showed doubt in his basketball abilities.

His coach Doug Collins, played a major role in assuaging Jordan’s doubts, reaffirming to MJ that he was good enough to play in the NBA, even at the age of 41. One particularly painful loss to the Indiana Pacers led to a heart-to-heart between Jordan and Collins.

Recalling their conversation during a 2013 sit-down with ESPN, Collins had the following to say,

“He looked at me, and he asked, ‘Do you think I can still play?’ and I said, ‘Absolutely, that’s why I’m here to help you.’ He (Jordan) said, ‘You know, to be my coach, you have to believe in me and believe I can still play.’ I said, ‘Michael, I believe in you.’ You did the right thing… I don’t care about the points, but I needed to know that you believe in me.”

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After their conversation on the bus, the duo boarded their flight, during which Collins recalls seeing MJ smoking cigars and drinking whisky late into the morning. He almost looked like the MJ of old, as he was in the gym at 7:30 the next day, working out with the strength and conditioning coach.

In the next game, MJ scored on the first three possessions. He told Collins where he wanted to get the ball and not to take him out of the game until he asked him to, which turned out to be after playing 40 of the 42 minutes. Jordan finished the contest with 51, and the Hornets fell to the Wizards at home.

In the following game, ‘His Airness’ once again took the fight to his opposition, making all his shots from the jump. While he had dropped 51 on the Hornets just two nights prior, MJ didn’t show any signs of fatigue during his matchup with the New Jersey Nets and ended the contest with 45 points.

In the end, Jordan once again proved his detractors wrong. Back then, tabloids and news channels heavily discouraged Jordan from returning to the game, and when he did, they were enormously critical of his game. And while it is true that MJ had significantly slowed down during his Wizards days, there was no doubt that Jordan could still go off and dominate if he wanted to.