Having Lost $5000 Every Night in 1984, Michael Jordan’s $100,000 Loss Came At The Hands Of His Equipment Manager

Michael Jordan never truly had to worry about ‘wasting’ money. While his NBA contracts, aside from what he got during the 1997 and ’98 seasons, were never close to the value he generated for the league, he made up for it through endorsements and of course, his contract with Nike.

Air Jordans became the hottest commodity on the market when he released the 1s during his rookie season in 1984-85. Instead of making a couple million in profit over the course of a few years, the AJ1s went on to generate $120 million+ in revenue their first year of release.

There was one problem however as that was that the black and red colorway of the Joran 1s violated the sneaker policy the NBA had in place. Nike didn’t care for this and would incur the $5,000 fine that was placed on Michael every time he suited up with that colorway.

Also read: The Bizarre Story Behind Michael Jordan’s Shoes That are Worth $1.8 Million and Can Climb to $4 Million

Michael Jordan changed his jersey number mid series

Michael Jordan had retired from NBA basketball after he had won three straight championships and following the untimely passing of his father. He would go on to pursue a career in Minor League Baseball where he played for the Birmingham Barons.

However, after middling out in this profession, he made his return to the NBA and would be tasked with facing off against Shaquille O’Neal and the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference SemiFinals. In his return to play, he felt as though he would have to wear a number different from 23.

At first, Jordan felt as though with his father not there, no.23 shouldn’t be showcased to the world any longer. He went into the ECSF with this mentality but after losing Game 1, he knew he had to make a change. He reverted back to his original number 23. The one problem was that the Bulls failed to inform the league about the number change.

Bulls lost money due to Jordan’s decision

The Bulls were fined $25,000 after their Game 2 victory where MJ dropped 38 points. The series was tied 1-1 but the more cohesive Magic would go on to win in 6 games, becoming the first team since the 1990 Detroit Pistons to eliminate Michael Jordan from the Playoffs.

The Bulls were fined $25,000 for the remaining 4 games of the series, bringing the total to $100,000 in fines after the initial $25,000 lost. Funnily enough, the man who recommended that Jordan switch it up was the Bulls equipment manager, John Ligmanowski.

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