The word ‘petty’ is one of the many apt adjectives used to describe the great Michael Jordan. Darrell Armstrong’s tale from the 1996 Eastern Conference Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Orlando Magic will prove it. This was when MJ suffered his first postseason loss since 1990, after returning from his retirement. Suffering a 2-4 loss against the Magic in the 1995 EC Semifinals, the frustrated Jordan switched back to the jersey number #23 after wearing #45 for the entirety of the 1994-1995 campaign.
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During the 1996 postseason, the two teams met in the EC Finals. This time, Mike got his revenge. However, sweeping his opponents didn’t seem enough for Jordan.
On an episode of The Players’ Tribune’s Knuckleheads podcast, Darrell Armstrong revealed that His Airness missed a free throw on purpose to finish Game 4 with 45 points. Highlighting the pettiness that Jordan played the game with, Armstrong hilariously recollected,
“Jordan had two free throws at the end of the game. He hit the first one and missed the second one on purpose. We was like ‘what the f**k he doing?’ you know. Somebody said ‘look at the scoreboard’. He left 45 on the scoreboard. You know Jordan petty as a motherf**ker. He left 45 for last year on the scoreboard.”
“You know Jordan petty as a motherf***er.”
The 🐐never forgets. Darrell Armstrong remembers the aftermath of the Bulls loss to the Magic in the 1995 Playoffs.#Knuckleheads with @Qrich and @21Blackking out now! https://t.co/AEMuodoZyf pic.twitter.com/qTWGbtJTMi
— The Players' Tribune (@PlayersTribune) June 12, 2024
Armstrong and the Magic were also the reason behind MJ switching his jersey numbers. By pulling off this bold move, Jordan made a statement that one should never talk trash to the GOAT.
Why did Michael Jordan switch from #45 to #23?
Michael Jordan became almost synonymous with the number #23. From 1984-1993, MJ donned the number on his kit and won three MVP awards, seven scoring titles, three championships, and three Finals MVPs.
But when he returned to the league in the middle of the 1994-95 season, Jordan decided to switch to #45. Air Jordan had a pretty emotional reason behind it – his father left watching him hoop wearing #23, hence by wearing #45 he believed he could’ve had a fresh start.
However, the #45 version of MJ wasn’t as lethal as before. Additionally, Nick Anderson of the Magic even taunted #45 after Game 1 of the 1995 EC Semifinals.
“No. 45 doesn’t explode like No. 23 used to,” Anderson told reporters after the game, per ESPN. “No. 45 is not No. 23. I couldn’t have done that to No. 23.”
And, Jordan decided to unleash the beast in their next matchup. Hence, it isn’t far-fetched to assume that Jordan took it personally and began manifesting for a Bulls-Magic encounter in the next postseason. When his wishes did come true, such a “petty” move was inevitable.
