The legacy Michael Jordan left on the basketball court is often restricted to his career with the Bulls. The greatest player of all time hung his boots on June 14, 1998, after winning his sixth and final championship. The man who took the court on October 30, 2001 as a Wizard, wasn’t the same player, not even close. Or that is what people widely believe.
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At 38, Jordan had lost much of his athleticism, if not all. The only things he had left were the sheer skills and footwork he had honed and mastered during his second three-peat. The signature shimmy, the unstoppable fadeaway, the miraculous pivot. They still existed but just weren’t as quick as they used to be.
Yet, even though people believed he wasn’t the man who had once dominated the sport like none other, Jordan remained the master of mid-range. In this article, we will attempt to showcase just how far ahead of the competition he was, even when the mid-range game was at its peak and Michael was a relic of the past.
First Season With the Wizards: Michael Jordan Unretires for the Second Time
Although stars like Ray Allen, Reggie Miller, and Paul Pierce had already begun to take distance shooting to the next level, it wasn’t a standard practice in the league. In the 2001-02 season, there were only 33 players who made at least 1.5 threes a game. In comparison, 108 players made at least 1.5 threes a game in 2023-24.
The early 2000s were undeniably the era of the mid-range and Michael Jeffrey Jordan was still the king of this zone. In his first season with the Wizards, he averaged 6.2 makes on 15.1 attempts at an efficiency of 41.3%.
His closest competitors were Allen Iverson and Sam Cassell. While, AI averaged 4.7 made shots on 12.8 attempts, a mere 36.6%. At the same time, Cassell had the same number of made shots as Iverson but with a much better efficiency rate of 47%.
MJ played a total of 60 games that season and averaged 22.9 points per game, of which 12.4 points came from the mid-range. But his dominance from the mid did not just stop in his first season in Washington.
MJ’s Final Season in the NBA: Still the Undeniable Master of the Mid-Range
The 2002-03 season was Michael Jordan’s last in the league. He chose to go all out and played all 82 games, but started in only 67. Averaging 37 minutes a game, the 39-year-old proved he could still school the youngsters. Though his per-game numbers fell, he still managed to lead the league once again with 5.6 field goals made from the mid-range. Interestingly, Jordan’s efficiency improved from the previous season as he registered 43.3% on 12.9 attempts.
The only players close to MJ were Chris Webber, Allan Houston, and Kobe Bryant. While Webber landed 4.7 shots, Houston and Bryant both made 4.6 mid-range FGs per game. Moreover, only Houston managed better efficiency than Jordan, 48%. Both Bryant and Webber could only muster 41% and 41.6% success rate.
Jordan was forced to retire by the Wizards management the following season, the third and last time he would bid goodbye to the NBA court. The unceremonious exit left a sour taste in MJ’s mouth and naturally so. But even in that bitter moment, he had managed to prove why he was one of the greatest to ever play.
