Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls went up against the Seattle Supersonics in the 1996 NBA Finals. After winning the first 3 games, the Bulls ended up losing games 4 and 5. Michael Jordan did not have his best performance in game 5 and was furious with himself. Apart from the pressure he had put on himself since making a return from retirement, MJ wanted to finish the series before Father’s Day, which was on 16th June.
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Jordan’s dad, James Jordan, had been murdered in his car back home in North Carolina back in 1993. Not winning game 5 on 14th June forced a game 6 on Father’s Day. According to Sam Smith’s Jordan Rules, backup center James Edwards had claimed he had never seen Michael Jordan this upset before.
Michael Jordan was fuming after losing game 5 of the 1996 NBA Finals
The Chicago Bulls ended up losing despite having all of their best players available. Scottie Pippen finished with 14 points while Dennis Rodman could only muster 6 points and 12 rebounds.
Michael Jordan, according to Edwards, had been putting a lot of pressure on himself after making his retirement return. He scored 26 points, had 2 assists, and grabbed just 1 rebound, which was tragic by his standards.
According to The Jordan Rules, MJ had never been angrier. This was because he wanted to win the championship before Father’s Day.
“Jordan was livid about the failure to close it out. Backup center James Edwards had taken to dropping by Jordan’s room during the playoffs to have a postgame cigar with Ahmad Rashad and Jordan, who always had an attaché case filled with the finest smokes. There was usually something interesting going on there, Edwards recalled. But when he stopped in after Game 5, he was startled at Jordan’s fury. “I had never seen him that upset before. He kept saying, ‘We should have won today. It should be over.’ I told him we would get it when we got home. He didn’t want to hear that at all and he kept saying, ‘It should be over.’ He was ending the year just as he had opened it, with his harshest emotions on display.”
Smith continued:
“He had wanted to end the series as soon as possible, to unburden himself of the immense pressure he had shouldered since deciding to return. The championship showdown had not been his best performance. He had shot 41.5 percent from the field and would average 27.3 points for the series, well below the 36 points he was averaging during the playoffs. But there was another reason for his anger and disappointment: he had wanted to end it before Father’s Day. ‘He’s always on my mind,’ he said.”
MJ was highly emotional after winning the 1996 NBA Finals
As is true with every sport, being out of touch can result in quick stagnation. This is even more true for professionals, and Michael Jordan was one of the best professionals the NBA ever saw.
"I know he's watching. To my wife and kids, to my mother, brother and sister, this is for Daddy."
24 years ago today, on Fathers Day, Michael Jordan won his 4th NBA Championship & dedicated it to his late father.
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) June 16, 2020
Overwhelmed with emotions, MJ dedicated the championship win to his father, leaving a profound impact. He was seen lying down in tears on the floor of the locker room and claimed that he knew his dad was still watching.
“I can’t even put it into words. I know he’s watching. To my wife and kids, to my mother, brother and sister, this is for Daddy.”
Needless to say, after having made an emotional return to the NBA, Jordan would not have minded actually winning the title on Father’s Day, back in 1996. Fans around the world still remember the emotional speech delivered by MJ, leaving a lasting impression.
