Many NBA owners claim to be hands-on, but there are often limits to what they can do. NBA teams are expensive, and the accumulation of wealth required to purchase one often takes decades. Therefore, most NBA owners are older and most lack high-level playing experience. Therefore, a hands-on owner usually means someone who is actively involved in front-of-house management.
But Michael Jordan was the exception in both respects. Arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, Jordan became the majority owner of the then-Charlotte Bobcats in February 2010, around his 47th birthday. He’s not as mobile as he was as a player, but this is Michael Jordan we’re talking about here. Even with his physical impairments, he was still able to work with the players on the field. Sometimes, this simply means tips and guidance in a practice environment.
But occasionally, Jordan would prove that he could still lace up his shoes and step on the court with players decades younger than him. On Wednesday, The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov published a detailed oral history of Michael Jordan’s tenure as Bobcats/Hornets owner, which ended this summer. In that oral history, former Charlotte guard Gerald Henderson tells an incredible story…if the owner hadn’t been Jordan. At one point during his tenure with the Bobcats, Jordan was involved in a scrimmage between Charlotte’s starters and reserves. Jordan played with the reserves and not only did they win the game, they won it with Jordan’s winning goal. Here’s Henderson’s story:
“He joined our second team. Our first team had Stephen Jackson, Gerald Wallace, Ray Felton and – who else started that year? – Boris Diaw. On our second team, it’s me, Derrick Brown, DJ Augustin, maybe Taylor.” (Thomas) and others. He looks like Michael Jordan in his prime, minus the speed and jumping ability. But that’s just Jordan’s job. Keep talking.
He’s been going back and forth with Stephen Jackson. At that time, Jack was like a borderline All-Star. He had a really good season last season and I think he was talking in the media about how he should be an All-Star. I guess Jake went to the basket and shot and the coach didn’t call a foul. Jack yells, “Yo, that’s a foul,” this and that.
MJ goes down and hits the winning shot. The game was over and Jake was still saying, “That’s a foul.” Jordan said, “This MFer has never been an All-Star, but he wants to get every All-Star opportunity.” We were like, “Oh, shit. This is kind of cruel.”
Jackson played for the Bobcats from 2009 to 2011, which means Jordan was between 46 and 48 years old when this happened. No player has ever played in an NBA game at age 46. Jackson was in his early 30s at the time. Most members of the team are even younger. It didn’t matter because their opponent was Michael Jordan, who not only proved that he could still play like he did in his prime, but could also talk trash with ease.
Maybe one day, another player will be able to replicate Jordan’s feat as a hands-on owner. LeBron James, for example, has long expressed an interest in owning an NBA team, and with recent rumors of expansion, it’s likely that he will realize his desire to run a new team in Las Vegas. But what are the chances of a 40-something owner staring down his team’s best player in a scrimmage and beating him? These seem to be much lower. There is only one Michael Jordan.