Larry Bird Urged Magic Johnson to Give Up the NBA Torch to Michael Jordan in 1992: ?We Had Our Time, These Are the New Kids on the Block?

The whole NBA universe probably lauds Michael Jordan as one of the greatest to mark his foot on the court of basketball. However, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were the two who bossed around the court of basketball before the dominance of Jordan and the Chicago Bulls started. They dominated the league by sharing 8 NBA championship titles with each other in the 1980s. But with the entry of the 90s, they knew their time was coming to an end. The era of Michael Jordan was just starting to begin, and they were ready to pass the torch down to Jordan.

In an interview with Ahmad Rashad, Michael Jordan remembered the incident of passing down the torch to him. MJ revealed how he remembers that event every time he sees Magic and Bird.

Michael Jordan on getting the torch

After the 1992 season, Michael Jordan became the face of the NBA. By then, he already started getting called the greatest athlete in the world. He joined Johnson and Bird on Team USA’s “Dream Team” in Barcelona.

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MJ talked about the night when he, Magic, and Bird were drinking beers and relaxing. He added that Magic said, ” You guys are new kids on the block….But we took it to another level, blah…blah…blah.” Magic also went on to add that how he described himself as the best player one-on-one and considered Jordan as the best team player. Meanwhile, Bird urged Magic to step back, saying, “We had our time, these are the new kids on the block.”?

Actually, the performances of Michael Jordan cemented his position and made the two greats believe in him. Both of them were confident enough to believe that he was going to be the ideal bearer of the torch at that time. And hence was given the torch.

Jordan on making the NBA a global phenomenon

Like every other player, Michael Jordan also faced several heartbreaks by losing playoffs in the first part of his career. His first breakthrough came in the 1991 NBA Finals when he won the title defeating Magic Johnson’s Los Angeles Lakers.

This win against the Lakers started the journey of the first three-peat of the Chicago Bulls. Jordan along with Chicago Bulls went on to dominate the 90s.

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Also, Michael Jordan’s rise came in a period when Larry Bird and Magic Johnson were going down with a fair share of accolades in their names. Michael Jordan’s rise helped the NBA become a global phenomenon today.