Michael Jordan is considered by many to be the greatest of all time. He won six championships with the Chicago Bulls. But after his first three-peat, he retired unexpectedly, shocking the entire NBA world. The reason behind his retirement is widely associated with his father’s passing, but it remains unclear why he retired in his prime and it is mired in controversy to this day. Before he retired, Michael Jordan had a few words with his head coach Phil Jackson, and these words proved to be instrumental in MJ’s decision to retire.

After winning his third straight title, Michael Jordan announced his retirement before the start of the 1993-94 NBA season. This shocked the entire NBA world to its core. Chicago Bulls fans were left dumbfounded after the infamous press conference on October 6th, 1993, when Jordan announced his retirement in the Bulls’ practice facility. The news spread like wildfire despite the lack of social media and the internet around that time.

Jordan meets Phil Jackson before retiring

When Jordan announced his retirement to the owner of the Bulls, Jerry Reinsdorf, he never attempted to convince him to continue to play basketball. But he advised Jordan to meet Phil Jackson, the head coach of the Bulls at that time, before making the final decision. Jordan and Jackson met in Jackson’s office to discuss his decision. Jackson wanted MJ to stay, but he knew the demons Jordan was fighting in his head then. “You’re denying a gift to society, but I understand, you know, I understand.” 

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The meeting had another important moment when Jordan asked his coach if he had anything else left to prove in basketball. “I asked Phil: ‘OK, is there anything for me to prove as a basketball player?’ and he thought about it, and that’s all I needed. Because if there was something left, he would have answered the question very quickly”. Jackson remained silent for a while before saying anything, and this was enough for MJ to make his final decision.

Michael Jordan retires to play baseball

The Chicago Bulls drafted MJ to the NBA in the 1984 draft. He had a remarkable rookie season, averaging 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.9 assists. The 6’6” shooting guard had tremendous success, putting up league-leading stats for the next few seasons. But his team always fell short of winning. This had been a major setback in his career. The Detroit Pistons were his biggest rivals and had eliminated him multiple times from the playoffs. But he finally defeated the ‘Bad Boys’ Pistons and won his first NBA Finals in 1991.

After winning their first championship in 1991, the Chicago Bulls would go on to win the next two, completing the first three-peat. Michael Jordan had won all three NBA Finals MVP awards in that stretch. Despite all this success, Jordan retired before the 1994 season at the age of 30, in the middle of his prime. The most widely associated reason for his retirement is the tragic passing of his father, the late James Jordan. He was murdered in July 1993 on a highway by two teenagers at gunpoint.

Jordan was immensely affected by this incident as he was very close to his father. James was a baseball guy, and he wanted his son to be a successful baseball player. It is believed that Jordan retired from the NBA to go and play baseball for the AA team Birmingham Barons to honor his father’s memory.

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However, Michael Jordan would return to the NBA 18 months after his first retirement. He would go on to win another three championships in a row cementing his legacy among the greats.