Wright Thompson, you magnificent bastard

Michael Jordan doesn't give access to many people. He gave it to Wright Thompson. And Thompson didn't waste it.

http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/page/Michael-Jordan/michael-jordan-not-left-building

 

I think it's the best thing he's ever written.

Uncle's headline is going to invite some trolling, but seriously do give this a read.

No first person, it's written with subtly and restraint, and reveals a lot about the man.

 

Good story, stupid layout by ESPN.

I don't need the copy broken up by a giant Jordan logo or photo.

 

I'm not the biggest Thompson fan, but gave in after this was the third recommendation I saw for the article this morning. That was really good. It was long, yes, but I didn't feel like any of the sections were wasted. They all worked together to create a collage of Jordan's personality.

 

Nothing untoward intended on my part. I'm a legitimate Thompson fan.

 

I saw about 73463532634 tweets promoting this piece in the span of about 3 minutes this morning. Guess I should read it.

 

Considering how much has been written about Jordan, to do a piece this revealing about Jordan is not an easy task.

I don't think Thompson has ever profiled Jordan before, which is why I'm a little surprised Jordan granted him the access he did... Jordan was legendary for only trusting a handful of writers during his career, writers who spent years washing his balls to get that kind of trust and access...

I've always been a huge Thompson fan, but I've hated the first person stuff that he was doing a lot.

This is Thompson at his absolute best.

 

"Could LeBron be successful in our era? Yes. Would he be as successful? No."

EDIT: I think that quote is laughable, btw. But I think it gives you great insight into Jordan's view of himself.

 

I really didn't want to read this. I've long thought Jordan was a reprehensible person and I didn't want another Thompson ode to ghosts/tradition/bourbon/pappy.

Very glad I caved in. I was interested in - and somewhat empathized with - the Jordan in the piece. What I found most remarkable is that he actually seems to care about the Bobcats. This, of course, means that this could be the first basketball-related endeavor at which he has tried and failed to win. He may not be so much disengaged as he is out of his depth.

 

That was a tremendous read about a person that I didn't think would ever be interesting again now that his one purpose in life is gone.

Also, this:

When LeBron goes right, he usually drives; when he goes left, he usually shoots a jumper. It has to do with his mechanics and how he loads the ball for release. "So if I have to guard him," Jordan says, "I'm gonna push him left so nine times out of 10, he's gonna shoot a jump shot. If he goes right, he's going to the hole and I can't stop him. So I ain't letting him go right."

I would like to know if that's new info or if the league is already working with that scouting report too. It's certainly worth a try for anyone playing LeBron in the near future.

 

He's pretty clearly not a LeBron fan, which probably translates into either LeBron not showing Jordan (what Jordan would consider) proper respect, or the handful of people who have made comments that LeBron is a better player than Jordan was.

 

Did Jordan talk to SI at all for this week's issue? I don't think he did.

I know the story about him as an owner had a "said recently" and a "told the Charlotte Observer"