Wright Thompson, you magnificent bastard

Tremendous stuff. Just outstanding.

Great point above about MJ giving him that kind of access and being so open with a reporter that he really didn't know before (to our knowledge anyway). That in itself gives a little glimpse into whatever type of progress Jordan might be making.

 

Phil Taylor came right out and said Michael Jordan doesn't talk to Sports Illustrated. I wish Thomas Lake had done the same last year.

 

http://www.businessinsider.com/michael-jordan-points-out-flaw-lebron-game-2013-2?0=sportspage

And just with the eye test it makes sense (and the numbers apparently show it too). Kobe and Jordan had pretty similar releases on their jumpers, so it looks the same going left or right. They were a bit smoother. LeBron sort of has that cocked elbow and does look a bit more awkward on a jumper when dribbling to his right. Of course, teams can know they need to stop him going to the basket on his right; doing it is another thing.

Mizzou, I think there was something last year, or maybe in McCallum's Dream Team book, that Jordan still has the ban on talking to SI because of the baseball cover.

 

I don't think it's the best thing he's ever written. I don't even think it's close. But I don't mean that as insult. I admire Thompson's writing and intensely dislike Jordan.
As Mizzou noted he got access a lot of others didn't. He took full advantage of that access and wrote a compelling piece.

Thompson's masterpiece in this story was his understanding of Jordan's HOF speech. I think he was brilliant in explaining it.

I also fell in love with "breathtaking asshole."

 

I'm pretty sure he's talked to SI since the "Bag it Michael" cover... I thought Reilly was the one who finally broke through... Maybe he hasn't talked again since Reilly went to ESPN. Wasn't it Reilly who went on the road with the Bulls during Jordan's final championship run? It would have been the cover when they're playing dice on the plane...

 

Well, you're calling Phil Taylor a liar. His story, and the one I've heard over and over again, is Michael Jordan hasn't talked to Sports Illustrated since the baseball cover.

 

I'm not calling anybody a liar... Jesus Christ...

 

I wonder if he ever wrote back to Thomas Lake.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/thomas_lake/08/13/letter-to-michael-jordan/index.html

 

I've always thought Thompson can be a little hit and miss, but this was a definite hit. Really good stuff. Enjoyed it from beginning to end. Loved the level of detail in the conversations.

 

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/features/1998/weekly/980511/reilly.html

 

That doesn't say whether he talked to Jordan, only that he observed him.

I thought Jordan was also mega pissed that Reilly broke his Wizards comeback before Jordan wanted it out there.

 

Here's the story, which features quotes from Michael Jordan that sound pretty directly stated to Reilly: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1012804/index.htm

Either Reilly got his Jordan quotes in some strange way, or the Sports Illustrated editors have forgotten all about that story. I do think it's disingenuous to say, "MJ hasn't talked to us since ..." if he has. It's a lie. And you were right to call them on it.

Edit: Actually, on closer reading, it's not as clear. Jordan is quoted four times, but two seem to be sort of overheard quotes. The other two, well, perhaps someone else asked him about Gus Lett, or maybe Jordan agreed to answer two or three questions about Lett even for SI because the guy deserves the credit.