Vincent Frank
One of the greatest basketball players in the history of the game shook the foundation of the Association on March 18, 1995.
Chicago Bulls guard Michael Jordan announced his return to the NBA after taking almost two years off to pursue a baseball career.
20 Years Ago Today: Best press release ever pic.twitter.com/17sUPGML6I
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) March 18, 2015
He returned with 17 games remaining in the 1994-1995 and with the Bulls sporting a 34-31 record. It was less than two years earlier that Jordan stepped away from the game following a third consecutive NBA championship.
In his full season away from the Bulls, Jordan’s old team took a back seat to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference. The Jordan-less Bulls eventually finished the 1993-1994 with a 55-27 record before falling to the aforementioned Knicks in the conference semifinals.
For Jordan, his return to the court was met with a ton of fanfare. However, it was extremely unlikely that he could single-handedly lead the Bulls to a championship. Upon Jordan’s return, Chicago finished the 1994-1995 season with a 13-4 record, nabbing the fifth seed in the playoffs.
While the Bulls playoff run would fall flat in the conference semifinals for the season straight year, Jordan’s return to postseason basketball was awe inspiring. He netted 48 points in the Bulls opening game of the playoffs against the Charlotte Hornet, a series Jordan and company won in four.
The rest is pretty much history here.
Chicago would go on to win three consecutive NBA championships, finishing the following season with a league-record 72-10 mark. Jordan won all three NBA Finals MVP awards and cemented his status as the greatest player in the history of the Association.
In fact, it must be noted that Jordan won six consecutive championships in years that he played full seasons. Even in the year that he returned to the association—20 years ago today—Jordan took the Bulls to the brink of greatness.
As hard as it was for fans of that era to see Jordan walk away from the game in 1993, his return to action 20 years today was one of the greatest single moments of most of our sports-viewing childhoods.
Jordan announced his return on March 18th, 1995. He returned against the Indiana Pacers the following day. And for all intents and purposes, the game was never the same.
Photo: USA Today
