Chicago Bulls: 3 things you need to know before Ep. 1 of The Last Dance
By Josh Wilson
2. Michael Jordan would do anything to win
Most people know this about Michael Jordan, he was hungry for winning. A true competitor, nothing could stop him from getting after what he wanted.
In his touching eulogy for Kobe Bryant at his public memorial, Jordan said:
"“It’s an amazing thing about passion. If you love something, if you have a strong passion for something, you will go to the extreme to try to understand, or try to get it. Either ice cream, Cokes, hamburgers, whatever you have a love for. If you had to walk you would go get it, if you had to beg, you would go get it.”"
Jordan’s “cokes and hamburgers” were Larry O’Brien trophies and championship rings. He would do anything to get them. He would burn bridges, scream, and will himself and those around him to victory, to greatness.
Jordan, perhaps as a forewarning for what is to come in the documentary, has said that he won’t look like a good guy throughout the 10-part series.
In a recent interview with The Athletic (subscription required), Jordan expressed that he felt like he would be seen as a bad guy, and expressed concern over the fact that most people might not be able to understand his motivations for being so intense and, at times, mean to the people around him.
Not everyone had the same hunger for competition and winning that Jordan did. His will was contagious, but at times he needed to push those around him to yearn for more and to be more competitive.
It remains to be seen what actions Jordan knows are going to be revealed in the doc that will make him seem less than noble, but it’s something to keep an eye on. It’s worth remembering that everything Jordan did was in the vein of winning.