I Quit, I’m Back
Wojnarowski asked Krause when he got the first inkling that Jordan would retire after the Bulls won their third straight title in 1993. Krause didn’t see it coming at all.
“I’m watching a White Sox playoff game in Comiskey Park. I’m down in the scouts section with some old friends, a kid comes up and says, ‘Mr. Reinsdorf wants to talk to you up in his office.’ So I went up and Jerry said, ‘Michael called and he’s quitting.’ I said, ‘What? No, no, no. Don’t joke with me, that’s serious shit.’ He said, ‘No, he’s quitting, Jerr. I know in his voice, he’s quitting. He’s coming in here now, and he’s going to quit. He thinks he wants to play baseball.’ ” – Jerry Krause
Krause may have been shocked, but he understood Michael’s reasoning. The tragic murder of Michael’s father James served as the motivation for the reigning lord of hoops to try his hands at a different sport. And Krause believes if Jordan stayed on the diamond longer, he would’ve done great things.
“Michael Jordan’s father and I had a good relationship. I really liked him. James was a good guy. He had wanted Michael to play baseball originally, when he was a kid. If Michael had continued playing baseball, by the way, he might’ve been Willie Mays. Because he made more improvement in one year in Double A with the White Sox, it was unreal. A very good scout, who I trust, saw Michael that year in spring training and said, ‘Pssh, he’s got no chance. He’ll have to go to low A and work his way up. Maybe in five years.’ The same scout saw him 3 months later and called me and said, ‘Jerry, the guy’s going to play in the big leagues if he stays in baseball…this is the most amazing athlete ever. He’s picked this thing up. It’s amazing.’ ” – Jerry Krause
But Michael didn’t stay in baseball. Maybe it was the taunting from his co-stars in Space Jam, or maybe it was something else. But he famously sent a fax to announce his return that simply read, “I’m back.” Krause told his side of that story.
“When he decided to make the change and come back I didn’t know he was coming back. All of a sudden one day Reinsdorf calls me and he said, ‘I just heard from Michael, he wants to come back. He’ll be here tomorrow.’ And sure enough, Michael walked in the gym the next day.” – Jerry Krause
Not long after Jordan re-entered that gym, the Bulls fell short in the 1995 playoffs. But the addition of former foe Dennis Rodman that summer and a refreshed Michael propelled the Bulls to a record 72 wins and the franchise’s 4th championship in 1996. Then came banners five and six. As Krause points out in the interview, six was “The Last Dance”.
Now, about that last dance. It wasn’t all about Krause, nor was it all about Jordan. This, to me, was the most interesting piece of Krause’s interview.
[USE ARROWS ABOVE TO CONTINUE READING]
