So, Jordan,
Barkley, and Olajuwon have something in common. Everyone knows by now that
each of these former superstars has thrown his name into the comeback bucket,
which is located somewhere near the Gallery Place-Chinatown stop on the
D. C. Metro. But the real question is rooted in their other shared trait
- age. Born within the span of one month in 1963, each player is now 38
years young, which is certainly considered over-the-hill on the NBA timeline.
Can these guys possibly have any game left? Do their superlative nicknames,
"Air," "The Dream," and "Sir Charles," even apply any longer? Some might
say that more appropriate monickers for these old-timers would be, "The
Air Down There," "Sweet Dreams," and, of course, "Sir Cumference" of TNT
infamy. Well, I don’t know about the latter two, who at last glance barely
presented even the faintest shadows of their former selves. But we haven’t
seen Wizards’ President Michael Jordan play in three years, and many argue
that His Airness left the "game of basketball" (as he likes to term it)
at the pinnacle of his career. Even among dissenters, probably very few
would dispute the claim that Jordan reached an apex in his final seasons
in terms of shooting, awareness, and the broad understanding of professional
basketball.
On the other
hand, it cannot be denied that age is a stigma in pro sports and especially
in the NBA, where the most heralded players in the league - Shaq, Iverson,
Kobe, Vince, KG, and so on - have yet to reach their 30th birthdays. And
as Barkley himself pointed out in his usual brusque manner, none of the
first five players chosen in this year’s draft had even reached the legal
drinking age by draft night. The doubt surrounding aging professional athletes,
and one super-athlete in particular, may certainly be warranted. In the
NBA, players who continue to compete well past their primes tend to reinforce
the popular consensus that the years leading into and above the 40th birthday
are not good ones for NBA players. Jordan is perhaps the only superstar
to have retired from basketball without suffering any significant decline
in his play.
So does this
mean that, at 38 years old, our pal Mike is simply physically unfit to
compete at a level near that of his former self, notwithstanding his unquestioned
heart and unparalleled desire to overcome a challenge? I, for one, am not
convinced. First, not every aging player has gone through a Ewing-esque
downward spiral during his twilight, pre-retirement years. Any Jazz fan
will readily point out that Karl Malone, the NBA’s premier Iron-Man (sorry,
A.C.), is still nailing turn-around J’s and abusing weaker power forwards
in the paint on a regular basis. So how long has Karl been delivering the
mail? You guessed it; 1963 must have been the Year of the Dinosaur - just
check your place mat. Karl’s little sidekick, John Stockton, must also
be a rallying point for Jordan and company. Nearly a full year older than
Michael, Stockton is still quick enough to defend the likes of Stoudamire
and J-Will (the more PC nickname for the ex-Sacramento PG), while running
the offense to perfection at the other end of the court.
But we all
know about the Durable Duo in Salt Lake City, just like we know what happened
with the Scottie, Chuck and Hakeem show a couple years back. The paramount
question is not whether some players have what it takes to perform at 38.
What we really want to know is whether MJ in blue will be like MJ in red.
Jordan is going to need a level of resilience as high as or even better
than that of the Malones of the world, right?
I’m not so
sure. Consider the difference between the average American 38-year-old
and a 16- or 17-year veteran of the NBA. The latter may be in better cardiovascular
shape, but basketball players endure long-term wear and tear to the body
that is utterly incomparable to that of non-athletes. Charles Barkley is
not just a regular middle-aged person, but someone whose muscles have atrophied
and whose bones have weakened from extreme use. So what is the point of
all this? While Jordan may be 38 years old, his physical condition should
be better than that of other NBA players of the same age. With nearly five
years of retirement spread out over two intervals, MJ has not been physically
punished as much as Barkley or Olajuwon or any number of older players
have. Considering Jordan’s retirement years, his injury-ended, 18-game
season in ‘85-’86, and the mere 17 games he played in the comeback season,
the conclusion is simple: MJ’s next full season, if there is a next, will
only be his twelfth. It will also be number twelve for Gary Payton, who
was among the league leaders last year in points, assists, steals, and
minutes played. It will only be the 11th year for the current rebounding
champ, Dikembe Mutombo.
So, is 38 too
old for some players? Certainly. Is 38 too old for MJ to be MJ? I don’t
think so. He might have gained about 20 pounds during his time off (which
he promptly lost), but do you really think that this fiercely competitive,
PR-savvy, image-focused man has been living a slothful lifestyle? Just
ask Ron Artest or Antoine Walker, who had been checking Jordan in scrimmages
before the rib injury. In a recent discussion with Jim Rome, ‘Toine’s message
was unequivocal: MJ can play.
