The glorious career of Michael Jordan has made several aspirants chase their dreams of reaching the NBA over the years. Despite becoming a Hall of Famer by the end of his journey, MJ once admitted to having imperfections in his gameplay. He candidly spoke about those while shedding light on how he overcame the obstacles to eventually become a 6x champion.
Humbly acknowledging his room for improvement as a rising star, Jordan stated,
“Michael Jordan had weaknesses”.
Following that, he revealed how he overcame them as his answer provided a great framework for ambitious individuals around the globe.
“He just had to dig deep inside himself to figure out what they were and challenge himself to improve those weaknesses.”
That’s why the 6’6 shooting guard used to push his limits in each game to move closer to perfection, knowing full well he might never reach there. “So, mentally I like to challenge myself to go out and play a perfect basketball game although I know you can’t do that,” he highlighted.
Michael further added,
“It’s practically impossible to play a perfect game but that doesn’t mean you can’t challenge yourself to do that”.
His comments reflected his winning mindset wonderfully, just as they had during Nike’s infamous ‘Failure’ commercial. The advertisement became hugely popular as it highlighted failure as a stepping stone to success in an individual’s journey. It deeply resonated with the viewers as the biggest basketball star in the world in 1997 publicly embraced his imperfections and credited them for his achievements.
How Michael Jordan walked the talk in the 1990s
The start of Jordan’s NBA career was filled with obstacles, especially in the post-season. Since entering the league back in 1984, Michael failed to reach the finals from 1985 to 1990. He kept falling short of his competitors in the conference while developing his game with time.
One of the biggest challenges for them in the playoffs was the Bad Boy Detroit Pistons. MJ’s Chicago Bulls lost to them in the Eastern Conference semi-finals in 1988 before losing out to them in consecutive finals in 1989 and 1990. It hampered the public image of Mike to a large extent as the city of Illinois awaited a change in fortune.
It finally arrived in 1991 as the Bulls won the conference finals against the Pistons before winning the franchise’s first-ever championship. Jordan did not have to look back ever since then, as the following chapters changed the trajectory of the NBA forever. Thus, whatever Micahel mentioned during both the interview and the commercial captured brilliantly what he had to go through as a player.