Michael Jordan’s Time As An Owner In Charlotte Dampened By LeBron James, Miami Heat
NBA icon Michael Jordan has officially sold the Charlotte Hornets to a group led by Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin.
While the organization is forever grateful, Jordan’s run as a team owner was filled with more disappointment than success. The memories that stick with him the most were arguably the matchups against LeBron James and the Miami Heat.
The most significant one was on Mar. 3, 2014.
With guard Dwyane Wade sidelined due to rest, James took advantage. He scored a career-high 61 points to give the Heat a 124-107 victory against the then-named Bobcats. The point total surpassed Glen Rice’s 56 set on Apr. 15, 1995 against the Orlando Magic.
He also broke other team records. He recorded the most field goals with 22, the most points in any quarter with 25 in the third and the most in any second half with 37. At the time, his eight 3-pointers were the sixth-most by any Heat player in a game. If there was doubt of James belonging in the GOAT conversation, it was over.
"Once he sniffed 60, we knew he was going for it," teammate Shane Battier said after the game. "And the amazing part is the efficiency. Good Lord. Sixty-one on 33 shots, that's Wilt Chamberlain-esque. That's pretty amazing. Incredible performance."
To make it worse, they swept the Bobcats 4-0 in the first round of the 2014 Eastern Conference playoffs. In Game 3, James added insult to injury by staring down Jordan during a fastbreak dunk.
Since the two never shared the court together, this could be the closest thing we get to somewhat settling the GOAT debate.
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Cory Nelson is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson. You can also check out his personal blog HERE.
