Michael Jordan once announced his retirement after winning 3 NBA Championships, standing at the peak of his fame, then returned to basketball with two short words: “I’m back”.
Twenty-six years ago, when Michael Jordan announced his return to basketball, he used the most popular medium of the past quarter century. He sent a fax.

“It was the signature of the era,” Jordan’s agent David Falk recalled.

Email was still a luxury back then. The term “.com” was not yet widely known. Today we have social networks, but back then a call with 3 phones at the same time was considered modern. The best way to disseminate information widely is to use a fax machine

Michael Jordan returned to basketball at the age of 32

Rumors about Michael Jordan ending his 17-month hiatus and training with the Chicago Bulls have been circulating for a month. Now is the time to make them official news. Falk wrote a few press releases and gave them to his clients to preview.

“He didn’t like them, so he said: ‘Let me do it myself,'” Falk recalls.

So Jordan took a piece of paper and wrote two words that contained everything he wanted to say: “I’m back”.

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Alyson Sadofsky, director of communications for David Falk’s agency, stepped out of the bathroom on a Saturday in March 1995. She saw her phone flashing. There were 7 messages from Falk, gradually increasing in urgency, but the content was the same: “Come to the office immediately”.

At 11 a.m., Sadofsky arrives at work. Little did she know that she would have to spend the next two hours delivering Michael Jordan’s famous fax – the move that started the second half of the Chicago Bulls dynasty in the 90s. The fax machine only sent one sheet at a time to each person. address, and each time it takes a few minutes to transfer a page.

The famous fax was sent from Sakofsky’s office

“I have to do it all alone, it’s not like sending emails to many people at the same time,” Sadofsky lamented.

The office that day had 2 fax machines, one to receive documents, one to send documents. That day, Alyson Sadofsky used up both computers just to send information to AP, ESPN, Washington Post, New York Times, ….

The woman was alone in a small office, sending a seismic shock through the basketball world.

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In 1993, Michael Jordan announced his retirement for the first time, after winning three consecutive NBA Championships with the Chicago Bulls. Perhaps influenced by his father’s death, the legendary Air announced that he would give up basketball and switch to baseball according to his late father’s wishes.

Jordan started out in low-level tournaments. In the Minor League, things did not go well for this former basketball player. The throwing arm is inaccurate, the pin rate is only around 15-20%. But Michael Jordan is Michael Jordan. He never gave up, constantly moving forward.

His career in the Minor League didn’t start like a dream

Then everyone was amazed at the speed of MJ’s advancement. At the age of 31, he gradually took steady steps and waited for the opportunity to move to the professional MLB. The Chicago White Sox filled in Michael Jordan for several spring friendlies in 1995 and considered signing him to an official contract at the end of the season.

But the MLB player strike changed everything. Unable to find common ground at the negotiating table, baseball players refused to play since February 1994 and were in danger of taking a break until the end of April 1995. The owners agreed to recruit players from the league. below, in case professional players are not competing at the start of the new season.

Michael Jordan doesn’t want to be a “scumbag” to professional players. He sided with his colleagues and reserved his opinion of returning to the Minor League. But the noise of the baseball world made MJ feel disrespected.

Troubles with the baseball world prevented MJ from wearing a White Sox shirt

On March 2, Michael Jordan left the training camp of the White Sox baseball team. Bob Greene, a reputable journalist, recounted: “Jordan looked annoyed. He walked silently towards the club, but his anger was clearly visible. Within a few hours, Jordan was no longer there.

Ron Schuerler, the last person to talk to MJ that morning, called a colleague: “We had an argument, Jordan is going back to basketball.”

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The Chicago Bulls were a mess back then!

Scottie Pippen publicly asked to leave. The club’s 3 champions had to receive an incredibly low salary. Even if there is a contract renegotiation, Pippen does not want to make a deal. This pioneer wants to trade as soon as possible.

MJ returned when the team was most difficult

Coach Phil Jackson, who brought the Bulls to glory, only has 1 year left on his contract. He is not sure whether he will renew with the Chicago Bulls or not. The balance is now slightly tilted towards rejection.

With just 3 more defeats, Chicago’s winning rate will drop to 50%. The bookies give 1 to 40 for those who dare to dream of a non-Jordan championship.

The odds dropped to 1:5 when Michael Jordan appeared wearing a strange number 45 shirt.

The match between the Bulls and Pacers became the biggest sporting event in America

Jordan’s return turned the match between Indiana Pacers and Chicago Bulls into an international event. In less than 1 day, the Pacers’ public relations department received up to 350 requests from the media.

The Pacers and Bulls were fierce rivals back then. Every time he goes there, Michael Jordan is always booed. But this time it’s different. When the announcer called Jordan’s name, the audience on the field all stood up and applauded to welcome the return of a basketball legend.

The next part of the Chicago Bulls dynasty begins here!