Power ranking the top 10 moments of Michael Jordan’s illustrious career

Michael Jordan’s iconic career with the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards is something that NBA players have been aspiring to emulate since he retired. In addition to his boatload of accomplishments, Jordan provided fans with special moments that highlight the brilliant run he had. We’ve selected the top 10 moments of his storied playing career in the NBA. All statistics are sourced from Basketball Reference.

The NBA has had its fair share of thrilling dunkers throughout the years, but Jordan’s athleticism and grace in the air came at the perfect time for the league. They introduced the Slam Dunk Contest into All-Star Weekend in 1984, and it was a huge hit. The only thing that made it even bigger was an ascending legendary star like Jordan, who could throw it down with the best of them.

Fans who were in the building in Seattle in 1987 knew something special was about to happen when Jordan walked over to the opposite baseline. He took off in a full sprint towards the basket, leaving the ground at the free throw line before jamming the ball through the basket. He seemed to defy gravity with how long he was in the air.

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The NBA’s website had a neat description for this MJ moment. They wrote, “His rat-a-tat-tat firing of six three-pointers against the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1992 NBA Finals led to ‘The Shrug,’ one of the best reactions in NBA history.” Before we get into the actual shrug, it’s important to note that six threes in one half is still awfully impressive today, even in the modern era of long distance shooting.

As Sports Illustrated noted, Jordan said, “Shots just started dropping from everywhere. I started running for the three-point line. It felt like a free throw, really.” After his sixth three, Jordan reacted with his memorable shrug, which was directed at Magic Johnson. Johnson was working the game on television for NBC Sports.

Michael Jordan had a long list of ferocious, acrobatic dunks throughout his Hall of Fame career. But there’s one that sticks out in his mind, as he would later say in an interview with NBA2K. “My most memorable dunk that I think about very often is the Patrick Ewing dunk. That’s only because Patrick and I are such great friends.”

It wasn’t just the dunk itself that was so remarkable; it was the setup too. Jordan was dribbling the ball on the wing, seemingly headed for the sideline, while being double-teamed by John Starks and Charles Oakley. All of a sudden, Jordan reversed course, and began his ascent on the New York Knicks center. Jordan threw it down on Ewing in an often-replayed moment.

There are a lot of basketball fans who believe that Jordan never should have come out of retirement for a second time to play for the Washington Wizards. Jordan himself appeared to have some regrets too. He told Cigar Aficionado, “One of the bad decisions I made was to go back and play. Even though I was soothing an itch that I had, I also thought I was being innovative in my job by going down and evaluating the (Wizards’) talent firsthand.”

Jordan still averaged over 21 points a game in Washington, so his two years with the Wizards couldn’t be deemed a complete failure. In his final All-Star game in 2003, he drilled a beautiful fadeaway jumper over Shawn Marion on the right wing to give the East a two point lead in overtime with less than 10 seconds left.

The Bulls became the NBA’s immovable object in the 1990s, but Chicago spent the 1980s finding their footing as an emerging team. It was the Boston Celtics, amongst a couple others, who were the cream of the crop in the 80s. Jordan knew he had to elevate his game to beat Boston, and he took that to a whole new level during a game in the 1986 playoffs.

It was an unlikely performance, considering that Jordan only played in 18 regular season games due to injury. But the Bulls guard toughed it out to return for the postseason, and put on a show on the road at Boston Garden. He scored 63 points against the mighty Celtics, allowed Chicago to take Boston to double overtime before eventually losing. Even in defeat, it was at that point fans began to realize just how great Jordan could become.

Jordan would lead the Bulls to their first NBA Finals appearance and championship in 1991 against the Los Angeles Lakers. It signified a changing of the guard, as the younger, hungry team took their place atop the NBA, while the aging Lakers had their one last shot at a title. There was one particular play from that series that stands out above all the rest.

That’s what Magic Johnson had to say after Jordan’s signature game and play in Game 2 of that NBA Finals. As for the play itself, Jordan came down the lane with the ball in his outstretched right arm. While he was in the air and on the way back down to the ground, he moved the ball over to his left hand and spun the ball off of the backboard into the hoop.

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In the late 1980s fans were getting a true sense of how dangerous Jordan and the Bulls could be. In a best of five series against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs in 1989, Jordan ended the series in dramatic fashion. It’s a sequence that has been used in many of Jordan’s commercials.

With the Cleveland Cavaliers up by one point with three seconds left, Jordan took the inbounds pass and dribbled hard to the left. He rose into the air at the free throw line, straightening up with precise body control. Jordan’s shot fell into the hoop, and he jumped into the air with glee. He made the shot over Cleveland guard Craig Ehlo, who told Basketball Network once he didn’t think the shot was going in.

With seven seconds left to go in Game 1 of the 1997 NBA Finals, there was not a kernel of doubt as to who the ball would go down for Chicago. The Bulls cleared out the left side of the floor for Jordan, who was guarded by Utah Jazz forward Bryon Russell. Russell played pretty good defense, but Jordan’s jumper was pure. His shot sank at the buzzer, giving the Bulls a 1-0 lead.

Unlike the jumping up and down exuberance Jordan showed in 1989 after the Cavaliers buzzer beater, a more seasoned version of His Airness tempered his emotions after the 1997 buzzer beater. Jordan raised his fist in the air after the shot, seemingly expecting that end result, and knowing that there was still a lot of work left to do.

There has been a lot written about how Michael Jordan got sick before his epic Game 5 performance in the 1997 NBA Finals. The most popular narrative that was posited by “The Last Dance” documentary was that Jordan ate some less than fresh pizza in Salt Lake City the night before the game. This caused Jordan to have to deal with the bout of food poisoning while dealing with flu-like symptoms.

Sports Illustrated wrote that Jordan had to be injected with painkillers and fluids at halftime just to get ready for the second half. It took every ounce of strength, but the Bulls star finished with 38 points, including a three-pointer that gave Chicago a lead they would keep for good. “I almost played myself into passing out just to win a basketball game,” he said.

It was thought to be the final act of his NBA career, but the fact that Jordan returned to play with the Wizards doesn’t make his last plays with the Bulls any less special. Down one point with less than 30 seconds left, Jordan snuck up from behind Karl Malone to steal the ball. That isn’t talked about enough, as what was to come is the defining image of Jordan’s career.

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After stealing the ball from Malone, Jordan brought the ball up himself with time winding down. Once again matched up with Bryon Russell, Jordan dribbled hard to the right before crossing over to his left. With perfect balance, Jordan swished a jump shot that gave the Bulls a lead (and ultimately their sixth title) with five seconds remaining.