EX-CHICAGO ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Michael Jordan

I have to admit, when I caught wind on Thursday that former Bulls guard Michael Jordan was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, with the inductions tonight, I was stunned. I mean, really, what did Jordan ever do to achieve this honor? Sure, he was a solid, dependable starter in the league for a few years, but when it comes down to Hall of Fame consideration, I figured the folks in Springfield, MA were a little more discerning when coming up with new inductees. Anybody that doesn't think this is an abomination is living in a dream land. Just look back to 1986. I mean, he started only seven games that season. 1995? How about 17 starts? He didn't even bother to play A SINGLE GAME in 1994, 1998, 1999, 2000 or 2001. How does that lead you to the Hall of Fame? They must really be hurting for people to enshrine at this point. Maybe they should just take a few years off from inducting new people and put in new carpeting or something. This is a waste of everybody's time. What a joke. Just for laughs, let's take a look at the numbers for this clown:

6 NBA championships
6 NBA Finals MVP awards
13 All-Star Game nods
1981 McDonald's All-American
1984 College Player of the Year
1982 NCAA championship
1984 and 1992 Olympic Gold Medals
1988 NBA Defensive Player of the Year
1985 NBA Rookie of the Year
5 NBA MVP awards
3 NBA All-Star Game MVP awards
10-time NBA All-First team awards
9-time NBA All-First team defensive awards
2 NCAA First-team All-American awards
10-time NBA scoring champion
32,292 career NBA points (30.1 career scoring average)
33.4 points per game in 179 career playoff games



OK, I guess he earned it. Thanks for the memories, MJ. You made not only the fans of the Bulls proud, you make the entire city of Chicago and the surrounding areas proud. When people traveled across the USA or the world, and they mentioned they were from Chicago, the first thing people used to say was "Al Capone." Until you played. From then on, when you proudly say you're from Chicago, the only name that comes up to this day is "Michael Jordan." And that is the way it will be for a long time to come. Congrats, No. 23! I feel honored to have been a sports fan in this city for your entire career. It will never be the same again.