By JOHN MARSHALL
WILMINGTON, N.C.-- Fans in Detroit and Miami will get what they want.
Michael Jordan said Wednesday that he would not play in the Washington
Wizards' first two preseason games, then changed his mind a few hours later.
Jordan originally said he would be better off working on conditioning than
playing, but said later that he didn't want to disappoint fans who bought
tickets to the games.
Detroit sold more than 19,000 tickets for Thursday's game, and Miami sold
about 18,000 for the game there Saturday.
"After I made my first announcement earlier today, I realized that many
fans purchased tickets to these games to see me in my return," Jordan said.
"I didn't want the fans to be disappointed, therefore I am altering my
original plan and will play in Detroit and Miami."
Jordan is expected to start both games, but will likely play in just the
first few minutes of each, Wizards spokesman Nick Brown said.
Jordan retired from the NBA for a second time more than three years ago, but
started working toward a return this summer by playing pickup games with NBA
players.
His comeback was put in doubt when he broke two ribs during one of those
games in June, and he said the injury remained a big reason why he is behind
schedule.
Despite saying he would only practice once a day during training camp,
Jordan went hard in both practices for the first two days of camp last week and
was worn out by the third night.
Wizards coach Doug Collins persuaded Jordan to cut back, and he spent the
final six days of camp working on conditioning in the morning and practicing
with the team in the evening.
"I was trying to rush myself into shape and I was a little bit tired,"
Jordan said as the Wizards broke training camp. "When I'm going through those
two practices, the next day I feel it and I'm not getting the same type of
productivity. I wanted to be crisp each and every practice that I play, so I
limited it to one practice a day.
"As much as my mind wants say that I'm 28, my body says 'Hey, you're 38.
Make sure you monitor that a little bit closer."
Jordan said he made the decision not to play after speaking with Collins
before an open scrimmage Tuesday night.
"I opted not to play the first two games because physically I'm still
working on trying to get my wind back, my legs underneath me, and I think I can
gain more from that than playing in exhibition games," Jordan said. "I have
to be very patient because this is a very important time for me not to try to
overdo it and try to go out and prove too much."
Even before he changed his mind, Jordan talked about how hard it would be
for him to sit and watch the games.
"Once you get out there and you see the fans, get into the competition with
the NBA refs and all that stuff, I know I'm going to itching to get out
there," Jordan said. "But I have to be very patient. This is a very important
time for me not to try to overdo it and try to go out and prove too much when
you're going to have plenty of time to go out on the basketball court and
showcase what you have."
AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service
Copyright 2001
The Associated Press
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