We knew all these things before the season started and, at some subconscious level, so did Jordan. But his indomitable will had always prevailed, so he saw no reason it wouldn't again this year. He was not so deluded as to think he could lift the Wizards to the championship, but I'm positive he thought he could get them to, say, third or fourth place in the decrepit Eastern Conference and perhaps even to the NBA Finals.

Beyond that, he thought -- no, he knew -- that his competitiveness would rub off on the younger Wizards, the younger Wizards being everyone else on the roster, including Charles Oakley, Jordan's handpicked master of discipline who is 10 months younger than His Airness. When that didn't happen, the center really came apart, as we saw Sunday at Madison Square Garden, after Jordan scored 39 points in a 97-96 loss to the New York Knicks.

"It's very disappointing when a 40-year-old man has more desire than 25-, 26-, 23-year-old people, diving for loose balls, busting his chin, doing everything he can to get this team in the playoffs, and it's not reciprocated by the other players," said Jordan in a typical stream of consciousness declaration that somehow held together. "I can look in the locker room and see a couple guys willing to do those things, but I can look and count a lot more on my fingers who won't do that.

"Until those guys let go of that macho, cool attitude and all that and do the necessary things it takes to play the game of basketball, it's going to be tough for Washington to make anything. I'm doing everything I can to try to verbalize, as well as physically show, what it takes to win. It's up to them to receive that."

Only Jordan's diplomatic experience has stopped him from climbing onto a locker room bench and screaming, "KWAME BROWN IS A DOG!" Jordan almost never gets specific when he makes accusations about players' lack of desire, but it's long been clear that, for one, he is talking about Brown, the Wizards' straight-out-of-high-school No. 1 pick who, at times, seems to hardly break a sweat. Who else is Jordan fingering? I have an idea, but I'm not certain.

What is certain, though, is that the relationship between Jordan and Jerry Stackhouse, never more than tenuous, has broken down. Jordan brought in Stackhouse, a North Carolina homey, because he thought the talented swingman was an upgrade from last season's second banana, Richard Hamilton. The problem is that Stackhouse has never thought of himself as second banana, even though the first banana is a gold-plated immortal.

Earlier this season, Stackhouse made it clear he did not agree with Jordan's decision to make himself a starter instead of sticking to the stated preseason plan that had him coming off the bench. And after Jordan busted his butt at the Garden on Sunday, at one point banging his chin on the floor while making a swan dive for a loose ball, 'House had concerns other than praising Ol' Baldy's derring-do. "I can't do anything if I don't have the ball," Stackhouse told The Washington Post, after the game. "Just play, man. I'm just playing. Man, talk to the coach. Talk to the coach. I ain't got the answers. That ain't how I play. I've been in the league seven years. They've seen me play. They know what I do to get off. What we're doing right now ain't for me."

Even a student in Hoops Interpretation 101 could make an accurate translation of Stack's comments: M.J. shoots too much and I shoot too little. Needless to say, Jordan doesn't agree. "Jerry got into a really passive state when he got those two fouls," Jordan said, regarding Sunday's defeat. "He really never got into a rhythm, and it started on the defensive end. He never really got out of the blocks. It is important for him to be offensive-minded and take more shots, but it's important, too, to focus on the defensive aspect."

Stackhouse's mention of "the coach" may have been pointed, given the fact that Jordan, not Collins, is the true coach of the team. That's not Collins' fault. It's never easy for a coach to truly boss around his superstar. Add on the fact that Jordan was responsible for bringing Collins to the bench and will be responsible for keeping him there, and Collins' untenable position becomes clear. He has a terrific basketball mind, but Jordan is the team's decision-maker and its de facto coach.

Only one thing can return some degree of happiness to Wizard Land -- making the playoffs. Tuesday night's 106-105 win over eighth-spot rival Orlando will help. But given Washington's killer schedule (nine of 10 on the road from March 21 through April 8), a postseason berth is possible but not likely. Beyond that, the Wizards face the prospect of a tumultuous offseason, with Jordan having promised to make decisions as an executive based on what he saw as a player this year. ("All it has motivated me to do is know that some of these guys may not be here next year when I go back upstairs," he said ominously after Sunday's game.) If he makes wholesale changes it's going to be a little awkward, considering that most of the current roster, including Brown, was handpicked by No. 23, in his former and future capacity as team honcho.

If Jordan does let some of the current Wizards go, his spin will be that it wasn't for lack of talent that they didn't succeed; it was for lack of effort and will. For someone who has played as long and as hard as Jordan has, that's difficult to understand ... and sad to see.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Jack McCallum covers the NBA for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Click here to send a question to his Mailbag.

 

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