Jordan's quiet return

His Airness set to come back leaner and meaner

Mavericks guard Michael Finley hopped into his silver Aston Martin (Texas plates: Fin 4) and got ready to head home Wednesday after another day of workouts at Hoops the Gym in Chicago. Before burning rubber, however, he offered the following assessment of Michael Jordan’s play in pickup games over the previous eight weeks.

"He looks good," Finley said with a shrug. "He looks the same to me."

Moments later Celtics forward Antoine Walker stepped out in the bright afternoon glare and offered an even sunnier outlook for His Airness.

"He looked great. Better than last year," said Walker. "He’s slim, in shape. The last couple weeks he was really on top of his game."

So there you have it. Two All-Stars. Two strong endorsements for the play of the soon-to-be-40-year-old Jordan.

As everyone knows by now, Jordan announced that he is returning to the Wizards, and feels his knees will deal with the pounding much better this year. "Physically I am feeling very strong, and feel that the steps I took in the offseason have allowed me to return to the game in great condition," he said at Thursday's news conference.

Judging by reports from inside the camp, Jordan has reason to be optimistic. Those who have seen him play say His Airness looks leaner (around 210 pounds) and meaner than last season. They say his surgically-repaired right knee, which caused him to sit out 22 games last season, has responded to every test.

Whether that knee can hold up over the course of an 82-game schedule remains to be seen. But with the addition of Jerry Stackhouse and Bryon Russell , Jordan might not have to carry as heavy a load. Already he has talked about coming off the bench and playing just 20-25 minutes a night.

Jordan as a Sixth Man Award candidate? It might sound odd, but it could be a huge boon to the Wizards -- assuming, of course, that Jordan would accept the role. Last year Washington coach Doug Collins talked about getting Jordan lots of rest early in the season, but wound up watching helplessly as MJ logged 40 minutes a night en route to a season-ending breakdown.

"That role he’s going to play, coming off the bench, is really going to be great for him," Walker said. "Having Stack and Bryon Russell, two veteran guys out there to take pressure off him and to guard some of the tougher 2s and 3s, is going to help him."

"He can be part of the team now instead of having to carry the entire load every night. He’s the greatest player ever, but now he’s only going to have to be part of it."

This year’s Jordan comeback has been conducted amid an eerie silence. Last year crowds of autograph-seekers, ink-stained reporters and TV news crews surrounded Hoops the Gym on a daily basis. On Wednesday, nary a soul was there to greet Finley, Walker, Bulls forward Jalen Rose and Nuggets forward Juwan Howard as they made their way to the parking lot.

Of course, Jordan wasn’t there. Having completed his workout regimen for the summer, he was getting some final R&R in before Tuesday’s start of training camp. But the silence surrounding this year’s Jordan comeback -- and the glowing evaluations of Finley and Walker -- makes one wonder if maybe His Airness is setting the stage for another stealth attack.

"To me, nothing has changed," Finley said. "He’s still got the same game."

Quiet? Like they say in the movies, maybe too quiet.

 

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