A roundup of the week Oct. 27-Nov. 2

Compiled by JOY DUCKETT CAIN

November 10, 1986

PRO BASKETBALL—The last time we saw Michael Jordan, back in April, the Bulls were being swept by Boston in the first round of the playoffs and the Air Man was sweeping his way into the playoff record books by scoring 63 points in one game. But a whole summer has passed since then. On Saturday, against the Knicks, Jordan scored 50 (15 of 31 from the field, 20 of 22 from the free throw line) to lead Chicago to a 108-103 victory. And the last time we saw Dominique Wilkins, back in May, the Hawks were losing 4-1 to Boston in the second round of the playoffs, despite 'Nique's team-leading 28.6 ppg. What's a superstar to do? Against New Jersey last week, Wilkins tossed in 39 points and had three steals as Atlanta squashed the Nets 131-111. Houston, sans Ralph Sampson, ignored double-figure performances from Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy and Byron Scott and beat Los Angeles 112-102. The Rockets have now won five in a row against the Lakers. But not everything went according to form. One day after hanging their 16th championship banner in Boston Garden, the Celtics were 111-105 losers to Milwaukee. The Bucks' new man in the middle, Jack Sikma, led all rebounders with 14, while Boston's Kevin McHale led all scorers with 33. On opening night Denver lost two players to injuries, the more serious being forward Calvin Natt's ruptured Achilles tendon, during a triumphant 134-104 start against San Antonio. Natt may be out for the season. "It's so deflating," forward Bill Hanzlik said afterward. "I don't know that I've ever felt this bad after winning a game by 30 points." Keep an eye on Philly: After 16 years as a professional and 11 seasons in the NBA, the good Doctor, Julius Erving, will no longer be making house calls. The announcement that the 36-year-old Erving will retire at the end of this season brought 10,000 cheering Spectrum fans to their feet. "I'm going to enjoy every minute of this season—win, lose or draw, sunshine or snowstorm." Erving said. "If you see me not enjoying it, tap me on the shoulder and say, 'Hey, you said you were going to enjoy it.' " And so the NBA's 41st basketball season began.