At his press conference yesterday, where he called his
decision to retire from the NBA "99.9 percent" final,
Michael Jordan was asked whether he will "go into seclusion"
or "try to maybe solve some of the world's problems."
Jordan: "Two big no's. ... I still have obligation with
endorsements that will require me to be in the public's
forefront for a little while. ... I will still be doing some
commercials, that's simple, but I can't save the world, by
no means" (THE DAILY). The AP's Stephen Wade writes that
from "Warsaw to Rome, Sydney to Santiago, Jordan was given
the kind of page one coverage ... that American sports
seldom receive outside North America" (AP, 1/14).
NO BOOGIE KNIGHTS IN BEAVERTON: Nike denied an ESPN
report that Nike Chair Phil Knight had flown to meet Jordan
in Chicago in an effort to talk him out of retirement (THE
DAILY). Knight: "First of all, I know it wouldn't do any
good if I did try. Secondly, there is part of me, probably
more than half, that is really kind of pleased that for him
to go out the way he went out." The AP's William McCall
writes that Nike has been preparing for Jordan's retirement
"for years," and that the company is "positioning [him] as
an icon like Babe Ruth or Muhammad Ali, whose attraction
goes beyond the game." Nike Manager of Corporate
Communications Vizhier Mooney: "It's really time to stop
marketing the basketball player and start marketing the
person." Plans are "in the works to keep expanding"
Jordan's Nike line. Knight: "Jordan has become a bona fide
brand and not just an endorsement. I don't think you're
going to see anything like this for quite a while" (AP,
1/14). Since news of Jordan's retirement broke Tuesday,
Nike shares have dropped 4.6% (AKRON BEACON JOURNAL, 1/14).
Nike rushed a new Jordan ad on-air, highlighting his life in
sports, from his days as a youth through his NBA playing
career. The spot ends with Jordan's elementary school
photo, the "Just Do It" tag and the swoosh (THE DAILY).
NOT QUITE ALI STATUS: In Montreal, Jack Todd writes
that Jordan's "legacy will forever be tainted by the
marketing connection that marks the chasm between him and a
truly great athlete like Muhammad Ali. ... A decade after
the end of the Vietnam war, Jordan willingly became a
worldwide spokesman for a U.S. corporation that exploited
the children of the Asian boys Ali refused to fight. In the
global context, that is far more significant than anything
he achieved on a basketball court" (Montreal GAZETTE, 1/14).
REAX: Jordan's post-NBA career was examined by NBC's
Anne Thompson on the "In Depth" segment of "NBC Nightly
News." Burns Sports Celebrity President Bob Williams:
"Michael Jordan is going to be the first athlete to retire
and maintain his endorsement portfolio over five, ten, I
believe twenty and even thirty years" (NBC, 1/12). "CBS
Evening News" examined the impact of "The Jordan Legacy."
Dan Rather: "Jordan is the ultimate crossover talent. Able
to leap every kind of barrier and appeal to just about
everyone" (CBS, 1/13). Advantage Int'l Senior VP/Athlete
Marketing Tom George: "His name as a brand will not only go
well beyond his playing career but beyond his life span" (AD
AGE, 1/13). In Detroit, business writer Doron Levin writes,
"The [NBA] owners might find solace in the retirement of
Michael Jordan, the brand. No owner could have predicted
that the Jordan brand would overshadow the NBA's own, as
well as the individual brands of the league's 29 teams"
(DETROIT FREE PRESS, 1/14). David Letterman: "Michael
Jordan had to retire, ladies and gentlemen. ... There was
nothing left for him to endorse" ("Late Show," CBS, 1/13).
ON THE LINKS: Earl Woods told the CHICAGO TRIBUNE's
Fred Mitchell that his son, Tiger, knew of Jordan's
decision. He said the two "talk almost everyday. It's not
uncommon that Tiger will land from his airplane and be on
the (cell) phone talking to MJ then. They know where each
other are at all times" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 1/14). Jordan
will play with Woods during next month's AT&T Pebble Beach
National Pro-Am. He will also team with Charles Barkley on
a pro-am team in next week's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in CA
(N.Y. TIMES, 1/14). In San Jose, Craig Bestrom writes that
AT&T Pro-Am execs "gasped" when Jordan said he would have
surgery on his injured finger, but a "few hours later,"
Jordan told Bob Hope Chrysler Classic officials that he is
"healthy enough to play." Pebble Beach Golf Division VP
Paul Spengler: "I think he's coming (to the AT&T). I've had
some people pretty high in the television business and
pretty close to him tell me that he's planning to play in
both the Hope and the AT&T" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS,
1/14)....Fox's Family Channel will premiere "Michael Jordan:
An American Hero," an unauthorized biographical film, on
April 18 (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 1/14)....USA TODAY's Debbie
Howlett reports that Jordan and 14 friends celebrated his
retirement at "a private room at the swanky Hudson Club" in
Chicago on Tuesday. Jordan ate chicken, drank Bud Light and
picked up the $1,400 tab for the evening (USA TODAY, 1/14).