“In my last column, I explained to you that you were taking advantage of this period of coronavirus crisis to focus on areas that I did not know or knew very little about. I also got to know Michael Jordan better. Each generation has its biggest player. His G.O.A.T., as they say. The Greatest Of All Times. I lived in a time when Kobe Bryant was the ultimate basketball player. Of course, I knew Michael Jordan. How could it be otherwise? He was simply from another generation. But I recently got to know him a lot more through the documentary “The Last Dance” which is broadcast here in the United States on ESPN. It also goes on Netflix in Switzerland and I can only recommend it to you. First of all I started like everyone else by watching the episodes that came out on TV. It was a Sunday evening. The first two were released and I didn’t want to wait a week to see the rest. I could count on the help of my brother, Landry, to “cure” my impatience. He had already found a way to get the eight episodes and sent them to me. So I investigated them very quickly …
“What did I find out? Michael Jordan’s impact on the NBA. I was especially fascinated that this guy was able to influence the game in his very first year in the league. From his first games with the Chicago Bulls, he directly became one of the top five players in the world. It’s absolutely amazing.
When you start to discover the history of basketball, you have to get an idea of what Jordan could have been like when he was on the floor. But as I hadn’t seen many before, this documentary made it happen with my own eyes. To see concretely why he was so dominant.
What is crazy, looking back, is how damn Michael Jordan was ahead of his generation. It’s like he’s playing the game that will be played a decade later. His style had nothing to do with 80’s basketball. And best of all? It’s because he was able to win, and those victories helped to further grow his legend.
With hindsight and thanks to “The Last Dance”, I think that the debate of the G.O.A.T is settled. It’s Michael Jordan. He has proven time and time again to be the best offensive AND defensive player over the years. And even if my opinion is fixed, that does not detract from the fact that Kobe Bryant made me love this sport. And that I owe him a lot for wanting to play in the NBA one day. ” Clint Capela
This column is provided alternately by Clint Capela, Patrick Fischer, Wendy Holdener, Mujinga Kambundji and Steve Guerdat.
Created: 12.05.2020, 09h02
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