Can we talk?
In the real world, Jordan and Israel join hands. In the playpen, it’s Jordan and the Celtics.
But not unless the Bulls accept the generous proposition of M.L. Carr, Boston’s new chief of basketball operations, of a No. 1 draft choice just to take a message to Michael.
“I thought there was nothing left in sports that could surprise me,” said Jerry Reinsdorf, the Bulls’ chairman. “But I was wrong. This surprises me. I don’t know how to respond because it’s so completely bizarre. A No. 1 draft choice just to talk to Michael Jordan?”
According to Reinsdorf, he heard about Christmas in July from General Manager Jerry Krause, whose initial reaction was that Carr had to have been misunderstood or misquoted. But then Reinsdorf and Krause discovered Carr indeed was not delirious.
“Carr said he talked to Jerry, but Jerry said he didn’t know anything about it,” Reinsdorf went on. “I don’t know if this is tampering or not. In baseball it would be. But this is basketball. It sounds like a heck of a way to rebuild. With all due respect to Will Perdue, if Boston wants to give us a No. 1 to talk to him, we’ll think about it. But Michael? How far do you go with something like this?”
Indeed, if the Bulls can get a No. 1 for allowing Boston to talk to Jordan, what’s the price for lunch with Michael, a round of golf, two tickets to a Birmingham Barons’ game and an autographed poster?
It says here the Bulls are crazy not to listen if Carr is crazy enough to offer. If allowed, Carr promised to stalk Jordan throughout the minor leagues, from the dugout to the bus, and keep Michael from sleeping until the sell job was completed.
For the record, Jordan laughed it off.
“If what Carr means is that he’ll give us a No. 1 for the rights to Michael, that’s different,” Reinsdorf said. “And we’re not taking a No. 1 for the rights to Michael. First of all, and I have to keep repeating this, nothing Michael has ever told me indicates he wants to play again.
“Secondly, we have an excellent relationship and he’s been quoted frequently as saying that if he ever did return, it would be with the Bulls. Now, if he ever came to me and said he wanted to play again but wanted a change of scenery, I’d probably do whatever we could to accommodate Michael out of respect to him. But he’s building a 29,000-square foot home here. Does that sound like he plans to move?”
Red Auerbach must be swallowing his cigar, but don’t ever say sports is all greed. Now, what can the Cubs get for giving out Ryne Sandberg’s home phone number?
China syndrome: If you can tear yourselves away from the barbeque, rest assured the Goodwill Games have begun in that famous vacation spa of St. Petersburg, Russia. And this just in. The U.S. men’s basketball team beat China 99-80. The only problem is, a half-hour after playing the Chinese, you want to play them again.
What, me worry?: No wonder Mike Keenan thinks NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman did a fantastic job of solving a real mess. For walking away from the New York Rangers, Keenan was suspended for 60 days in the middle of the summer. By the time Keenan serves his punishment, the St. Louis Blues will not even have broken a sweat in training camp.
Yes, fines were assessed, but Keenan has proven that you can buy your way out of any fix in broad daylight. A contract means nothing. The precedent means everything.
Grittier than grits: The Montreal Expos have a payroll of about $18 million and their city would rather watch the Canadiens play softball, but the Expos lead the National League East. Not the Atlanta Braves, who have a $40-million plus payroll, the game’s best starting rotation and a captive audience.
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If this keeps up, when Ted Turner and Jane Fonda sleep through the World Series in October, they’ll be able to do it in private.