Sports Fandom

Here your's introduction to tonight's The Last Dance on ESPN and ESPN2.


"And now, the starting lineup, for your World Champion Chicago Bulls.


At forward, from Central Arkansas, 6-7, Scottie Pippen.


A 6-6 forward from Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Dennis Rodman


The Man in the Middle, From New Mexico, 7-2, Luc Longley.

A 6-6 guard from Miami, Ohio, Ron Harper.

From North Carolina, At Guard, 6-6, MICHAEL JORDAN."

That's what I lived for during basketball season as a child. I was 17 at the time MJ and the Bulls were finishing their second three-peat. 

Michael Jordan is my favorite player of all-time. I am not even sure I was a Bulls fan necessarily. I just loved MJ. If he was on another team, I would have been for that team. He's why I am a basketball fan. 

That's how some of my sports fandoms worked as a kid. I rooted for the San Francisco 49ers because of Jerry Rice and Joe Montana. But I have never rooted for another franchise. That's been my team since I can remember. They are the exception. 

I am a Cincinnati Reds fan today because of Ken Griffey Jr. I rooted for the Seattle Mariners when he played for them. When he came over to the Reds in 2000, I was just starting college. I was an adult and more mature. I figured it was time to have a team for the rest of my life and since my guy was starting over in his hometown that was as good of a time as any to became a forever Reds fan. 

I am not into hockey today as much as I once was. I became a Detroit Red Wings fan because of their former all-world goalkeeper Dominik Hasek. He was called the Dominator for a reason. 

Today, I root for the Minnesota Timberwolves. And like the Reds, I became a T-Wolves fan as I was finishing up high school. 

My high school basketball team took a trip to Minneapolis to catch a Wolves game. I remember buying a rookie basketball card of Kevin Garnett and loved the way he played. He played with a chip and was the same position I played when I was a prep basketball player. 

I wasn't any good but The Big Ticket is what turned me into a Wolves fan for life. I am not sure that was the smartest decision as the Wolves haven't been good for awhile now. But it was a good time in my life to pick a team to be loyal to. 

There will always be a special place in my heart for the Bulls. MJ, Scottie and Phil Jackson had quite the influence on me as a young kid. I don't hate the Bulls. But rooting for the Bulls back in the 1990s was never about the Bulls for me. It was about Michael Jordan. 

The Last Dance starts tonight on ESPN or ESPN2. If you want the unedited version check out ESPN at 8 p.m. central time. The first two hours of a 10-hour, 10-part documentary will tell us everything we need to know about that 1997-98 Bulls team that won a title despite starting the season 12-9. 

The footage is supposed to be never-seen-before stuff. 

I can't wait to see what is said about the other Bulls players. MJ, Scottie, Phil and maybe even Rodman will be the headliners of this thing. And they should be. But will we get more stuff about Luc Longley, Toni Kukoc and Steve Kerr? 

And how will Isaiah Thomas get worked in. MJ and Scottie hated that guy. 

I cover high school athletes who don't know how good Jordan was. I even saw one of them post his top 5 NBA players of all time and MJ wasn't on it. 

Most NBA fans from age 15-25 or maybe even 30 feel like Kobe Bryant or LBJ are the best players of all-time. Fans who are 35-45 lived the MJ era. We know how great he was. 

Aside from the statistics that show he was in fact a beast, just think about all the Hall of Famers he kept from winning a title. Charles Barkley. Karl Malone. John Stockton. Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin and Reggie Miller to name a few. 

I won't try to convince the younger generation that MJ was the GOAT. I get it. I lived the MJ days. I lived the Bulls' runs to six titles. 

I love LBJ, too. He's a top five all-time player. MJ and him were different players though. James is bigger and more of a point forward. I would compare Kobe to MJ and LBJ to Magic. All four players are great. They are all champions. 

But MJ is the undisputed GOAT to me. And you can't convince me otherwise.