Vernon Maxwell passionately explained why his Rockets would've beat the Bulls in 1994, even if MJ didn't retire: "When he took off 45 and put back on 23, Shaq went and beat him"
The NBA world throughout history was filled with what-if scenarios, and the biggest include Michael Jordan, the Chicago Bulls and the Houston Rockets. While most of those scenarios have been overblown and overhyped for discussion purposes, especially in today's era of social media and relentless fight for views and clicks, there are some rare occasions where one decision altered the course of NBA history.
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We're talking about Jordan's first retirement. "The Black Cat" decided to temporarily hang it up in 1993 after he won his third consecutive championship with the Bulls. The decision was shocking at the time, but later, it became known that MJ was mentally on edge after the murder of his father, and he needed to get away from the game and the spotlight.
The Rockets benefited from his hiatus
Two years later, he returned and fairly quickly regained his dominance over the Association as he led the Bulls to another 3-peat from 1996 to 1998.
So, what if Mike never retired? Would the Bulls win eight or nine in a row?
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A lot of folks feel that way, but not Vernon Maxwell, who was a part of the Rockets team and won back-to-back titles in 1994 and 1995. He reminded MJ fans what actually happened when Jordan returned in March of 1995.
"We knew in 1994 we were going to win a championship. We started the year 23-1, or some s**t like that. We knew it was going to be a special year. It was a special team; we had a big African in the middle," Maxwell started his explanation before Matt Barnes asked him if they would've gotten those titles if Jordan had never retired.
"I don't want to hear that bullsh*t. Y'all gotta understand when he took off 45 and put back on 23, Shaq went and beat him. And they were saying, 'He wasn't in basketball shape yet.' Man, fu** that sh*t, he was in basketball shape," Vernon passionately explained.
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Related: "To put it mildly, every night you had to go against a legend" - Dominique Wilkins makes a case he should be in the GOAT debate
Jordan needed more time
The Orlando Magic, with Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway, beat MJ and the Bulls in six games in the second round of the 1995 playoffs. After that, many felt he would never win another championship.
To use MJ's famous "Last Dance" quote, he took that personally. Not only did he get another 3-peat, but Jordan's Bulls set the regular season record in '96 with 72 wins. Also, most importantly, they faced the same Orlando team that knocked them out in the Eastern Conference finals.
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Only this time, the Bulls swept them on the way to a title. That's the biggest sign that Mike wasn't all the way ready the year before, even though Maxwell felt otherwise. He returned in March after a two-year hiatus, trying to quickly get back to the swing of things, but that wasn't enough time.
A year later, Jordan had a full offseason and a regular season to get back on the level he was before he retired. And he did exactly that, averaging of 30.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists during the '96 Playoff run.
So, what if Jordan never retired and had to face Maxwell and the Rockets in the Finals? It's hard to say he would've lost because Jordan, every time he had a full offseason during his prime years, steamrolled the competition.
Hakeem Olajuwon, Maxwell and company were a great team, but they didn't have a "Black Cat." And he's arguably the greatest player who ever lived.
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Related: "Winning is important, not points" - Michael Jordan was willing to do whatever it took to fit into Bob Knight's 1984 Team USA
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 10, 2025, where it first appeared.
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