Some of the most successful people in the world believe in superstitions and among them is the great Michael Jordan. For the six-time NBA champion, following his set of superstitions is a must. In fact, he never missed doing any of it throughout his career.
Jordan was already nearly 40 years old when he made his second and final NBA return in 2001 to join the Washington Wizards. It was at that point that then-Wizards assistant coach Brian James discovered Michael still believed in all his superstitions and religiously followed his habits, even the weird ones.
“He was very regimented in his superstitions,” James told Northwestern Athletics of Jordan in 2020. “He had to eat at 4:30 every single day on game day, and then I do know that you know, whenever he got dressed to get on the bus, he always put his socks and shoes on before he put his suit pants on. I always found that to be strange because I always put my pants on first before the shoes.”
MJ followed the same pregame routine every single night
Many are well aware of Jordan’s remarkable work ethic. During his playing years, Mike was considered as one of the most disciplined players in the league because of the way he prepared and how organized his routines were.
Even James knew that Jordan wouldn’t have been the legend he is today if he didn’t strictly follow his own set of routines. However, he was in awe of how consistently MJ was doing it, literally on a regular basis.
James emphasized that he also got used to what MJ was habitually doing every night, especially before games. Together, they have developed a specific pregame routine that they performed like clockwork all season long.
“Michael had a routine and our routine was I would be doing the whiteboard as he would come in after he got taped,”James further divulged. “And as he’s getting his uniform on, he and I would have a refresher course on our game plan that night.”
Jordan was probably born like that
The mechanical regularity of each individual’s routines and habits is achieved in various ways. Some have naturally developed it through repetition, while others appear to have been born with that unique trait.
In Michael’s case, it appears that he belongs in the category of those who are like that since birth. Several years ago, a handwriting expert named Bart Baggett analyzed Jordan’s personality by assessing his signature.
By just closely studying the patterns and strokes in Jordan’s signature, Baggett could already draw a conclusion about what type of person MJ is. As it turned out, one of the distinct findings was that Mike excelled in implementing a structured approach to nearly everything he did.
“General notes: Jordan’s round fluid stroke in his writing indicates fluidity of thought and movement,” the assessment read. “4. The straight baseline indicates perfectionism. He wants structure and follows habits. He is very intolerant of sloppiness.”
All told, it’s always intriguing to learn something unusual or weird about some of the greatest players of all time, especially if we’re talking about none other than the GOAT himself.