Michael Jordan a Hall of Famer, Hopes to Play at Age 50

The wait is finally over, His Airness was officially inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on September 11, 2009.

"He opened with tears in his eyes and closed leaving tears in ours."

After delivering his ceremonial speech, Jordan left a lasting impression on the basketball world. He opened with tears in his eyes and closed leaving tears in ours. Judging from his words of wisdom, I can already envision MJ coaching sooner rather than later. He's the ultimate motivator, one who can move mountains with his words alone, despite having a number accolades that call for no words to be uttered. Words simply cannot do justice to his array of accomplishments both on and off the court. As they say, "anything he touches turns to gold." And today we discovered where Michael learned this magic touch.

Let's not forget, he was once human before he became the iconic, almighty figure he is today. On this day, we discovered that Jordan became inhuman through the presence of others. He adopted his passion and competitive nature for the game and life from his family, coaches, and players like: Joe Dumars, Magic Johnson, George Gervin, and Larry Bird. This alone proved that even the best motivators must first be motivated by someone other than themselves.

I feel confident when I say this, we simply cannot motivate ourselves. Motivation derives from others and that is why basketball is a team sport. Even individual sports like tennis and golf necessitate coaches and personal trainers. Athletes, just like every other profession, do not build themselves. They need someone to first lay a foundation. Any inspirational figure in any field, not just sports, will tell you, they wouldn't have conquered the odds without someone pushing them to go harder every inch of their journey. What we learned from Michael Jordan today is that a person doesn't always have to be standing next to you to play a pivotal role in the development of you and your craft. Motivation, in essence, can exist in spirit. And may the spirit of His Airness live on forever.

Let's hope he stays true to his word and plays some form of organized basketball at age 50, preferably against Byron Russell in a fresh pair of basketball shorts.