NBA: Michael Jordan Reveals Game-Winning Shot That Changed His Life

Michael Jordan revealed the game-winning shot that changed his life and basketball career.

To this day, nobody can argue that Jordan is still arguably the most clutch player in history of basketball. Aside from the high-flying dunks, distinct on-court antics, and extreme competitiveness, MJ is remembered for his game-winning shots.

In a recent video conference interview with ESPN’s “Get Up,” the NBA legend joined the group to talk about his latest documentary “The Last Dance.” In the middle of the interview, MJ revealed that it was the game-winning shot he drained during the NCAA finals of ’82 that made him the basketball superstar he was.

Jordan said that before the said game-winning moment, he was simply known as “Mike Jordan.” However, the said game, specifically the jumpshot, changed a lot. According to MJ, it was at that point when people started recognizing him as “Michael Jordan.”

“Up until that point, nobody knew who I was. I was a college kid other than the university, and I was just known as Mike Jordan. When I hit that shot, my whole name became Michael Jordan. I think it resonated with a lot of people outside of UNC. I started pilling on that name itself from the successes that I endured throughout the rest of my career. It wasn’t about Mike, and it was more about Michael,” Jordan revealed.

Jordan went on to get drafted in ’85. At the time, he was already a future NBA superstar and the rest was history.

Jordan’s statement about “big shots.” According to the NBA icon, hitting big shots is a “self-fulfilling prophecy” and a tremendous amount of confidence is needed to perform one.

In a report published by ESPN’s senior writer Jackie MacMullan in February, Jordan explained why other players just can’t hit game-winning shots. As per the GOAT, hitting a big shot is a “self-fulfilling prophecy.”

“Because it's a different kind of pressure. Those guys, when it gets stripped down, don't believe in themselves. They aren't sure they can hit the big shot, so they can't. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy," Jordan explained.

Meanwhile, The Last Dance is already gaining all sorts of publicity. In fact, even Jordan himself admitted that he’s not sure if people are going to be able to understand why he was so intense.

The 57-year-old is already worried that people might see him as a “horrible guy” after watching the documentary. But to his defense, Jordan said: “ "When you see the footage of [me riding with Scott Burrell], you're going to think that I'm a horrible guy. But you have to realize that the reason why I was treating him like that is because I needed him to be tough in the playoffs.”