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On this date: Michael Jordan makes his Madison Square Garden debut
On this day in 1984, Michael Jordan made his Madison Square Garden debut. It was Jordan’s seventh NBA game, and the first of many iconic performances in the Mecca of Basketball.
Bulls vs. Knicks on November 8, 1984
The Bulls improved to 5-2 with an impressive 121-106 win against the Knicks. Jordan led his team with 33 points, eight rebounds, five assists, three steals, and two blocks on 15-of-22 shooting in 33 minutes.
Orlando Woolridge had 24 points and five rebounds for the Bulls and Dave Corzine added 13 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Bernard King finished with a game-high 34 points with four rebounds and four assists for the Knicks.
Jordan made Madison Square Garden his home
MSG was the site of many historic performances from Jordan, who always wanted to show off for the New York faithful when he came into town. Over the years it became MJ's favorite place to play, as he told SLAM magazine in 1997.
“Yeah, I love it... ’cause the history—everybody knows about basketball in New York City. And this is where you come see the best basketball played. That’s what Madison Square Garden’s always meant to me. And they’re very loyal to their fans, yet they’re very honorable about good basketball,” Jordan said.
“Every time I put up a big game in New York, it’s paying tribute to the respect they pay me. There’s some people that don’t want to see me come there. But... tough s--t,” Jordan added.
Jordan regularly torched the Knicks. On March 28, 1995, he scored 55 points while wearing No. 45, just 11 days after returning from his first retirement. On March 8, 1998, he put up 42 points wearing his original Jordan shoes in his last game at Madison Square Garden as a member of the Bulls.
Jordan has the most career points per game at Madison Square Garden (31.8), ahead of Kobe Bryant (30.7), and LeBron James (29.4).
Jordan’s rookie season was legendary
Jordan’s performance at MSG wasn't just an outburst. He continued on the same track throughout his entire rookie season, becoming the first and only rookie in NBA history to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, and steals.
Jordan averaged 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 2.4 steals in 38.3 minutes over 82 games in 1984-85. He played in his first NBA All-Star game and won the Rookie of the Year award.
Michael finished sixth in MVP voting as a rookie -- he received more first-place votes than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Moses Malone, and Isiah Thomas. He scored no fewer than 13 points in a game and was held under 20 points only nine times. The six-time NBA champion also led the league in total points scored.
