June 16, 1996. Michael Jordan leads the Chicago Bulls to their fourth NBA Championship. Many basketball fans consider 1995-96 to be Jordan’s best individual season, and that Bulls squad as perhaps the greatest in the history of team sports.

But behind the scenes, Jordan is still grieving over the death of his father, a traumatic event that led to him stepping away from basketball for over a year to pursue professional baseball. Without him, the Bulls fall into chaos. Today, a look back at one of darkest and most difficult chapters in Jordan’s incredible career: Why he stepped away from the game he loved so much, and how he was able to return, triumphant.

Special thanks to our guests: Terry Francona, two-time World Series champion manager; Sam Smith, writer for Bulls.com and author of “The Jordan Rules”; and Roland Lazenby, author of "Michael Jordan: The Life," and whose biography of Magic Johnson will be out in October 2023. 

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