It’s 1995. Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The emerging Orlando Magic, led by Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway visited the Chicago Bulls with the series tied at one game each. It was then that something historic happened, a once-in-a-lifetime event, a scenario that many would never have expected or predicted.
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The great Michael Jordan, for the first and only time in his NBA career, wore a player-exclusive shoe that wasn’t his in a game: Hardaway’s NIKE Air Flight Ones.
“For him to wear my shoes, I was tripping,” Hardaway shared with hosts Jamal Crawford and Quentin Richardson on #NBAHooperVision.
Penny Hardaway (@ Iam1Cent) Unions #NBAHooperVision and talks about MJ wearing his shoes 😂
LOOK: https://t.co/xoeIs9fLvQ pic.twitter.com/v3nbISvTSM
– NBA (@NBA) December 31, 2023
The Nike Air Flight One was a sneaker that he wore the 6-foot-8-inch base in his first two seasons in the league before moving on to the Nike Air Penny signature line.
Jordan was reportedly fined $ 5,000 by the NBA for wearing the white color of his Concord 11s because it violated the league’s uniform guidelines.
Not having a black out of 11 ready for Game 3, the Bulls legend borrowed a pair from Hardaway’s collection. Given his competitive fire, he removed the custom “1 Cent” on the heel of each shoe, which would come as no surprise.
In those shoes, Jordan exploded for a series-high 40 points, although the Magic took the 110-101 victory.
When he entered the league, Hardaway was touted as the next best superstar, but things didn’t turn out when injuries derailed his career, and yet he was an inspiration to many like Tracy McGrady and Crawford himself.
Penny Hardaway (@ Iam1Cent) about how special it was for him to see @JCrossover and Tracy McGrady wearing # 1 thanks to him.#NBAHooperVision on NBA League Pass … see here: https://t.co/xoeIs9fLvQ pic.twitter.com/XLcLvfKgQ1
– NBA (@NBA) December 31, 2023
He wasn’t the first high point guard in the league, but he was certainly one of the highest point guards with the most shots the NBA court had ever taken.
On NBAHooperVision, paying his respects to those who came before him, he also shared his inspirations.
Penny on how she was inspired by Magic and the Iceman.@JCrossover, @QRich Y @ Iam1Cent cutting it in #NBAHooperVision!
Watch it on League Passhttps: //t.co/xoeIs9fLvQ pic.twitter.com/JkzFyMDs9F
– NBA (@NBA) December 31, 2023
NBAHooperVision is a new broadcast available on NBA League Pass hosted by Crawford and Richardson. As well as providing their own comments and analysis, they also welcome former greats of the game as guests.