Jordan and Pollin to meet

Steve Wyche of the Washington Post reports: Michael Jordan will meet with team chairman/owner Abe Pollin late this week or early next week to discuss what his role with the team will be next season.

They both want things but a source said yesterday that neither of their demands appear to be unreasonable.

Jordan wants final say on basketball decisions and to possibly hire some more front-office personal.

Pollin wants Jordan to be in Washington more often. Jordan currently spends most of his time in Chicago. He also wants Jordan to build a winning team.

"As soon as Michael's ready, we'll talk. I'll be ready," Pollin said. "It's going to be what he wants and what I want and it's going to be a combination of what his desires are and what mine are. Until that happens there's nothing more I can say other than we're going to try and sit down and see how it goes."

However, if the two sides cannot agree on Jordan’s role, he likely will leave and some of the people he hired when he was president of basketball operations from January 2000 to October 2001 would either resign or be fired.

Those people include: Assistant general manager Rod Higgins, director of player personnel Fred Whitfield, and head coach Doug Collins along with his coaching staff.

"I'll be here as long as Michael wants me here," Collins said.

If Jordan does not return to the Wizards, he could very well be headed to Charlotte, which is owned by his friend Robert Johnson, who will offer him a stake in the franchise and high-ranking front office post. However, Jordan insists the Washington Wizards are his first choice.

"I have options," Jordan said.

If Jordan does return, he has a lot of personal decisions to make.

"Our pieces don't fit," Collins said. "When you look at it Atlanta's roster is better than us. New York's roster is better than us and they are behind or even with us. Chicago is going to be better than us and we got all those teams ahead of us, so we have a lot of things we need to do."

Jordan agreed.

"I'm not saying I shy away from some of the decisions we've made as an organization," Jordan said. "In terms of what happened with this team and some of those changes, I will never walk away from those decisions because I was involved with them."

Washington’s whole offseason will depend on whether or not Jerry Stackhouse opts out of his contract. If he does, the Wizards would have about $12 million in capspace to sign free agents. However, if Stackhouse doesn’t, the Wizards will only have about $5 million to spend.

Stackhouse hinted that his decision could be based on Jordan’s future with the team.

"I'll wait and see what happens with the team, wait and see what happens with Michael," Stackhouse said. "First things first, try to find out what's happening with our organization internally. From there, start talking about what we're going to do to start piecing together the team. That's important to me, to see what direction the team is going in."

It is also mentioned that the Wizards want to re-sign Tyrone Lue and would deal Kwame Brown if the right deal came along.

In the end, Doug Collins probably said it best.

“We need to get everything in place in terms of the hierarchy and how it's going to be so we can start moving in the right direction."

Via washington post

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Jordan could leave Wizards

The associated press reports: Michael Jordan has not closed the door on leaving Washington.

Jordan hinted that he could leave Washington if he could not come to an agreement with the club.

"Obviously my focus here is to go back upstairs,'' he said after an 87-83 loss to the Celtics. "And hopefully it works out that way, but if it doesn't, then obviously I have options. Not just Chicago, I have other options as well.''

Those "other options" are rumored to be a job with the NBA's expansion franchise in Charlotte.

"For me, ideally, is to keep this thing rolling, keep this team moving in the right direction,'' Jordan said. "That's what I truly want to happen. Chicago is a second thought, as well as any other opportunities.''

Via ESPN

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Jordan: I haven't thought about Chicago

Steve Wyche of the Washington Post reports: Michael Jordan said Tuesday that he has no interest now in replacing Jerry Krause, who unexpectedly resigned as Chicago's general manager because of health problems.

"Washington is where I started and where I want to finish" as an executive, Jordan said at a morning shootaround before the Wizards' game at the Cavaliers. "It's unfortunate about Jerry. Obviously, his health is the most important thing."

It has also been speculated that he would join up with his friend Robert Johnson in Charlotte and play with that team during their inaugual season in 2004/2005.

Jordan plans to retire at the end of this season, and has indicated he will return to the Wizards' front office.

However, he is not contractually bound to Washington, and the GM opening in Chicago has led to more speculation Jordan will return to the Bulls. His family still lives in Chicago.

Jordan, though, says his mind is squarely on the Wizards, who entered Tuesday two games behind Milwaukee for the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

"Personally, I haven't thought about Chicago," he said. "I know people have asked in the past, 'What if?' I told them at the time that my focus has been here and will be here.

"I haven't talked to anyone on that staff. You guys are more or less getting things rolling. My focus is right now trying to get this team in the playoffs, and secondly, making sure this franchise is moving in the right direction."

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