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Michael Jordan years

2001–02

After retiring from the Chicago Bulls in early 1999, Michael Jordan became the Washington Wizards' president of basketball operations as well as a minority owner in January 2000. In September 2001, Jordan came out of retirement at age 38 to play for Washington. Jordan stated that he was returning "for the love of the game." Because of NBA rules, he had to divest himself of any ownership of the team. Before the All-Star break, Jordan was only one of two players to average more than 25 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds as he led the Wizards to a 26–21 record. After the All-Star break, Jordan's knee could not handle the workload of a full-season as he ended the season on the injured list, and the Wizards concluded the season with a 37–45 record. Jordan led the Wizards to an 18-win improvement from the previous season.

2002–03

Jordan announced he would return for the 2002–03 season, and this time he was determined to be equipped with reinforcements, as he traded for All-Star Jerry Stackhouse and signed budding star Larry Hughes. Jordan even accepted a sixth-man role on the bench in order for his knee to survive the rigors of an 82–game season. A combination of numerous team injuries and uninspired play led to Jordan's return to the starting lineup, where he tried to rebound the franchise from its early-season struggles. By the end of the season, the Wizards finished with a 37–45 record once again. Jordan ended the season as the only Wizard to play in all 82 games, as he averaged 20.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.5 steals in 37.0 minutes per game.

Departure

After the season, majority owner Pollin fired Jordan as team president, much to the shock of players, associates, and the public. Jordan felt betrayed, thinking that he would get his ownership back after his playing days ended, but Pollin justified Jordan's dismissal by noting that Jordan had detrimental effects on the team, such as benching Hughes for Tyronn Lue, making poor trades, and using the team's 2001 1st round draft pick on high schooler Kwame Brown. Without Jordan in the fold the following year, the Washington Wizards were not expected to win, and they did not. Despite the signing of future All-Star point guard Gilbert Arenas, the team stumbled to a 25–57 record in the 2003–04 season.

The Wizards replaced Jordan's managerial role with coach Eddie Jordan (no relation) and General Manager Ernie Grunfeld.