Head coach Doug Collins Arena MCI Center Playoff finish Did not qualify | Owner(s) Abe Pollin Record 37–45 (.451) | |
Place Division: 5th (Atlantic)
Conference: 10th (Eastern) | ||
The 2001–02 Washington Wizards season was the Wizards' 41st season in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After finishing 19–63 the previous season, the Wizards won the Draft Lottery and selected high school star Kwame Brown with the first overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft. This season marked the return of All-Star guard Michael Jordan, who came out of his retirement to play for the Wizards. Under new head coach Doug Collins, the Wizards finished the season fifth in the Atlantic Division with a 37–45 record, which was an 18-game improvement. However, they still missed the playoffs even with the help of Jordan, who was selected for the 2002 NBA All-Star Game. Brown failed to live up to expectations averaging just 4.5 points per game off the bench.
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Following the season, Richard Hamilton was traded along with Hubert Davis to the Detroit Pistons, Chris Whitney was traded to the Denver Nuggets, Courtney Alexander was dealt to the New Orleans Hornets and Tyrone Nesby was released.
Offseason
During the offseason, the team fired head coach Leonard Hamilton and replaced him with Doug Collins.
On July 18, the Wizards signed Tyronn Lue, who would be Chris Whitney's backup during the season. A week later, the team waived forward Michael Smith.
On August 1, the Wizards traded Laron Profit and a 2005 1st round draft pick to the Orlando Magic for Brendan Haywood. Haywood would play with the Wizards for almost nine years, until he was traded in February 2010.
On September 25, the Wizards signed Michael Jordan. Jordan, at 38 years old, would be the team's points-per-game leader during the season. He also led the team in assists per game.
On October 8, the Wizards waived small forward Mike Smith.
On October 24, the team released Kornél Dávid.
Michael Jordan
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. However, in September 2001, Michael Jordan came out of retirement at age 38 to play basketball for the Washington Wizards. 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, along with Kobe Bryant, to average more than 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists as he led the Wizards to a 26–21 record, and the only player to average more than 25 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists. Tracy McGrady would become the only player to average at least 25-6-5 by the end of the 2001-02 season
However, in the last game before the All-star break, Jordan suffered a knee injury in a collision with Etan Thomas on February 7 against the Sacramento Kings. The Wizards would lose 9 of their next 10 games following Jordan's knee injury. It is also worth noting that Rip Hamilton missed 5 weeks of playing time due to a groin injury in the Wizards' 26-21 stretch. Starting with a November 28 win over the Philadelphia 76ers, the Wizards were 15-1 in the last 16 games that Jordan and Hamilton played together prior to Jordan's injury on February 7. 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. Still, Jordan had led the Wizards to an 18-win improvement from the previous season.
The immediate impact of Jordan's presence was seen on the Wizards' popularity and media presence. The team that ranked 18th in NBA home attendance and 26th in road one rose to third and second respectively, selling out every game at the MCI Center and only failing to do so in the three away games following Jordan's injury. Ratings rose on NBC, TNT and foreign cable.
Player stats
Note: GP= Games played; MPG= Minutes per Game; SPG= Steals per Game; RPG = Rebounds per Game; APG. = Assists per Game; BPG = Blocks per Game; PPG = Points per Game