Old School: What Could Have Been – Jordan, Bird, and Johnson

Found this file on a possible move the Heat were considering back in the 1991-1992 offseason. It was the verge of Bird’s retirement, but looking to make one last great run with a couple of friends. Heat GM Billy Cunningham was looking to make a splash for the young NBA franchise. Here is a rare photo of his then-bold plan:

It was a bold plan, which would have brought the three NBA MVPs, all-stars, and now, hall of famers together on the same team. It would have been historical and, yes, it would not have been about the money. All three players have made millions at the time, but Jordan was just hungry to win a title.

Magic had tons of hardware, but was looking to find another few running mates he could respect and could lift their game to his level of play.

As for Bird, he was already losing out to Father Time, his playing days dwindling away like sand from an hourglass. One last shot at glory was all he wanted, to go out on his terms and to do it on the grand stage. He was also intrigued to finally be teamed up with a couple of friends from the Dream Team, which would go on to win gold in Barcelona in 1992.

What would be so bad for these three to unite, if not just for a season or two, to see how far they could take their commitment to winning? Would it have been for the titles alone? Or would the egos start to seep in and ruin what could have been a dream roster for the young Heat franchise? We will never truly know.

Props to Hot Hot Japan Hot for putting up this “archived” image.

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