Why was Michael Jordan's dad James Jordan shot in 1993? Everything revealed in 2021 documentary
At the height of his NBA career, Michael Jordan was unstoppable in the eyes of many. Throughout his glory in the NBA, his father, James Jordan, was with him every step of the way.
That was until his untimely death on July 23, 1993, just days after Michael Jordan won his third-straight championship, defeating the Phoenix Suns.
On the day itself, it was reported that James Jordan went missing after taking a drive home from a party. He was spotted by two teenagers sleeping in his car wearing the NBA rings that his son gifted to him.
The teenagers thought it was an easy robbery to pull off but ended up shooting Jordan's father in the process. The two culprits of the crime were Daniel Green and Larry Demery, as both were convicted and given life sentences.
During interrogations, Demery confessed that his partner, Green, was the mastermind of it all. Demery even went on to describe his partner as a "sadistic reveler," as per The Guardian's Andrew Lawrence.
However, the story was unraveled further in a 2021 documentary titled "Moment of Truth," which was able to show a different side to the matter. New evidence provided by the documentary pointed out how there was no physical evidence that tied Green to the actual murder. There were even eyewitnesses, who pointed out that Green was at a party at the time James Jordan was shot.
It didn't help Green's case because he was still involved with the removal of the body from the original scene where it took place. Moreover, his lawyers weren't able to have the case declared a mistrial, as per Variety's Brent Lang.
As of now, the court is not accepting or hearing new evidence to support Green's claim.
Michael Jordan on the death of his father, James Jordan
Following the death of his father, Michael Jordan went into a brief retirement and decided to take up baseball before his eventual return to the NBA on March 19, 1995.
In an ESPN interview with Wright Thompson, the former Bulls star talked about his feelings about James Jordan's untimely passing.
"He never met my fiancée," Jordan said. "He never got to see my kids grow up. He died in '93. Jasmine was a year old. Marcus was 3 years old. Jeffrey was 5 years old."
Despite the years that went by after his father's passing, there remain some regrets and pain for Michael Jordan, who lost an important figure in his life.