JORDAN Statue gets a make over

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Not bullish about Blackhawks jersey, Reebok skates on Jordan

By Greg Wyshynski

It’s been made fairly clear in the last two seasons that Chicago celebrates the Stanley Cup Playoffs by placing hockey sweaters on large, immobile objects: Like a Brachiosaurus or a mighty lion guarding an art gallery or Jim Belushi.

The celebration has reached new heights as the Chicago Blackhawks prepare to host Game 1 of the Finals against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night: a Jonathan Toews(notes) jersey and a pair of skates on the Michael Jordan statue outside United Center. From Mouthpiece Sports, a lingering look at what has some Chicago and Jordan fans upset:

Now, the real Michael Jordan has been seen at a Blackhawks playoff game wearing a No. 23 jersey during last postseason. But the application of a ‘Hawks jersey on the Jordan statue outside has caused a backlash from sports purists. Here’s Brian Dryfhout of Mouthpiece Sports:

Not sure about this one but the fine folks at the United Center placed a Jonathan Toews jersey on the Michael Jordan statue. Personally I don’t think you should ever cover up the Jordan #23 with any other jersey. They should just leave that to the Picasso, dinosaur and lions.

Christopher Botta of AOL FanHouse saw it as disrespecting a living person:

It’s one thing to drape the Blackhawks’ logo and colors over just about anything — a bridge, a park bench, a skyscraper — but Jordan is a person. A Zdeno Chara(notes) jersey over the statue of Larry Bird in Boston would seem just as odd.

The backlash is, of course, silly.

Jordan clearly supports the local team, and the temporary novelty of a hockey jersey on his statue is exactly that: temporary. It’s not as if they’ve chiseled a mullet onto him.

Besides, if Michael Jordan was going to be outraged about anything, it’d be the corporate sponsor of the skates “he” is wearing outside the arena. Please recall the God of Nike actually covering up the Reebok logos on his Blackhawks jersey last spring. Something tells us we might see another swooshing change coming to his statue gear.

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