Changing lives

Jordan first thought about coaching when he was 13.

Southeast Washington, like most inner cities, was a hardscrabble environment. He went to school in its heart. In the ninth grade, which was still junior high in D.C., Jordan watched his basketball coach, John David, offer kids a team, a structure, an alternative, something other than the streets, which most of them knew too well.

"I saw the way they listened to him," Jordan said. "When I saw that, I said, 'This is more than basketball, this is changing peoples' lives.' He certainly saved a few of them. He certainly saved me."

While talking about those days, Jordan paused to answer what must have been his home phone. It was Stefanski, whom he calls 'Ski. Jordan promised to call 'Ski right back. "At that level," Jordan continued. "You could save kids' lives."

Steve Hocker, now executive director of D.C.'s Special Olympics, played basketball at Archbishop Carroll, then collegiately at St. Bonaventure. Hocker was a senior when Jordan was a sophomore.

The summer before Hocker left for college, he coached Jordan's summer league team.

"Here I am, a graduating senior coaching these young bucks, and Eddie listened to everything I had to offer," Hocker said. "He was so coachable. I always respected that about him. And he could defend. He wanted to defend. That was the big problem with the Wizards, none of those guys wanted to defend. People down here thought the Wizards were crazy for giving him his walking papers."

Tom Young, who coached Jordan at Rutgers, first saw Jordan play while coaching at American University. While there, Young invited Jordan, still in high school, to American's end-of-season banquet at the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club.

Jordan's invitation was plus-one. He brought his mother.

"In my career, it was the only time a guy brought his mother," Young said. "Guys brought girls. They brought buddies. But guys didn't bring their mothers. That said something about his respect and connection with his family."

When Young moved to Rutgers, he saved a scholarship for Jordan. During the 1975-76 season, which ended with the Scarlet Knights advancing to the Final Four, Rutgers played Penn and its guard Ed Stefanski at Madison Square Garden.

"I don't know how much Eddie even knew Stefanski at that time," Young said.

"It's not hard to tell when you're coaching a guy who understands the game and who immediately picks up on a play or picks up on a play and helps his teammates out running the play," Young said. "He was very capable of doing that from Day One. . . . I knew without a doubt he'd be a coach if he wanted to be."

For three seasons, Mike Dabney starred with Jordan in the Rutgers backcourt.

"I think he was unselfish," Dabney said. "He saw the whole court, and he made good decisions with the basketball. Once it was established that Eddie was going to be the point guard, there was no chance he wouldn't do it."

Years later, when Jordan was an assistant with the Kings, Dabney lived in Portland, Ore. When the Kings played the Trail Blazers, the two would meet up.

"We'd spend an hour together, at most, a quick lunch," Dabney said. "He wanted - needed - to get back to the hotel to watch game film."

Hollis Copeland was a forward on those Rutgers squads.

"In fairness to the players on those teams, we were all players in our own right, but Eddie was the quarterback," Copeland said. "And you don't mind having a player facilitating or distributing the ball when he had that command."