Shaquille O’Neal shares his birthday with two other former Mavericks All-Stars, Marcus Smart and Michael Finley, who also played for the Mavericks. The man celebrated his 51st birthday the day before yesterday.
There is a good chance that Michael Finley is a name that is unfamiliar to the majority of NBA fans under the age of 25. After all, the former swingman for Wisconsin did call it quits in the sport of basketball in the year 2010.
Finley was an effective scorer who possessed the unique ability to score from all three ranges at the same time. This was an unusual ability at the time. Because he spent the majority of his career playing for more successful teams, he was rarely singled out as the game’s leading scorer. This is one factor that contributed to this. Nonetheless, the fact that he was selected for two All-Star teams demonstrates how significant of a problem he was.
A one-on-one contest between Michael Jordan and Michael Finley took place when Finley was a senior in high school. The native of Illinois first garnered the attention of the rest of the country when he led his high school team to victory in the IHSA Trophy competition. What kind of recognition did this achievement bring? A confrontation with the best basketball player in the history of the game!
Also Read: WATCH: LeBron James new chain makes Twitter NBA fans go WILD
Contest Between Michael Jordan and Michael Finley Took Place When Finley Was a Senior in High School
At Deerfield, Michael Finley and Michael Jordan competed against each other in a speedy one-on-one battle as well as an H.O.R.S.E. challenge. Finley was given the first opportunity to shoot before Jordan took control of the situation and won the race 3-1.
It was a very remarkable experience for the then-18-year-old player, who went on to play for four more successful seasons at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Finley was the player with the most points scored in the history of the program when he entered the NBA Draught.
During the early years of the Dirk Nowitzki era with the Dallas Mavericks, Michael Finley was an important member of the team. In the 2002–2003 NBA season, before being eliminated by Tim Duncan and the Spurs, they came extremely close to advancing to the NBA Finals.
Also Read: Anthony Morrow, a former NBA player, was detained and accused of kidnapping and assault
After that, Finley went on to lead the Spurs to a championship while participating in the team’s rotation in the 2006–07 season. In the year that he played his last season in the NBA before retiring, he led the Boston Celtics to the championship series.
There was not a single weak spot in Michael Finley’s performance. But, because he lacked expertise in any facet of the game, it was difficult for him to ascend to the position of a game-changing superstar.
Also Read: “Fame Can Be a Drug,”- Ja Morant Offered a Compassionate Warning From Former NBA Player Jalen Rose
