Michael Jordan Photos by David Banks

Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan celebrates the Bulls’ second championship against the Portland Trailblazers in 1992 in Chicago

Image Credit: David Banks

Photographer David Banks: “Chicago became Michael Jordan’s town. The love that city had for him was amazing. It was a complete transformation for the city. As a sports fan and as a photographer, you just knew you were witnessing the greatest. This was the Bulls win against the Portland Trailblazers on June 14, 1992 for their second NBA championship. I had to jump on a scorers table to get this shot. You can feel the pride and euphoria of both Jordan and the fans in this shot. Jordan had been held scoreless for the first 11 minutes of the game in this sixth game of the playoff series, 97-94.”
Jordan’s classic mid-air flight during the 1991 NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers

Image Credit: David Banks

“Getting these overhead shots was really something, very old school way of shooting where you had to climb into the rafters and pray that you don’t drop anything on the players. This was the old Chicago stadium, and it was kind of a seedy place on its last legs. If you wanted to shoot from above, you had to see the facilities manager — who wasn’t exactly the most pleasant fellow. He would have to go and walk through rafters, which were really filthy, and there were a lot of rats at the stadium. There wasn’t much to stabilize you and I was like — please, God, don’t let me drop anything on Michael Jordan. You knew the entire population of Chicago would be out to get you. The facilities manager would let one photographer up there at a time to get these overhead shots.”
Portrait of Jordan on the bench in 1988

Image Credit: David Banks

“Most sports photographers will focus on the action on the court. But with Jordan, I realized this was a special person. I started taking photos of him off the court to capture his focus and intensity even when he wasn’t out on the court. Even when he wasn’t on the court, he was on the court — and you can see that right on his expression. I started photographing him from all angles: not just action shots but back of his head, portrait moments, all of it. He wanted to be great. I never saw him play a mediocre game. This shot is a portrait of Jordan on the bench in 1988.”
June 1991: NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers

Image Credit: David Banks

“Again, this was shot from the rafters and I was trying to capture the brotherhood of the team. They were going for the first league championship against the Lakers and there was a lot of skepticism about whether Jordan and the Bulls could really take down Magic — who was already a legend. Phil Jackson was in his second season coaching the Bulls, and the Bulls had really toughened up defensively by this time thanks to his coaching. Leading up to this moment, I had photographed the team as they got through “Jordan Rules” Detroit games which were very physical, charged games. The Bulls had really toughened up by this time and they made it happen.”
The two greatest: Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan squaring off in 1988

Image Credit: David Banks

“This was just before Phil Jackson became coach and you can see Doug Collins in the background. The intensity of them staring at each other really captures the intensity of the moment. Magic’s attempt to guard Jordan and Jordan’s defiance really captured a moment in time when Jordan was becoming the stuff of legend.”
Jordan warms up in 1990

Image Credit: David Banks

“This was shot during warm-ups in 1990 and the intensity of Jordan even during practice was something I knew needed to be documented. MJ was known for bringing the best out of his teammates during practice.”
Michael Jordan and Larry Bird during Jordan’s rookie season, 1984-1985

Image Credit: David Banks

“This was probably his second month playing for the Bulls. There wasn’t too much coverage of the Bulls yet, so you can see I’m positioned in a great spot right under the basket. I usually prefocused on the basket because I knew that’s where Jordan would be. Photographing these games took great skill as all these early photos were shot with pre-digital manual focus cameras.”
Sneakerheads will appreciate this photo as the two of them are wearing important shoes for sneaker culture history: Bird wears Converse The Weapon which was the shoe to have in the NBA. Released in 1985, it was worn by both Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in the late 80’s. Michael Jordan is in the Air Jordan I. The Nike “Air Jordan” is one of the most iconic designs in the history of both streetwear and basketball. The swoosh disappeared in the second year of the shoe. A pair of Michael Jordan’s game-worn, autographed sneakers from his rookie season sold at an online Sotheby’s auction for $560,000 earlier this year.
Michael Jordan plays against Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics during the 1984-1985 season

Image Credit: David Banks

“Jordan had an incredible year and was of course named Rookie of the Year. Larry Bird was already one of the great players by this time. I think he saw in Jordan that same intensity he had. Jordan established his dominance early on as a rookie with the Bulls: He averaged 28 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals. Larry Bird once told reporters after a game in Boston: ‘I didn’t think anyone was capable of doing what Michael has done to us. He is the most exciting, awesome player in the game today. I think it’s just God disguised as Michael Jordan.'”
Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen celebrate Chicago’s fifth NBA championship in Game 6 against the Utah Jazz on June 13, 1997

Image Credit: David Banks

“Jordan still hadn’t fully recovered from his infamous ‘flu game’ a few days prior and Scottie Pippen was reportedly playing with an injured toe. On their home floor, the Bulls asserted their dominance and led with 39 points.”
Trail Blazers vs. Chicago Bulls in June 3, 1992 NBA Finals Game

Image Credit: David Banks

“The first game of the series and the game that gave Jordan a record of three-point shots made of the season, a display that came with the infamous shrug. Here, Michael Jordan drives on Clyde Drexler. Photographing Jordan with his tongue out was always great — you knew he was in the zone. Here, he’s also playing against the team that had the opportunity to draft him: You see, the reason why Jordan was drafted third — because the Trail Blazers drafted Sam Bowie. The reason was because they already had Drexler who was a guard, and they didn’t need another guard. So they drafted a center instead of Jordan. Another sneaker detail, Michael Jordan’s Bulls wore black sneakers during their playoff runs. Here, he’s wearing the Air Jordan VII in the Black/True Red colorway.”
Bulls win against the Portland Trailblazers June 14, 1992

Image Credit: David Banks

“This was the Bulls win against the Portland Trailblazers June 14, 1992 for their second NBA championship. I was trying to get into the locker room at the old Chicago Stadium and was being crushed in a very narrow hallway. I was aiming my camera at Jordan but also getting crushed by the throngs of fans and also the former Chicago Bears offensive lineman Dan Jiggets, who was a sportscaster at the time. There were so many people trying to get into the locker room, so I said, ‘Fuck this,’ and went back out onto the court. The team and the fans were so excited, and I jumped up on the scorers table to get this shot while security was yelling at me.”
1991 NBA Playoffs Bulls vs Sixers

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“Jordan going up for a dunk: As a photographer, this is the moment you live for.”
Jordan in Number 45 Bulls jersey

Image Credit: David Banks

“This was Jordan’s second game back from retirement and he’s wearing the number 45 jersey (his number with the Barons) as his previous number 23 had been retired. On March 18, 1995, Jordan announced his return to the NBA through a short-and-sweet press release. It simply read: ‘I’m back.’ About seven weeks later, Jordan returned to his familiar number 23.”

Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan celebrates the Bulls’ second championship against the Portland Trailblazers in 1992 in Chicago

Jordan’s classic mid-air flight during the 1991 NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers

Portrait of Jordan on the bench in 1988

June 1991: NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers

The two greatest: Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan squaring off in 1988

Jordan warms up in 1990

Michael Jordan and Larry Bird during Jordan’s rookie season, 1984-1985

Michael Jordan plays against Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics during the 1984-1985 season

Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen celebrate Chicago’s fifth NBA championship in Game 6 against the Utah Jazz on June 13, 1997

Trail Blazers vs. Chicago Bulls in June 3, 1992 NBA Finals Game

Bulls win against the Portland Trailblazers June 14, 1992

1991 NBA Playoffs Bulls vs Sixers

Jordan in Number 45 Bulls jersey