“Michael, Michael, Michael,” and with the third ever so polite calling of his name, Michael Jeffrey Jordan, the G.O.A.T. (Greatest of ALL TIME) and the reason for mevsMJ.com, stopped his conversation with a gentleman mid stride as he walked right by me this past Saturday night.

In what seemed to me to be a super slow motion exchange, Michael turned back to me and I asked MJ, “Can I give you this?” as I extended my hand.

“This” being a mevsMJ.com card.  On one side Michael himself going up for a slam dunk and on the other, information about me and my goal of playing him 1-on-1. (click here to see front and back of card)

Void of hesitation, Mr. Jordan reached back, took the card from my hand, and said, “Thanks man!”

He then turned, looked down at the card now in his hand and proceeded to enter the elevator which was just steps away, checking out the card the entire time.

MICHAEL JORDAN KNOWS!!!!

Some 10 months ago when Jeff Jordan granted my wish and put out a retweet about this site, I always wondered, did he mention it to his dad?

A little after 7 pm on December 3rd (12/3), I no longer had to wonder if MJ knew.  I could say with certainty that there was absolutely NO DOUBT that MICHAEL JORDAN NOW KNOWS ABOUT ME and mevsMJ.com!!!

I can’t even begin to explain how surreal that feels!

I GAVE MICHAEL JORDAN…THE MICHAEL JORDAN…A mevsMJ.com CARD!!!!  WOW!!!!!

My Last Second Shot Attempt Goes In!

The whole night played out like a highly contested Game 6 of the NBA Finals (at least for me).

– First Quarter –

I arrived at UCF arena around 4:30 pm for the 5 pm game vs. Hartford (I recently purchased season tickets in the premium seating area at the arena).

Due to Marcus Jordan’s tweet around 3 pm stating that “Pops in town”, I had a strong feeling that my opportunity to come face to face with the legend may come later that night.  When I saw the message on my phone my heart immediately began racing.  I was probably as excited/nervous as I can ever remember being.

– Second Quarter –

Just after tipoff, I turned my head and there he was!  Walking a mere 10 to 15 feet from me, dressed in a pure white t-shirt, white ball cap, and jeans, MJ had arrived!  Accompanied by a few people and now already a little over a minute into the game, I decided I wouldn’t even try to stop him at that point, because I knew he was wanting to get to his seat and watch his sons play ball.  After all, that is why he was there!

– Third Quarter –

The way the premium seats are set up, there is a bar, seating and television monitors, directly behind the sections on each side of the arena for the seat holders in our areas.

At halftime I made my way across the arena, thinking I would grab a bottle of water from the bar and perhaps be able to talk with MJ about my journey.  Unfortunately, I was greeted by a security guard tasked to keep people out.  As I spoke to her, I looked over and there was Michael Jordan now facing my direction, just five feet away!

Now within earshot I could easily have called out to him and wished for the best, but that’s just not me.  Instead, I stood there for a moment, excited and a bit down that I was this close to my dream and yet so far away.

After a minute or two, I went back to my area, deflated but still hopeful.

– Fourth Quarter with just seconds on the clock –

With the game now over and UCF having won by 19, I sat in my seat for a moment and thought about the night before collecting my belongings.

As I began to leave, time slowed down.

With just seconds of opportunity still remaining, here came Michael Jordan!

With a group of friends including an on duty deputy sheriff, Michael and a gentleman were talking with one another as they walked some five to seven paces behind the others, as they all made their way to their exit.

Literally two seconds before he would have been gone, before opportunity had expired on this night, the exchange that began this post took place!

Much like MJ shaking free of Bryon Russell, I had taken a shot in the final seconds and scored!

Anything Really Is Possible!

Over two years ago I came up with the idea of mevsMJ.com.  It was to be a pure walk to play basketball with my childhood hero Michael Jordan.  Nothing more, nothing less.

Just over 15 and a half months ago, this site was born.

On Saturday, after 117 posts, over 88,000 words, through training, injuries and unbelievable experiences, all of the hard work and unwavering faith paid off!!

I had come face to face with Michael Jordan!  Contact had been made!

1:41:04 and 116

I awoke early Sunday, tired from lack of sleep but with a rather large smile having put up camp on my face, I was still amazed as I reflected on the previous night’s happenings.

I made a cup of coffee and figured I would do something I don’t typically do and check Google Analytics to see if there had been any out of the ordinary activity on my site.

What I found in the silence of the morning absolutely blew me away!

On Saturday night, someone from a town in Illinois, that had never before been to my site in its existence, on one visit, spent 1 hour, 41 minutes and 4 seconds on mevsMJ.com and viewed 116 different pages!

Oh and yes, I looked it up, Mr. Jordan does own a home there!

In HIS Hands

I’ve said before that God has a plan for me.

There really is not a better way to describe what is happening on this journey than to give credit where credit is due.

Saturday didn’t happen because of me, it happened because of HIM.

I’ve always felt that if the journey was pure, that when stripped away at the essence of it all was a walk towards something far larger than basketball, that me vs. Michael Jordan would happen…in HIS time.

I’ve written before that sure, playing basketball with Michael Jordan is my dream, but that the journey can speak to anyone.  I’ve always wanted to inspire others to pursue their passion, whatever it may be, even if they stand alone in belief that it is possible.  I will tell you that I can count on one hand and not use all of my fingers when allotting for the number of people that truly believed in this walk when it began.  I heard the negativity and doubt laying all over the words coming my way from others, but I always smiled and pushed forward because I BELIEVED!

Having faith and the belief that anything is possible is a powerful thing.  It’s something that I hope those reading this will try to find again.

The journey here of course is not complete.  I don’t know if I will hear from Michael Jordan today, tomorrow, or 16 months from now.

What I do believe and what I’ve always believed is that me vs. MJ, WILL HAPPEN!

It has too!

The ball is in your court now Mr. Jordan!  I hope to hear from you soon!

me vs. MJ…the very real journey continues!  As always, thank you so very much for your support and for following along!

Connect:  Twitter (@KennyEller) and mevsMJ.com Facebook Fan Page.