Michael Jordan vs Nick Galis: an epic game

Back in 1983, Michael Jordan, at 20 years old, travelled to Greece with the University of North Carolina team to play against Greece’s national team at Alexandreio Court in Thessaloniki. For Greek fans, the game was a rare showcase, watching an American team play against Greece’s finest. At the time, Nicos Galis, the Greek basketball sensation, was 26 and a must-see for all sports fans. Jordan was only 20, but he was already the king of the court, scoring 34 points against Galis’ 24. Jordan found it difficult to guard him during the game.

North Carolina won 100-83 that night, but young Jordan was nonetheless impressed by Galis’ performance. “He is a complete player. I didn’t expect to see such a scorer from Europe”, Jordan told reporters after the game. Galis was hailed as the Greek Jordan though rumour has it when Jordan went back to the US, a Greek fan of the Bulls told him “welcome back, American Galis”.

A video of that game found its way into Nikos Galis’ archives, and he released it to the public in recent years. The video was intended for the archive of the legendary coach Dean Smith, who led North Carolina in those glory years.