乔丹在最后一次退役时写给篮球的那封信，开头是：“亲爱的篮球: 一转眼,接近28年了,从我们萍水相逢的第一天算起,28年了,从我家中车库后面看见你的第一眼算起,28年了,从我父母...”
英文原版
Dear Basketball
It's been almost 28 years since the first day we met. 28 years since I saw you in the back of our garage. 28 years since my parents intriced us.
If someone would have told me then, what would become of us, I'm not sure I would have believed them. I barely remembered your name.
Then I started seeing you around the neighborhood and watching you on television. I used to see you with guys down at the playground. But when my older brother started paying more attention to you, I started to wonder. Maybe you were different.
We hung out a few times. The more I got to know you, the more I liked you. And as life would have it, when I finally got really interested in you, when I was finally ready to get serious, left me off the varsity. You told me I wasn't good enough.
I was crushed. I was hurt. I think I even cried.
Then I waited you more than ever. So I practiced. I hustled. I worked on my game. Passing. Dribbling. Shooting. Thinking. I ran. I did sit-ups. I did push-up. I did pull-ups. I lifted weights. I studied you. I began to fall in love and you noticed. At least that's what Coach Smith said.
At the time, I wasn't sure exactly what was going on. But now I know. Coach Smith was teaching me how to love you, how to listen to you, how to understand you, how to respect you and how to appreciated you. Then it happened. That rights, at the Louisiana Superdome, in the final seconds of the championship game against Georgetown, you found me in the corner and we danced.
Since then, you've become so much more than just a ball to me. You've become more than just a court. More than just a hoop. More than just a pair of a sneakers. More than just a game.
In some respects, you've become my life. My passion. My motivation. My inspiration.
You're my biggest fan and my harshest critic. You're my dearest friend and my strongest ally. You're my most challenging teacher and my most endearing student. You're my ultimate teammate and my toughest competitor. You're my passport around the world and my visa into the hearts of millions.
So much has changed since the first day we met, and to a large degree, I have you to thank. So if you havn't heard me say it before, let me say it now for the world to hear. Thank you, Basketball. Thank you for everything.
Thank you for all the players who came before me. Thank you for all the players who went into battle with me. Thank you for the championships and the rings. Thank you for the All-Star Games and the Playoffs. Thank you for the last shots, the buzzer-beaters, the hard fouls, the victories and the defeats. thank you for making me earn my keep. Thank you for #2
3. Thank you for north Carolina and Chicago. Thank you for the air and the nickname. Thank you for the moves and the hang time. Thank you for the Slam-Dunk Contest. Thank you for the will and the determination, the heart and the soul, the pride and the courage. Thank you for the competitive spirit and the competition to challenge it. Thank you for the failures and the setbacks, the blessings and the applause. Thank you for the triangle. Thank you for the baseball and the Barons. Thank you for forgiving me. Thank you for the assistant coaches, the trainers and the physical therapists. Thank you for the announcers, the refs, the writers, the reporters, the broadcasters and the radio stations. Thank you for the Pistons and the Lakers, the Cavs and the Knicks, the Sixers and the Celtics. Thank you for Phoenix, Portland, Seattle and Utah. thank you for the Wizards. Thank you for the believers and the doubters. Thank you for Coach Smith, Coach Loughery, Coach Albeck, Coach Collins and Coach Jackson. Thank you for the ecation and the experience. Thank you for teaching me the game behind, beneath, within, above and around the game...the game game. Thank you for every fan who has ever called my name, put their hands together for me and my teammates, slapped me five or patted me on the back. Thank you for everything you've given my family. Thank you for the moon and the stars, and last but not least, thank you for Bugs and Mars.
I know I'm notthe only one who loves you. I know you have loved many before me and will love many after me. But, I also know what we had was unique. It was special. So as our relationship, changes yet again, as all relationships do, one thing is for sure.
I love you, Basketball. I love everything about you and I always will. My playing days in the NBA are definitely over, but our relatinship will never end.
Much Love and Respect,
Michael Jordan
译文：
亲爱的篮球：
一转眼，接近28年了，从我们萍水相逢的第一天算起，28年了，从我家中车库后面看见你的第一眼算起，28年了，从我父母介绍我们认识算起。
如果那时候就有人告诉我，将来我们之间可能发生些什么，我不知道自己会不会相信他们，因为我几乎不记得你的名字。
我们接触的次数渐渐多了起来，每当我对你多了解一分，我对你的喜爱也就加深了一分。但是生活注定是难以捉摸，当我真正为你痴迷，决心全心投入时，你却让我落选了校队。你告诉我，我还不够出色。
我被击垮了，我的心在刺痛，我甚至觉得泪水悄然滴落。
但我对你的渴望愈发迫切。于是，我开始训练，和大家一起比赛。不断提高自己！传球，运球，投篮，琢磨，奔跑，我练仰卧起坐，我练卧推，我练急停，我练举重，我学习着有关你的一切。我开始深深的爱上你，并且希望得到你的青睐，至少，史密斯教练是这样评价我的。
当时，其实我并不清楚到底发生了什么是。但我现在已经知道了。史密夫教练教会了我如何爱你、学会倾听你、尝试了解你、尊重你并且感谢你。接着，一切就这样发生了。那一晚，在路易斯安娜的超级圆顶球场，在对佐治城大学冠军赛结束前的那一刻，你在球场边静静地凝视我，我们跳起了舞来。
那以后，你对我来所变得更加重要，比起普通的一个球场更加重要，比不同的一个篮圈更加重要，比普通的一场球赛更加重要。
可以从某种程度上说——你是我的生命——我的激情，我的原动力，我的鼓励。
你总是我最忠诚的球迷，对于我来说，也是最严厉的批评家。你是我最亲密的伙伴，却也是我最强劲的敌人。你使是我最激动的老师，也是我最挚爱的学生。你是我最信任的队友，也是场上最难对付的对手。你是我在全世界行动的通行证以及能紧紧扎住数以万计人心灵的签证。
自从我和你第一次见面以后——时光荏苒，岁月沧桑。一切都有了太多的变化。如果你当初接受我的邀请，一切都将是另一个面貌。让我想却世界面前向你告白：多谢，多谢——篮球，多谢你给予我的一切东西。
感谢当代所有的球员，感谢那些曾经和我并肩作战的老队友，感谢那冠军戒指，感谢全明星赛和季候赛。感谢那最后一投。即便是计时器、激烈的对抗、胜利与败北也值得感谢。是你们为我赚到了生活费。感谢曾经的23号球衣，感谢北卡与芝加哥，感谢“空中飞人”这一搓好。感谢我那移动和瞳孔的时间。感谢我的意志和决定，感谢心灵和领会，感谢骄傲与勇气。同样感谢的是三角战术，感谢棒球和巴朗斯。感谢所有人能原谅我。感谢阻力教练、训练员、理疗师，感谢场边所有的报道员、球探、专栏作家、记者、电台和电视台。感谢活塞、湖人、骑士、尼克斯、76人、凯尔特人、太阳、开拓者、超音速、爵士和魔术队。感谢所有曾经怀疑过我的人。当然值得感谢的还有史密夫教练、洛克利教练、格凌斯教练等各位教练。感谢我所有的教育和经验。感谢在我球赛背后许许多多，上中下得球员球迷们。感谢你们只许我的名字，为我和我的队友们鼓掌助威，为我鼓掌或者轻拍我的后辈的所有球迷。感谢你们赐予我及我的家人的一切。月亮、行星同样值得感谢，最要感谢的是那些在广告中扮演我的演员们。
我知道深爱你的人不知我一个。在我之前，又太多的人追求你，今后也会一样，你总会被人爱慕。不过，我知道我们所获得的是独一无二的、是特别的。因此，我们的关系即使在其改变，就像是所有的关系一样——但又一件事是可以肯定的。
我爱你，篮球。
迈克尔乔丹。
