Michael Jordan once made sure a fan won $1 million after he knocked down an 80-foot shot during a timeout of a Chicago Bulls home game.
It's normal for NBA teams to host in-arena entertainment during timeouts. For the Bulls on April 13, 1994, one of them was a three-quarter-court shot contest with a chance to win $1 million. This challenge was a regular fixture for Bulls home games that season and would be the 19th time someone attempted the shot. After all, the odds of an average Joe actually making a shot from the other side of the free throw line with zero warmup was less than 1%. That theory was true until a 23-year-old salesman named Don Calhoun was chosen to do the challenge.
As Calhoun's name was called, he remembered looking at his hiking boots, thinking about his brother who passed away five years ago telling him the Bulls would be a dynasty, and hearing the instructions from the organizers that he must not shoot the ball beyond the free throw line.
Even before he attempted the shot, Calhoun said he knew it was going in. Fate was in his corner that day since it was his first Bulls game in three years and only had tickets to see the game after his friend gave him two.
He threw the ball similar to how Tom Brady would throw a 25-yard touchdown pass and the ball swished through the net. Calhoun was given a standing ovation from everyone in United Center and received high-fives from every Bulls player, including Michael Jordan who told him: āGreat shot kid!ā
However, due to ātechnicalities' with the insurer's policies, Calhoun was close to never receiving his prize.
Why Calhoun was initially denied his $1 million prize
One key stipulation in most in-arena contests is that the contestant can't have played an āorganizedā version of the sport for a certain period before the contest. In Calhoun's case, he did write in the form he played college basketball for two little-known schools in Chicago three years ago, but all the contest organizers gave him was a shrug.
Calhoun did receive an early prize; a basketball autographed by all the Bulls players. However, he couldn't get Jordan's signature the night he made his shot since he already left when he made it to the locker room.
Jordan saves the day
Calhoun was determined to get Michael Jordan to sign his lucky basketball. After a year, his mission was successful. Calhoun met him while Jordan was watching one of his son's basketball games. As he approached Jordan to have him sign his basketball, the first thing Jordan did was ask him whether he got his money.
After Calhoun said yes, Jordan revealed he was instrumental in making sure Calhoun got the money he deserved:
āWe made them give it to you. We were upset that they were trying to not pay you.ā Jordan added.
As per ESPN, Calhoun was paid $50,000 annually for the next 20 years. He used the money to pay off his mortgage, invest in his children's education, and donated a portion to charity.
When Michael Jordan Helped Fan WIN $1,000,000 š¤ I Clutch #Shorts ā YouTube
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