Brendan Haywood, a former teammate of Michael Jordan as a member of the Washington Wizards and fellow University of North Carolina product shared a few anecdotes of his incredible work ethic, even at the advanced age of 40 years old back when Jordan returned to the NBA in the early 2000s.

Haywood, a highly-regarded seven-footer drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers, played his first eight-and-a-half seasons with the Wizards, including his first two with Jordan — enough to bring him plenty of stories of his well-storied work behind the scenes.

“We came back from a really long road trip, West Coast trip. We had a day off,” Haywood told John Gonzalez of The Ringer. “The veterans didn’t even have to be in. The younger guys had to come in, of course. I think I got in at like 10 [a.m.]. And I got there and I heard a ball bouncing. Mike was on the court, already sweated out. He was finishing his workout.”

“I got there at 10, everyone had an off day, some of the other young guys were getting there. He was finishing his workout. And I was like, “Mike, what are you doing here, man? It’s your day off.” And he was like, “You’re asking the wrong questions. The question is not ‘You’re asking what am I doing here?’ The question is, ‘Why’d I beat you?’”

“It was little things like that that you always take with you. At 40 years old, he was still the guy who was showing up at 8 o’clock to get his work done and do what he needed to do even though, at that point, he was already known as the most successful player of all time.”

Michael Jordan Wizards
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Jordan never stopped working throughout his storied 15-year career in the league, and even if his joints weren't the same at 40, he was still putting in the work it took to continue being at the highest level.

His Airness didn't have the lift that once made him the poster child of Nike, then evolving into his very own brand; but his mastery of post-moves and the mid-range jumper made him a 20-point scorer, even in his last season in the league.

His lessons eventually were engraved into legend and into anecdotes like this one that somehow become ageless and ethereal.