Hornets' Miles Bridges Challenges Michael Jordan 1-on-1 After Seeing 2015 Quote

Five years ago, Michael Jordan said he could still beat Hornets players at one-on-one.

Miles Bridges is ready to see if he can back up that talk in the year 2020. The Hornets forward tweeted out a challenge to His Airness early Sunday:

MJ is 57 years old and hasn't played competitive basketball in more than 15 years. Bridges is a 22-year-old who can leap out of the gym. If Bridges couldn't beat Jordan at one-on-one at this moment, it would say far more about him than it would the greatest shooting guard of all time.

We know Jordan hasn't always been above beating down his players on the floor. Former Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist revealed MJ beat him in one-on-one during his rookie season.

“He did play me 1-on-1 one time,” Kidd-Gilchrist told CSN Houston (via NBC Sports) in 2013. “And it was hard for me … I lost. I lost to a 50-year-old guy. That’s my boss, though. He’s the best player to play the game.”

At the time, Jordan was just shy of his 50th birthday. There remains a significant difference between a 49-year-old body and a 57-year-old body, which may be the reason Jordan has stopped playing against his players.

If we've learned anything from The Last Dance, it's that MJ doesn't gamble in head-to-head competition unless he thinks he has a significant advantage. As he quickly approaches age 60, he probably realizes his time on the court is finished.