Michael’s secret stuff: Jordan’s NASCAR team is soaring this season

One special activity ahead of NASCAR's return to Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet was an open air showing of the movie “Space Jam” at Navy Pier.

This is the 30-year anniversary of the live action-animation mashup starring Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny.

Driver Bubba Wallace, who hosted the movie showing, talked about watching it non-stop on the VCR as a kid. He also pointed out how some people in the media center were already adults when “Space Jam” first hit theaters in '96. Cruel, but true.

Wallace works for Jordan these days. He was the first driver signed to the 23XI racing team, co-owned by Jordan and driving legend Denny Hamlin.

Asked Saturday what it's like to work for Jordan, Wallace responded it feels like an old question, since this is the sixth year of the partnership.

But there's a different level of success this season. When 23XI Racing began, it felt like Jordan was dabbling in NASCAR. Just another hobby, something to do when he wasn't cruising the Caribbean in a giant yacht.

Since then, Jordan sold his stake in the Charlotte Hornets and 23XI took off. Driver Tyler Reddick leads the circuit with five victories, including Daytona, and currently sits a close second in the points standings to Hamlin, his other boss.

“It starts with him,” Wallace said of Jordan. “It's not just throwing money at something hoping it succeeds. He understands the business and makes the most of it each and every weekend. We've had an incredible year as a team and it's getting better every week.”

Will Jordan be in Joliet on Sunday, ready to fire up a victory cigar if one of his four drivers wins the race? Let's ask Reddick.

“When he is here, it's nice to have him,” Reddick said. “Whether he's here or not, he's always checking in, seeing how things are going.”

OK, that sounds like a polite, “Probably not.”

Two weeks ago, 23XI driver Corey Heim delivered his first career win at the Coronado Naval Base. Jordan wasn't there to help celebrate.

“I got a pretty quick text from him,” Heim said. “He's been one of my biggest believers from the very beginning of me being on this contract.”

Maybe Jordan should be here Sunday. It's not like his greatness will ever fade in Chicago, but 30 years after “Space Jam,” we're rapidly approaching an era where no one under 40 will have memories of watching him play basketball live.

There's already too many people on social media trying to proclaim LeBron James the NBA's GOAT. Us oldsters can only shake our heads and state, “No one who saw both of them play believes that,” so many times.

Jordan's comeback with the Wizards was pretty meh. He couldn't turn the Hornets into winners, though he did cash out big-time when he sold the team.

But 23XI has been a different story. First, Jordan played minor-league baseball. Now he might produce a NASCAR champion. He should probably be flaunting that crossover success.

This partnership began when Jordan pulled Hamlin aside at a Hornets game nearly 20 years ago to talk auto racing. The pair became golfing buddies, then business partners.

It is a strange arrangement. Hamlin drives for Joe Gibbs Racing, but is co-owner of 23XI. He openly talks about sitting in on strategy sessions and mentoring 23XI's young drivers. This is the equivalent of Jordan playing for the Bulls while he owned the Hornets (or Wizards). As Hamlin puts it, he began his retirement job a few years before retiring.

“I figure while I'm here (racing) for this little while longer, might as well just (share advice),” Hamlin said Saturday. “And if they beat me, they beat me.”

Earlier this year, Jordan described his role on the racing team in an interview with CBS Morning News.

“What I add to this team is the mindset of what it takes to win,” Jordan said. “I challenge them, I talk trash to them, I give scenarios that I want them to think about — what it takes to be a winner.”

Here's a suggestion: Jordan should make “Space Jam” required viewing for his employees. His fourth driver, Riley Herbst, was born in 1999, three years after the film's release.

“I've never seen 'Space Jam,'” Herbst said. “Kind of a crazy quote. I know my boss was in it, but I don't think that's what made him famous.”

Yes, but it's probably time for Herbst to learn all about “Michael's Secret Stuff.”