Michael Jordan--Colville Confederated Tribes--and the 1970 UPS Loggers
The Year the University of Puget Sound Basketall Team Went to the NCAA Championships
“Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination.” (Nelson Mandela)
Note: Harlem Indian decided to publish this article, partly as a response to the question “Who is the Most Famous Living Indian?” Harlem Indian’s opinion is that Michael Jordan, a member of the Colville Confederated Tribes, is a basketball player who was poised on the edge of fame in 1970, and as a player of that game favored by , could easily have appeared in some of Sherman’s writings. Sherman could have featured him—and since he didn’t, Harlem Indian will.
The year was 1970, and for one Indian student athlete--a member of the Colville Confederated Tribes--University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington became a harbor of safety from the effects of poverty and racism. A place where his innate talents would be fostered. His name is Michael Jordan (yes, really). He was an acknowledged champion who helped put UPS sports on the map when his team became the first-ever Loggers basketball team to be invited to the NCAA Championships.
As a Trail student newspaper article said at the end of the 1970 Loggers season,: “But the excitement which… graduating seniors Mike Jordan and Dave Beba, have created at Puget Sound has brought on a basketball fever which has carried over from the campus to the community. The University with less than 3000 regular students is one of the smallest campuses in the nation to achieve the heights which our athletic program has reached. Much of the progress has been gained in the last few years and the basketball program rates as one of top reasons for this progress...”
Michael Jordan’s journey to the NCAA Tournament had some road bumps that were unique to a young Indian player. He first played for Seattle University, where he faced a racist environment. His style of playing was labelled “Indian Basketball”, he was called Chief by some of the students, and there was an attempt to block him from playing because he had participated in an Indian League.
The way Michael tells it, he was fighting depression when Coach Jim Harney saw his potential and recruited him for UPS. At UPS he found a sports home. His playing blossomed, his family was given help in finding housing and work, easing the pain of potential poverty. As Michael says, “Coach Harney spent the extra one-on-one time needed to bring me up to championship playing level. We spent hours on drills, breaking old habits and developing new ones.” Harney’s efforts paid off. Michael Jordan was an important member of this successful team.
Caption under this picture: “Jordan’s progress parallels the team’s, as each game reflects more skill and poise.”
Another statement drawn from the archives of the UPS Trail from that era, is: “In a tribute to the seniors though, they have made the team winners. Their experience has proved invaluable and their basketball skills have been feared and looked up to by every opponent… Jordan who came on strong at the end of the season didn't get the credit he deserved for being the real center of the Logger attack.”
University of Puget Sound Trail Student Newspaper, 3/19/1970
As successful as the team was, and as successful as he was as an individual player, his journey was not without stress. As a tribal member, Michael felt alone on campus until he found a spiritual home in the Indian Club. He understood what was at stake in the epic struggle for tribal fishing rights and sovereignty happening on the traditional homeland of the Puyallup and Nisqually tribes. It was 4 years before the Boldt Decision would happen, but Michael knew that history and justice were on the side of those who chose to fight for tribal sovereignty. Always loyal to his Indian ancestry, aware that he was a descendant of Chief Kamiakin of the Yakama Nation--when the opportunity came to support the Fishing Rights struggle, he did so on campus, helping to finance the Puyallup/Nisqually fishing warriors by selling Puyallup-caught salmon out of the Student Union and even visiting Frank’s Landing, developing a friendship with Billy Frank Jr. He understood that the UPS community was being challenged to decide where they stood in the arc of history. He aimed to never forget who he is, while for the time being, his personal focus was on making a name in the sport of basketball.
Even at that young age, though, Jordan recognized the importance of the sport for his community back home. It provides a foundation of pride and excellence to combat any powers that might lead young people in the direction of failure. In a recent interview, he said, “One thing that brings pride to any community is sport, and in Indian Country, especially basketball. You can play it anywhere, don’t need a bunch of equipment.”
Arguably one of the most talented athletes to ever graduate from this school, if all had gone well with his life, his name might be as well-known as the other Michael Jordan. As it was, in his personal and professional life, he dealt with specific challenges faced by people coming from a culture which is both rooted in incredible excellence (thinking here of Sonny Sixkiller, Jim Thorpe, Maria Tallchief, Marjon Beauchamp and Billy Mills) and in grueling and sometimes debilitating challenges, the overcoming of which provides its own form of championship.
Michael played a short stint with the Seattle SuperSonics and Lenny Wilkins. He also went on to represent the United States in international competitions, travelling to China and Puerto Rico.
Recently, he has been putting his focus and attention toward developing that sense of pride in his communities through sport and therapy. He has a Masters degree in psychology, and has been involved in wellness and treatment programs in the Denver and Spokane areas, including The NATIVE Project, which is a patient centered care model that embraces action, education, culture and spirituality on the road to healing and wellness. He continues to play basketball when he is able, and has done coaching and mentoring throughout the years.