Whenever Michael Jordan's name is mentioned, the expectation is that he scored at will. However, the scenario was different when he came out of retirement for a second time. This was the time MJ decided to suit up for the Washington Wizards.

However, Michael was already 38 years old at that point. Also, Jordan had not played NBA ball for three years since retiring with the Chicago Bulls in 1998.

To get back into playing shape, Michael spent much of the spring and summer of 2001 training. He also held invitation-only training camps in Chicago as part of his preparations to return to pro basketball.

In his first six games, "His Airness" showed he could still keep up with the stars of that time -- he had a couple of 32-point games. Unfortunately, Jordan and the Wizards lost those two games (vs. the Boston Celtics and the Golden State Warriors).

MJ's off-night

Like any basketball player, off-nights are normal. However, it was a big deal for someone like MJ, as most fans had high expectations. That was apparent when the Wizards faced the Seattle Supersonics.

In that matchup, Jordan had an atrocious shooting performance, making 5 of 26 shots. That included Michael missing his first 14 attempts, finishing with a season-low 16 points. Making matters worse, Washington lost its fourth-straight game that season after a 2-1 start to the campaign.

"'It was just one of those situations where I found myself laughing because, as hard as I was trying, I just couldn't get it to fall," Jordan said after that 99-84 loss to the Sonics via the New York Times.

Despite the woeful scoring output, Michael avoided snapping his NBA record streak of 847 games with at least 10 points.

Related: "I'm trying to knock the hell out of Rodman" - Michael Jordan on how he beat Dennis Rodman in his own game during the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals

Frustrated MJ

Jordan admitted that the only thing he could do was laugh about it. With his performance, the North Carolina product knew that fans would not be pleased with what they saw.

"They booed us in the third quarter, and they should have because we really did not look like a cohesive team," he stated.

Mike and the Wizards hoped to compensate for that loss in their subsequent assignments. Unfortunately, they went on to lose their next four contests, extending their losing streak to eight games. Washington finally snapped that skid on November 24, 2001, when they triumphed over the Boston Celtics, 88-84.

The Wizards finished the 2001-02 season with a 37-45 win-loss record. More was needed to push them to the playoffs, finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference. Jordan and the company found some consolation in the fact that they were not the worst team at the time. Ironically, MJ's former team, the Bulls, had the worst record in the East that year (21-61).

Despite falling short in his first season with the Wizards, Jordan remained confident he could lead Washington to a respectable finish. Failure was not an option for him, something he boldly stated in October 2001.

"I'm not walking into this scenario thinking I'm going to fail. I'm thinking I'm going to make it work," Jordan stated.

Unfortunately for Michael, he was never able to keep that vow. Jordan also failed to lead the Wizards in the 2002-03 season, finishing with a 37-45 win-loss record once again. The 6-foot-6 guard would retire for a third and final time, something that could have been sweeter if he had at least led Washington to a postseason appearance.

Related: "He was tired of being a Jordannaire" - Inside the tense standoff between Rip Hamilton and MJ