http://www.cnbc.com/id/37471683

Michael
Jordan might be retired, but he』s still the most powerful force in the
basketball marketing world. He has proved that in the shoe business and
now he』ll get his chance on a video game cover.

 Jason Argent, vice
president of marketing for 2K Sports, confirmed to CNBC.com that the
Charlotte Bobcats owner will appear on the cover of NBA 2K11, which will
hit stores on Oct. 5.

「We』
ve made a lot of progress over the past 10 years, but we know we have
the best NBA video game ever made here,」 Argent said. 「So we
thought to ourselves how can we embody that and there was only one
person on that list who we wanted to have and that was Michael Jordan.
Actually getting this done is the most ridiculous win of all-time.」

「Michael』s last
appearance in a video game was in 2004 and over that time the video game
industry had continued to grow,」 said Estee Portnoy, Jordan』s
business manager. 「We had been hearing that there was demand from
the gamers to have him in the game and this came along and made a lot of
sense.」

Argent
wasn』t ready to talk about specifics of how Jordan would appear in the
game other than to say that there will be 「some really good
surprises.」 Argent did however guarantee that the game would be the
best selling game in the 10-year history of 2K Sports.

「It』s an honor to be
featured on the cover of NBA 2K11,」 Jordan said, in a statement. 「I
have no doubt that NBA 2K11 will be a big hit with gamers and
basketball fans alike. I』m looking forward to getting back out on the
court, virtually.」

2K
Sports hasn』t suffered from a lack of attention lately. The company
recently gave away $1 million to a 23-year-old gamer for pitching and
recording a perfect game in its Major League Baseball 2K10 title.

The Jordan announcement
follows the announcement earlier this week that Wayne Gretzky would
appear on the cover of NHL Slapshot, EA』s hockey game for the Wii.

So what』s wrong with all
the active players?

Argent
said that his choice to select a retired athlete over current athlete
shouldn』t come as a slight to those playing in the league, who of course
will be included in the game.

「I think everyone who is playing greatly reveres
what Michael meant and still means to the game of basketball,」
Argent said.

Jordan
has had an interesting history with video games. Due to a licensing
agreement he had with the NBA, his rights weren』t part of the group
licensing agreement that included all the other players—meaning his
likeness didn』t automatically appear in many games while he was playing.

Jordan, through Nike』
s Jordan brand

[NKE 
72.04 
 
0.86 
(+1.21%)
 
]

, still sells the majority of premium basketball shoes
in the United States. He also has endorsement deals with Hanes,
Gatorade, Upper Deck and Five Star Fragrances. Aside from being the
owner of the Bobcats, he has a motorsports team, is a partner in
restaurant business and owns Nissan dealerships in North Carolina.

Jordan played 15 seasons
in the NBA—13 with the Chicago Bulls (where he won six titles) and two
with the Washington Wizards. He played his last game more than seven
years ago.

Last
week, ESPN.com quoted sources as saying that Jordan would be appear on
the cover, but the news wasn』t confirmed publicly until today.

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