No Subject

His baritone voice bellows through the casino in short, crisp repetition. 
"Yeah! Yeah!"

"That's another one," Walker yells, "Forty-five grand in one hand! Pay the 
piper! Pay the piper!"

At one point, Jordan wins so many hands in a row the dealer runs out of blue 
chips.

"Ya'll better rob a register or something!" Jordan says. "That's right!"

Jordan sits with a satisfied grin with the chips in front of him. There are 
seven rows of 20 chips - all blue. There's $700,000 in front of him.

A security guard returns from a break and says, "How the hell did he do that?"

The cheers continue. Jordan's pot grows. Walker is exuberant and begins 
playing more hands. Jordan's luck rubs off.

"I'll take some more chips over here," Walker said. "All the colors! Give me 
those chips!"

Hamilton, looking exhausted, also begins playing more. The dealer keeps 
breaking. Jordan and Walker high-five and hug. Hamilton, still seated, leans 
back and yawns, but finds energy to put both fists in the air and shake them.

It's now 7 a.m. and the enthusiasm and noise level have reached a crescendo. 
Jordan is standing often, now yelling with each hand. Walker is singing. 
Hamilton laughs at them and shakes hands. Chips on the table are stacked as 
high as coffee glasses. Construction workers showing up for work stop to 
watch.

Finally, at 7:45 a.m., after many more cheers, the group stands. The three 
put on their jackets. Hamilton slings a backpack over a shoulder before the 
group heads to the chip redemption window.

Rumors from the pit had Jordan not only making back the $500,000 he lost, but 
leaving with a surplus. Most guards estimated he left with several hundred 
thousand, with one figuring his winnings totaled about $800,000.

Hamilton has a bounce in his step and laughs about the night. Jordan and 
Walker walk together. Walker has his left arm on Jordan's right shoulder and 
leans in to talk as they head to the exit.

It's unclear what is asked of Jordan, but his response is definitive.

"I told you," Jordan said. "I told you."    


CeltsSteve 

Comedian Argus Hamilton says Jordan made his decision to return out of 
patriotism. "President Bush asked Americans to start traveling again, and 
Michael never takes less than three steps with the ball."