So I'll admit, I have not been the biggest fan of this whole Michael Jordan comeback escapade.

As a pure basketball fan, I do love seeing the guy perform. But everything that has had to go along with that, from arguments with teammates to criticisms of teammates to losing games that should never be lost by a team with the greatest player ever on it, has made me cringe.

It makes me think of Joan Rivers getting one too many facelifts.

It reminds me of a 40-year-old bachelor scoping out a college bar hoping to attract some young lovely.

	You don't want to compete against Michael Jordan when there's a championship at stake.

There is a generation gap here that, we are discovering, cannot be bridged. Michael may be trying to teach the youngsters the game, but as any parent can tell you, the kids don't want to hear it. They want to do things their way on their time frame.

But MJ rolled through Seattle last week, and his performance inspired in me a thought -- or, rather, many thoughts. Because though you can see that there is some sort of internal battle going on with the Washington Wizards -- namely, the young guys sometimes appear as if they give Jordan the look-off and do their own thing -- when it came right down to the end, and the Wizards needed to win the game, MJ made three straight shots in the final three minutes to win the game.

And so, if that attitude can be bottled for the final two weeks of the regular season and the Wizards can eke past the Milwaukee Bucks for the eighth and final spot in the East, who knows what will happen, other than George Karl once again dreaming of the North Carolina job?

This is not like the Western Conference, where the four teams -- Suns, Rockets, Sonics and Warriors -- battling for the eighth spot are ultimately going to be sacrificial lambs for the Mavs, Spurs or Kings.

No, in the East, anything can happen, even -- gasp! dare we say it? -- Michael Jordan returning to the NBA Finals.

I know, I know, sounds ludicrous (not the rapper), particularly after the Wizards just dropped a demoralizing loss to the Denver Nuggets that took Washington's six-game trip out West from 3-3 to 2-4. But there were glimpses on the trip that made you believe anything is possible, and the one thing we learned from watching MJ for so many years is that he should never be doubted.

In the city where he once hit six 3-pointers in a quarter and then shrugged like a little boy who doesn't know where he hid his kid sister's doll, Jordan scored 25 points in 41 minutes to defeat the Portland Trail Blazers, who have decided to rename their season "Up in Smoke."

(This is off the subject, but once again I am amazed by the stupidity of a Blazers player when it comes to his marijuana use. First it was Rashweed and Damon, now it's Qyntel Woods. So let me get this straight: Woods knows he is getting pulled over, he knows he has been smoking, but he keeps the windows rolled up and the roach smoldering in the ash tray? What? He didn't want to waste the roach? He didn't think the officer was going to be able to detect the plumes pouring out of the car like he was Sean Penn in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High?" "Dude, can you hear this? That's my skull.")

Anyway, a night after beating the Blazers, Jordan played that wonderful game against the Sonics, going for 26 in 44 minutes, including those three shots in the final minutes that clinched the game. And that night when Kobe went for 42 in a half, MJ was simply overshadowed. Still, he had 23 points in 41 minutes. All told, that is 74 points in 126 minutes in three games in four nights. Not bad for a quatrogenarian.

How poetic would it be if the Wizards made the first round of the playoffs and had to face the Detroit Pistons -- the team that Jordan initially had to conquer to win his first NBA championship -- bringing his career full circle, no matter that the arc is galactically wide?

This Pistons team is most like that Bad Boys version, with their focus on defense and physical play. That there is an underlying subplot of Jerry Stackhouse and Rip Hamilton playing against each other and their former teams makes the matchup that much more appealing.

	But Jordan at his best can make a middling team a very competitive team, and all he needs is four nights of being competitive, as well as some help from some teammates, and the Wizards could get out of the first round and then who knows?

But those are, as we say, subplots. The real story, as it is with every game he plays in, is Jordan.

Does anybody really want to play a first-round series against the greatest competitor ever, even if he has neither the supporting cast nor the overwhelming skills he once did? Players -- at least opposing players -- still speak of Jordan as if he were a demi-God, even if he has realistically abdicated his throne.

They know his lore. They remember Craig Ehlo and Bryon Russell and 63 points and six rings and everything that goes along with that, including everlasting respect at a time when he is on a middling team.

But Jordan at his best can make a middling team a very competitive team, and all he needs is four nights of being competitive, as well as some help from some teammates, and the Wizards could get out of the first round and then who knows?

After all, the Nets are trying to fit in Dikembe Mutombo, the Pacers are trying to fit in Timmy Hardaway, the Hornets are figuring out if Paul Silas will be back next season, the Celtics lose by 40 points every other night and the Magic is inconsistent. Philly is playing better than anyone, but a few bad shooting nights by Allen Iverson would render the Sixers vulnerable as well.

You can see that Jordan is beginning to get it into playoff gear, or perhaps he already is in playoff mode because the Wizards are on the cusp. In the past 12 games, he has averaged more than 40 minutes a game. He is averaging around 20 shots a game, he is more active on the boards, he is more vocal on the court and in the locker room.

It may be the autumn of Jordan's extended career, but it also is spring. That means it's time for Michael Jordan to do his best work.

Wouldn't it be fun to watch him do it in the wide-open playoffs?

Frank Hughes, who covers the NBA for the Tacoma (Wash.) News-Tribune, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.