Here's Reinsdorf's biography in the Hall of Fame's official press release:
"Reinsdorf is a remarkably successful lawyer and businessman who followed his love of sports to purchase the Chicago White Sox and in 1985, the Chicago Bulls. Under his leadership, the Bulls won six world championships and became one of the most iconic teams in the history of sports. Reinsdorf has done extensive charitable work to benefit the Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Park District and was awarded the Jefferson Award for Public Service for leading the philanthropic outreach of the White Sox and CharitaBulls Charities."
It's no secret Reinsdorf personally vests more in his baseball team, especially consider his son Michael runs the day-to-day Bulls operations now as president and COO. He even called getting the final out ball from the 2005 World Series "the most emotional moment of my life." But there's no question that without him, the Bulls wouldn't have become the household name they are today. That they've become so valuable, his family will hang onto them and not the White Sox when he passes on sums it all up.
Think about how far they've come under his watch. When he purchased the Bulls during Michael Jordan's rookie year, everything about the franchise was terrible from the top down. The facilities and offices were bad, the Chicago Stadium was half-filled, team employees didn't really enjoy their jobs and what leadership they had was focused on everything except being competitive both on and off the court. Long story short, Reinsdorf reversed all of that and more with the effects of the championship years lingering to this day.
The luxuries the Bulls were able to afford within a few years of Reinsdorf's takeover have become standard for NBA franchises. But there's the other thing that resulted from this massive turnaround. Thank to Jordan and the dynasty he was a part of, sports icons became cultural icons and as such, billions of dollars continue to come into every league all the time. Maybe it all would have happened anyway under a different owner, but Reinsdorf was the man who helped put it into action and therefore, deserves a lot of credit for the present state of pro sports.
Of course, there are some people who will never forgive Reinsdorf for enabling Jerry Krause to break up the dynasty a year or two earlier than he should have. Jordan even said in his 50th birthday interview with Ahmad Rashad he would have preferred to see if anyone could actually knock them off before everyone went their separate ways. And you also have people who despise him for being consistently loyal to a fault. Many would love to shove Gar Forman and John Paxson out the door for this year's team being pushed to the brink of missing the playoffs, but know Reinsdorf would never entertain such a notion.
Still, for all of Reinsdof's perceived faults, you can't argue he has done more than enough to leave a lasting legacy. The Bulls are here to stay and when history looks back at the peak years of his ownership, most of it will be very positive. Most NBA owners are forgotten in the long run, but Reinsdorf will not be among them. In fact, he probably ranks among the top five in league history.
So join every Bulls fan in congratulating the boss on earning basketball's highest honor. How gratifying it must be that a kid who grew up a diehard Brooklyn Dodgers fan gets inducted into the Hall of Fame of another sport on baseball's Opening Day. This is one moment he'll remember for the rest of his life, as he should. Here's a cigar for JR.
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