Still flying: Michael Jordan made $60 million over past year

Former player Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls smiles as he is introduced to the crowd during a 20th anniversary recognition ceremony of the Bulls 1st NBA Championship in 1991 during half-time of a game bewteen the Bulls and the Utah Jazz at the United Center on March 12, 2011 in Chicago.

The business of Michael Jordan is still booming eight years after he took his last shot for Washington Wizards, says Forbes. His Airness earned $60 million over the past year, estimates Kurt Badenhausen of the financial magazine.

That makes the former Chicago Bulls superstar just about the richest sports figure around -- with the exception of Tiger Woods, who still leads the magazine's list of world's highest-earning sports figures despite losing sponsors such as Accenture and AT&T.

Jordan's now chairman of the Charlotte Bobcats. Writes Forbes:

Yet even out of the spotlight, the business of Michael Jordan has never been better. We estimate that Jordan earned $60 million over the past year mainly through his endorsement deals with Nike, Gatorade, Hanes, Upper Deck, 2K Sports and Five Star Fragrances. He also owns five restaurants and a car dealership in North Carolina.

Rodman says he never had a conversation with Jordan or Pippen

Chicago Bulls players Dennis Rodman, Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan celebrate after winning a title. Rodman says he never spokes to Pippen or Jordan while he played with the team.

Dennis Rodman did a lot of things with the Chicago Bulls. Having a conversation with Michael Jordan or Scottie Pippen was not one of them.

Rodman, who says "I thought it was important for me to go there and win" tells ESPN's Graham Bensinger that his conversations were with Randy Brown, Steve Kerr and Luc Longley but "me and Scottie and Michael never had a conversation in three years in Chicago. Only time we had a conversation was on the court, that was it. And nobody believes that."

The lengthy interview also has Rodman talking about his reputation, his gambling and his drinking. "I burned both ends of the candle....and I'm still here."