ESPN's The Last Dance is basically a 10-part tribute to the one and only Michael Jordan. But while highlighting the ups and downs of his Chicago Bulls basketball career and greater personal life, a key player was noticeably missing from the miniseries: his wife, Yvette Prieto.
Turns out, leaving her out of the series was a choice, not an oversight. According to Last Dance director Jason Hehir, it was intentional for the storyline.
"I wasn't interested in the opinion of any wife or kids in this," Jason revealed to The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch. "We had the storytellers we wanted and I felt like we had the story covered from every angle."
Though Yvette doesn't appear in The Last Dance, his three children from his first marriage to Juanita Vanoy — Jeffrey, 31, Marcus, 29, and Jasmine, 27 — are briefly interviewed for the last episode. (None of the other players' wives or children are featured, however).
Since he met Yvette after "The Last Dance," and his two younger children are only six years old, their absences make sense. In fact, Michael met Yvette nearly 10 years after his last game with the Chicago Bulls.
Details about the early days of their relationship are pretty scarce. That said, according to People, Yvette and Michael crossed paths while at a nightclub in Miami. BleacherReport.com claims that the couple's first public appearance was at Michael's Genuine Food and Drink event in Miami. Apparently, they had to cut their date short when Michael was bombarded by fans asking him for his autograph.
In 2009, they moved in together, and, two years later, they announced their engagement. Michael and Yvette walked down the aisle in front of 300 guests, including Spike Lee and Tiger Woods, at Bethesda-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in Palm Beach, Florida in 2013. The year after, the pair welcomed twin girls, Victoria and Ysabel.
For the most part, Yvette and Michael stay out of the spotlight and off social media. That said, occasionally Michael's kids will share old family photos, like this one from Jeffrey:
