Michael Jordan finally revealed the reason behind his decision to sign of Lance Stephenson, as he believed the mercurial swingman could help him beat up LeBron James and his team in the upcoming Eastern Conference battle.

In an exclusive interview with ESPN, the six-time NBA champion and five-time NBA MVP shared his take on a lot of topic, both as an owner of NBA franchise and a competitor.

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Jordan admitted that chasing a seventh championship ring has given him a lot of frustrations because he just couldn't make a big impact on the floor as an owner.

"I'm always dreaming about that seventh ring," Jordan told ESPN. "I played this game for a long time and I always took criticism in a way that's going to make me better as a basketball player and I could affect the game per se. Here, I can't do that other than talking to my other employees or coaches or players."

Still, Jordan is very hopeful that someday his Hornets would eventually compete for a championship and make all his investments as the principal owner of the franchise all worth it.

"I love basketball. ... I felt like I could contribute and make a difference within this franchise from an ownership standpoint," said Jordan, who looks to bankroll the Hornets to its first NBA championship.

With the struggles of the Bobcats era finally coming to an end, the Hornets ushered a new era with a big splash in free-agency waters last summer, and there's no bigger free-agency signings they had than Stephenson, who averaged 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists in his final year with the Indiana Pacers.

When asked what pitch he presented to attract a top-notch free-agent like Stephenson, Jordan said he simply asked him to help him beat James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in hope of coming out of the Eastern Conference.

"We need some who can compete against LeBron, simple as that." Jordan said on why he pursued Stephenson "I don't know if his antics is one of those things but the thing is I love the way you competes against LeBron.

"For me, that's a plus. If you want to get out of East, you wanna get past Cleveland, at the time it was Miami, you gotta beat LeBron."

The Hornets will open their 2014-15 NBA season on Wednesday against the Milwaukee Bucks at the newly-minted Time Warner Cable Arena.

TagsNBA rumors, NBA trade news, NBA Free Agency, Michael Jordan, Charlotte Hornets, LeBron James news