Gone are the days when his every move on the court was a potential poster. When he was the cornerstone of a team that would win six NBA titles. When a catchy commercial jingle had everyone singing how they wanted to be like Mike.

	Jordan faces Jordan in a Gatorade commercial.

At 39 years old and now more role player than superstar, Michael Jordan is headed toward retirement yet again, though this time without speculation of his imminent return to the game he once so easily dominated.

Still, even in the twilight of his career, when flashes of his old flashy self have grown increasingly infrequent, Jordan's star power ever seems to burn bright. Though his aging, aching knees have grounded his once gravity-defying game, His Airness remains among professional sports' most marketable athletes, a handsomely paid pitchman whose very likeness has been enough to turn the fortunes of hundred-million-dollar companies into multi-billion-dollar empires.

Perhaps none owe their market shares to Jordan more than Nike and Gatorade, two of the country's fastest growing companies during his playing career. Not-so-coincidentally, both have turned to the tongue-wagging guard once again to peddle their products.

"Ten years ago, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were on everyone's lips, but where are they today?" said Pat Williams, the Orlando Magic's senior vice president and author of "How To Be Like Mike: Life Lessons From Basketball's Best." "You have to be 25 or 30 to have any memories of Dr. J. Michael's not the same powerful presence he once was, but who is after 20 years of dominance in a particular industry?"

But that fact hasn't stopped Nike and Gatorade from going back to the well.

Nike, which signed Jordan to a shoe and apparel deal during his rookie season with the Chicago Bulls, back in 1984, are preparing to release Air Jordan XVIII, the latest incarnation of the basketball shoe made famous in his NBA All-Star debut.

Gatorade, the sports drink manufacturer that made a greater name for itself with its popular "Be Like Mike" theme, will unveil a new series of Jordan commercials pitting the older Jordan in a pick-up game with Jordans of old. The first, called "23 vs. 39," has a present-day Jordan playing a 23-year-old Jordan, clad in a Bulls uniform circa 1987. When they take a break for a sip of Gatorade, an even more youthful Jordan in a University of North Carolina uniform asks to get into the game.

The commercial can be seen on ABC's coverage of the Bowl Championship Series games beginning Jan. 1. Another version is expected for release during the Super Bowl on Jan. 26.

"Back in 1991, Gatorade was a $400 million-a-year business and I think Michael was bigger than us at that time," said Tom Fox, Gatorade's vice president of sports marketing. "Thanks in part to Michael, we're now a $2 billion business. When Michael retires, it will be impossible to have one single athlete do what he did for us."

'He keeps bouncing back'
As easily as he branded "M.J." and the number "23" as his own, the power of Jordan's association -- call it the Jordan touch -- has been the gold standard for companies looking to build a brand.

Even in the wake of his recent marital strife and the acknowledgement he has had an extramarital affair, public perception of Jordan remains high.

"He's reached icon status," said Peter Montoya, author of the "Personal Branding Phenomenon," a book that cites Jordan among the world's leading personal brands. "That means he's very hard to dethrone. He's like Teflon. He keeps bouncing back."

In early January, Jordan's wife, Juanita, filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. A month later, they were back together.

	Jordan's hard-working image is part of Gatorade's ad strategy.

Two months ago, Jordan filed a lawsuit against Karla Knafel, a woman who he had paid $250,000 to keep quiet the details of their affair during the 1990s. In the suit, Jordan alleges that Knafel previously had attempted to extort another $5 million from him. Jordan has had little public comment on the matter, but he could find himself talking about it during an upcoming deposition in Chicago. Knafel's attorney has said he plans to question Jordan when he returns to play the Bulls on Jan 24.

"I don't think people realize how flexible his personal brand is," Montoya said. "He still stands for excellence. People still say, 'I'm the Michael Jordan of real estate,' or the Michael Jordan of some other industry, and people know exactly what you mean. So most see the recent lawsuit, yawn and go back to loving him."

Even when he twice stepped away from the court when he retired in 1993 after leading the Bulls to three straight NBA titles, and again in 1999 after returning to lead the Bulls to another three-peat in the late '90s, Jordan has remained popular.

Each time, executives with the many companies he serves as a paid endorser -- Nike, Gatorade, McDonald's and Hanes, among others -- scrambled to market Jordan as a successful athlete off the court. Jordan has since reduced his roster of endorsements and last year even told the companies that he had contracts with that he wanted to stay low key on the commercial front.

"He continues to be very relevant to all of our audiences, especially teenagers and young adults," Gatorade's Fox said. "But when Michael was retired, he wasn't on the court and since our audience couldn't visibly see his desire to win and couldn't see him sweating, it was tough to come up with something to do."

Conversely, Nike officials say they have had little trouble making the transition.

Only a year prior to his second retirement, Nike and Jordan had developed an independent line of shoes and apparel under the banner of Brand Jordan. With the familiar Jumpman logo, the products sold well during his retirement and sales have continued to increase since he joined the Washington Wizards as a player last season.

"Forget about what the critics say, he's still got people wearing Nikes," said Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce, a Nike endorser. "Come on, look around this locker room. Even they're (locker room assistants) wearing Jordans."

Jordan's Washington Wizards jersey ranks fifth in jersey sales this season at the NBA Store and on NBA.com, according to league spokesman James Liess.

'Enjoyed the challenge'
When Jordan finally does step away from the court for good as a player, gone will be the mystique that surrounded his previous, premature departures from the game.

After retiring the first time in 1994, following the Bulls' first three championship seasons and the tragic death of his father, he attempted to launch a baseball career and toiled in the Chicago White Sox's minor leagues for parts of two seasons. Throughout, he was dogged with questions about a possible return to help the struggling Bulls.

And after leading the Bulls to their sixth championship in 1998, he left the game with an exclamation of sorts, the picture of Jordan posed in perfect shooter's follow-through as his title-clinching shot dropped through the net as time expired in Game 6 of the NBA Finals.

Air Jordan's: They're Back

Nike will continue to debut Air Jordan shoes even though Jordan will not be playing in them. The recent track record is good since the world's best selling athletic shoe sold as well in 1999 and 2000 (the Air Jordan XV and XVI), when Jordan was not playing, said Gentry Humphrey, the footwear product director for the Jordan brand. The Air Jordan XVIII, which debuts during All-Star Weekend in February, is the first all-suede sports shoe. It comes with a terry cloth towel and a black suede brush with the jump man etched on it. Nike officials say it's the first time a shoe sock liner will act as an orthodic to better protect the heel. The shoe will retail for $175. -- Darren Rovell

But when he steps away from the game after this season, gone will be any question of whether Jordan had retired prematurely yet again. After serving as the Washington Wizards' president for a year and a half, Jordan returned to the court as a player with achy joints and deteriorating skills. No longer a superstar who could carry his team at will, he has been relegated to mostly a supporting role that afforded only sporadic glimpses of his old self.

That will make for a new challenge as marketers scramble once again to create a new image of Jordan in street clothes.

"Marketers are always looking for authenticity and there is nothing more authentic than the greatest player in the game, who already has six rings, hanging on, hoping to get one more," said Scott Becher, president of sports marketing firm Sports & Sponsorships.

"Marketers and fans understand that better than the athlete who retires at the peak of his or her career."

Perhaps Jordan's own Nike brand is best positioned to make that transition.

Jordan will continue to provide his behind-the-scenes input in the brand's latest product developments, and he will continue to appear in its advertising. But he will not be alone. New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb and boxing champion Roy Jones Jr. are all with the company as endorsers.

"Michael will continue to be a part of what we do even after he retired," Jordan brand president Larry Miller said. "We've been evolving the brand the last four years to make the Jordan brand extend beyond what Michael wears on the court and use other athletes who best represent Michael's style."

Although the Jordan brand's target is 14- to 22-year-old males, the division also could capitalize on Jordan's off-the-court persona an further extend its consumer base to include the older lifestyle category, Miller said. Its TWO 3 collection of shirts, slacks and casual footwear has already been on the market for more than a year.

"We believe people are as comfortable seeing Michael on the cover of GQ as they are on the cover of Sports Illustrated," he said.

Meanwhile, Nike will continue to debut Air Jordan shoes no matter that Jordan won't be on the court wearing them.

Perhaps Tracy McGrady will try some on, although it can't be on the court since the Orlando Magic forward has a lifetime contract with adidas.

Following the Wizards' game Monday in Orlando, Jordan autographed a pair of his shoes and gave them to McGrady after the two battled on the court. McGrady hoisted the shoes to the crowd as he left the building. On them, Jordan wrote "Enjoyed the challenge. Good luck and stay healthy."

"I might look at these shoes every day before I walk out of the house,'' McGrady said.

That's just the kind of lasting memory marketers hope people will have of Jordan for years to come.

Darren Rovell, who covers sports business for ESPN.com, can be reached at Darren.rovell@espn3.com