Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials,
MJ,
[1] is an American former professional
basketball player,
entrepreneur, and majority owner and chairman of the
Charlotte Bobcats. His biography on the
National Basketball Association (NBA) website states, "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time."
[2]
Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his
generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA
around the world in the 1980s and 1990s.
[3]
After a three-season career at the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a member of the Tar Heels'
national championship team in 1982, Jordan joined the NBA's
Chicago Bulls in
1984.
He quickly emerged as a league star, entertaining crowds with his
prolific scoring. His leaping ability, illustrated by performing
slam dunks from the
free throw line in
slam dunk contests, earned him the nicknames "
Air Jordan"and "
His Airness". He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball.
[4] In
1991, he won his first NBA championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in
1992 and
1993, securing a "
three-peat". Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball at the beginning of the
1993–94 NBA season to pursue a career in baseball, he rejoined the Bulls in
1995 and led them to three additional championships (
1996,
1997, and
1998) as well as an NBA-record
72 regular-season wins in the 1995–96 NBA season. Jordan retired for a second time in
1999, but returned for two more NBA seasons from 2001 to 2003 as a member of the
Washington Wizards.
Jordan's individual accolades and accomplishments include five
MVP awards, ten
All-NBA First Team designations, nine
All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen
NBA All-Star Game appearances, three All-Star Game
MVP awards, ten
scoring titles, three
steals titles, six
NBA Finals MVP awards, and the 1988
NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award.
He holds the NBA records for highest career regular season scoring
average (30.12 points per game) and highest career playoff scoring
average (33.45 points per game). In 1999, he was named the greatest
North American athlete of the 20th century by
ESPN, and was second to
Babe Ruth on the
Associated Press's list of athletes of the century. He was inducted into the
Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.
Jordan is also noted for his product endorsements. He fueled the success of
Nike's Air Jordan sneakers, which were introduced in 1985 and remain popular today.
[5] Jordan also starred in the 1996 feature film
Space Jam as himself. He is the majority owner and head of basketball operations for the NBA's
Charlotte Bobcats, having won a bidding war to buy controlling interest in the team from founding owner
Robert L. Johnson.
Early years
Jordan was born in
Brooklyn, New York, the son of Deloris (née Peoples), who worked in banking, and
James R. Jordan, Sr., an equipment supervisor. His family moved to
Wilmington, North Carolina, when he was a toddler.
[6] Jordan attended
Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, where he anchored his athletic career by playing baseball,
football, and basketball. He tried out for the
varsity basketball team during his
sophomore year, but at 5'11" (1.80 m), he was deemed too short to play at that level. His taller friend,
Harvest Leroy Smith, was the only sophomore to make the team.
[7]
Motivated to prove his worth, Jordan became the star of Laney's
junior varsity squad, and tallied several 40-point games.
[7] The following summer, he grew four inches (10 cm)
[2] and trained rigorously. Upon earning a spot on the varsity
roster, Jordan averaged about 20 points per game over his final two seasons of high school play.
[8][9] As a
senior, he was selected to the
McDonald's All-American Team[10] after averaging a
triple-double: 29.2 points, 11.6
rebounds, and 10.1
assists.
[11]
In 1981, Jordan earned a basketball scholarship to the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he
majored in
cultural geography. As a freshman in coach
Dean Smith's team-oriented system, he was named
ACC Freshman of the Year after he averaged 13.4
points per game (ppg) on 53.4% shooting (
field goal percentage).
[12] He made the game-winning jump shot in the
1982 NCAA Championship game against
Georgetown, which was led by future NBA rival
Patrick Ewing.
[2] Jordan later described this shot as the major turning point in his basketball career.
[13] During his three seasons at North Carolina, he averaged 17.7 ppg on 54.0% shooting, and added 5.0
rebounds per game (rpg).
[8] He was selected by consensus to the
NCAA All-American First Team in both his sophomore (1983) and junior (1984) seasons. After winning the
Naismith and the
Wooden College Player of the Year awards in 1984, Jordan left North Carolina one year before his scheduled graduation to enter the
1984 NBA Draft. The
Chicago Bulls selected Jordan with the third overall pick, after
Hakeem Olajuwon (
Houston Rockets) and
Sam Bowie (
Portland Trail Blazers). Jordan returned to North Carolina to complete his degree in 1986.
[14]
Professional career
During
his first season in the NBA, Jordan averaged 28.2 ppg on 51.5% shooting.
[12] He quickly became a fan favorite even in opposing arenas,
[15][16][17] and appeared on the cover of
Sports Illustrated with the heading "A Star is Born" just over a month into his professional career.
[18][19] Jordan was also voted in as an
All-Star starter by the fans in his rookie season.
[2] Controversy arose before the All-Star game when word surfaced that several veteran players, led by
Isiah Thomas, were upset by the amount of attention Jordan was receiving.
[2] This led to a so-called "freeze-out" on Jordan, where players refused to pass him the ball throughout the game.
[2]
The controversy left Jordan relatively unaffected when he returned to
regular season play, and he would go on to be voted Rookie of the Year.
[20] The Bulls finished the season 38–44,
[21] and lost in the
first round of the playoffs in four games to the
Milwaukee Bucks.
[20]
Jordan's
second season was cut short by a broken foot which caused him to miss 64 games.
[2] Despite Jordan's injury and a 30–52 record,
[21] the Bulls made the
playoffs. Jordan recovered in time to participate in the playoffs and performed well upon his return. Against a 1985–86
Boston Celtics team that is often considered one of the greatest in NBA history,
[22] Jordan set the still-unbroken record for points in a playoff game with 63 in Game 2.
[23] The Celtics, however, managed to sweep the series.
[20]
Jordan had recovered completely by the
1986–87 season, and had one of the most prolific scoring seasons in NBA history. He became the only player other than
Wilt Chamberlain to score 3,000 points in a season, averaging a league high 37.1 points on 48.2% shooting.
[12]
In addition, Jordan demonstrated his defensive prowess, as he became
the first player in NBA history to record 200 steals and 100
blocks in a season. Despite Jordan's success,
Magic Johnson won the league's
Most Valuable Player Award. The Bulls reached 40 wins,
[21] and advanced to
the playoffs for the third consecutive year. However, they were again swept by the Celtics.
[20]
Mid-career: Pistons roadblock
Jordan led the league in scoring again in the
1987–88 season, averaging 35.0 ppg on 53.5% shooting
[12] and won his first league
MVP award. He was also named the
Defensive Player of the Year, as he had averaged 1.6 blocks and a league high 3.16 steals per game.
[24] The Bulls finished 50–32,
[21] and made it out of the first round of
the playoffs for the first time in Jordan's career, as they defeated the
Cleveland Cavaliers in five games.
[25] However, the Bulls then lost in five games to the more experienced
Detroit Pistons,
[20] who were led by
Isiah Thomas and a group of physical players known as the "
Bad Boys".
In the
1988–89 season, Jordan again led the league in scoring, averaging 32.5 ppg on 53.8% shooting from the field, along with 8 rpg and 8
assists per game (apg).
[12] The Bulls finished with a 47–35 record,
[21] and advanced to the
Eastern Conference Finals, defeating the Cavaliers and
New York Knicks along the way. The Cavaliers series included a career highlight for Jordan when he hit
The Shot over
Craig Ehlo at the buzzer in the fifth and final game of the series.
[26] However, the Pistons again defeated the Bulls, this time in six games,
[20] by utilizing their "
Jordan Rules" method of guarding Jordan, which consisted of
double and triple teaming him every time he touched the ball.
[2]
The Bulls entered the
1989–90 season as a team on the rise, with their core group of Jordan and young improving players like
Scottie Pippen and
Horace Grant, and under the guidance of new coach
Phil Jackson. Jordan averaged a league leading 33.6 ppg on 52.6% shooting, to go with 6.9 rpg and 6.3 apg
[12] in leading the Bulls to a 55–27 record.
[21] They again advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals beating the Bucks and
Philadelphia 76ers en route. However, despite pushing the series to seven games, the Bulls lost to the Pistons for the third consecutive season.
[20]
First three-peat
In the
1990–91 season, Jordan won his second MVP award after averaging 31.5 ppg on 53.9% shooting, 6.0 rpg, and 5.5 apg for the regular season.
[12]
The Bulls finished in first place in their division for the first time
in 16 years and set a franchise record with 61 wins in the regular
season.
[21] With
Scottie Pippen developing into an All-Star, the Bulls had elevated their play. The Bulls defeated the
New York Knicks and the
Philadelphia 76ers in the opening two rounds of
the playoffs.
They advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals where their rival, the
Detroit Pistons, awaited them. However, this time the Bulls beat the
Pistons in a surprising sweep.
[27][28]
In an unusual ending to the fourth and final game, Isiah Thomas led his
team off the court before the final seconds had concluded. Most of the
Pistons went directly to their locker room instead of shaking hands with
the Bulls.
[29][30]
The Bulls compiled an outstanding 15–2 record during the playoffs,
[27] and advanced to
the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history, where they beat the
Los Angeles Lakers
four games to one. Perhaps the best known moment of the series came in
Game 2 when, attempting a dunk, Jordan avoided a potential
Sam Perkins block by switching the ball from his right hand to his left in mid-air to lay the shot in.
[31]
In his first Finals appearance, Jordan posted per game averages of 31.2
points on 56% shooting from the field, 11.4 assists, 6.6 rebounds, 2.8
steals and 1.4 blocks.
[32] Jordan won his first
NBA Finals MVP award,
[33] and he cried while holding the NBA Finals trophy.
[34]
Jordan and the Bulls continued their dominance in the
1991–92 season, establishing a 67–15 record, topping their franchise record from 1990 to 91.
[21]
Jordan won his second consecutive MVP award with averages of 30.1
points, 6.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game on 52% shooting.
[24] After winning a physical 7-game series over the New York Knicks in the second round of
the playoffs and finishing off the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Conference Finals in 6 games, the Bulls met
Clyde Drexler and the
Portland Trail Blazers in
the Finals. The media, hoping to recreate a
Magic-Bird rivalry, highlighted the similarities between "Air" Jordan and Clyde "The Glide" during the pre-Finals hype.
[35] In the first game, Jordan scored a Finals-record 35 points in the first half, including a record-setting six
three-point field goals.
[36] After the sixth three-pointer, he jogged down the court shrugging as he looked courtside.
Marv Albert, who broadcast the game, later stated that it was as if Jordan was saying, "I can't believe I'm doing this."
[37] The Bulls went on to win Game 1, and defeat the Blazers in six games. Jordan was named Finals MVP for the second year in a row
[33] and finished the series averaging 35.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, and 6.5 apg, while shooting 53% from the floor.
[33]
In
1992–93, despite a 32.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg and 5.5 apg campaign,
[24] Jordan's streak of consecutive MVP seasons ended as he lost the award to his friend
Charles Barkley. Coincidentally, Jordan and the Bulls met Barkley and his
Phoenix Suns in the
1993 NBA Finals. The Bulls captured their third consecutive NBA championship on a game-winning shot by
John Paxson and a last-second block by
Horace Grant, but Jordan was once again Chicago's catalyst. He averaged a Finals-record 41.0 ppg during the six-game series,
[38] and became the first player in NBA history to win three straight Finals MVP awards.
[33]
He scored more than 30 points in every game of the series, including 40
or more points in 4 consecutive games. With his third Finals triumph,
Jordan capped off a seven-year run where he attained seven scoring
titles and three championships, but there were signs that Jordan was
tiring of his massive celebrity and all of the non-basketball hassles in
his life.
[39]
Gambling controversy
During the Bulls' playoff run in 1993, controversy arose when Jordan was seen gambling in
Atlantic City, New Jersey the night before a game against the New York Knicks.
[40] In that same year, he admitted to having to cover $57,000 in gambling losses,
[41] and author Richard Esquinas wrote a book claiming he had won $1.25 million from Jordan on the golf course.
[41] In 2005, Jordan talked to
Ed Bradley of the
CBS evening show
60 Minutes
about his gambling and admitted that he made some reckless decisions.
Jordan stated, "Yeah, I've gotten myself into situations where I would
not walk away and I've pushed the envelope. Is that compulsive? Yeah, it
depends on how you look at it. If you're willing to jeopardize your
livelihood and your family, then yeah."
[42]
When Bradley asked him if his gambling ever got to the level where it
jeopardized his livelihood or family, Jordan replied, "No."
[42]
First retirement and baseball career
Michael Jordan while playing with the Scottsdale Scorpions
On October 6, 1993, Jordan announced his retirement, citing a loss of
desire to play the game. Jordan later stated that the murder of his
father earlier in the year shaped his decision.
[43] James R. Jordan, Sr. was murdered on July 23, 1993, at a highway rest area in
Lumberton,
North Carolina, by two teenagers, Daniel Green and Larry Martin Demery.
The assailants were traced from calls they made on James Jordan's
cellular phone,
[44]
caught, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison. Jordan was close to
his father; as a child he had imitated his father's proclivity to stick
out his tongue while absorbed in work. He later adopted it as his own
signature, displaying it each time he drove to the basket.
[2] In 1996, he founded a Chicago area
Boys & Girls Club and dedicated it to his father.
[45][46]
In his 1998 autobiography
For the Love of the Game, Jordan wrote that he had been preparing for retirement as early as the summer of 1992.
[47] The added exhaustion due to the
Dream Team run in the
1992 Olympics
solidified Jordan's feelings about the game and his ever-growing
celebrity status. Jordan's announcement sent shock waves throughout the
NBA and appeared on the front pages of newspapers around the world.
[48]
Jordan then further surprised the sports world by signing a
minor league baseball contract with the
Chicago White Sox. He reported to
spring training and was assigned to the team's minor league system on March 31, 1994.
[49] Jordan has stated this decision was made to pursue the dream of his late father, who had always envisioned his son as a
Major League Baseball player.
[50] The White Sox were another team owned by Bulls owner
Jerry Reinsdorf, who continued to honor Jordan's basketball contract during the years he played baseball.
[51] In 1994, Jordan played for the
Birmingham Barons, a Double-A minor league affiliate of the Chicago White Sox,
batting .202 with three
home runs, 51
runs batted in, 30
stolen bases, and 11
errors.
[9] He also appeared for the
Scottsdale Scorpions in the 1994
Arizona Fall League, batting .252 against the top prospects in baseball.
[52]
On November 1, 1994, his number 23 was retired by the Bulls in a
ceremony that included the erection of a permanent sculpture known as
The Spirit outside the new
United Center.
[53][54][55]
"I'm back": Return to the NBA
In the
1993–94 season, the Bulls, without Jordan, achieved a 55–27 record,
[21] and lost to the
New York Knicks in the second round of
the playoffs. But the
1994–95
version of the Bulls was a shell of the championship squad of just two
years earlier. Struggling at mid-season to ensure a spot in the
playoffs, Chicago was 31–31 at one point in mid-March.
[56] The team received a lift, however, when Jordan decided to return to the NBA for the Bulls.
On March 18, 1995, Jordan announced his return to the NBA through a 2-word press release: "I'm back."
[2]
The next day, Jordan donned jersey number 45 (his number with the
Barons), as his familiar 23 had been retired in his honor following his
first retirement. He took to the court with the Bulls to face the
Indiana Pacers in
Indianapolis, scoring 19 points.
[57] The game had the highest
Nielsen rating of a regular season NBA game since 1975.
[58]
Although he hadn't played an NBA game in a year and a half, Jordan
played well upon his return, making a game-winning jump shot against
Atlanta in his fourth game back. He then scored 55 points in the next game against the Knicks at
Madison Square Garden on March 28, 1995 (his first appearance at Madison Square Garden since retiring).
[20] Boosted by Jordan's comeback, the Bulls went 13–4
to make the playoffs and advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the
Orlando Magic. Though at the end of Game 1, Orlando's
Nick Anderson
stripped Jordan from behind, leading to the game-winning basket for the
Magic; he would later comment that Jordan "didn't look like the old
Michael Jordan",
[59]
after which Jordan returned to wearing his old number. Jordan averaged
31 points per game in the series, but Orlando prevailed in 6 games.
[8]
Second three-peat
Jordan going in for a slam dunk with his signature exposed tongue.
Freshly motivated by the playoff defeat, Jordan trained aggressively for the
1995–96 season.
[60] Strengthened by the addition of rebound specialist
Dennis Rodman, the Bulls dominated the league, starting the season 41–3,
[61] and eventually finishing with the best regular season record in NBA history: 72–10.
[22] Jordan led the league in scoring with 30.4 ppg,
[62] and won the league's regular season and All-Star Game MVP awards.
[2] In
the playoffs, the Bulls lost only three games in four series, defeating the
Seattle SuperSonics in the
NBA Finals to win the championship. Jordan was named Finals MVP for a record fourth time,
[33] surpassing
Magic Johnson's
three Finals MVP awards. He also achieved only the second sweep of the
MVP Awards in the All-Star Game, regular season and NBA Finals,
Willis Reed having achieved the first, during the
1969–70 season.
[20] Because this was Jordan's first championship since his father's murder, and it was won on
Father's Day,
Jordan reacted very emotionally upon winning the title, including a
memorable scene of him sobbing on the locker room floor with the game
ball.
[2][34]
In the
1996–97 season,
the Bulls started out 69–11, but narrowly missed out on a second
consecutive 70-win season by losing their final two games to finish
69–13.
[63] However, this year Jordan was beaten for the NBA MVP Award by
Karl Malone. The Bulls again advanced to
the Finals, where they faced Malone and the
Utah Jazz.
The series against the Jazz featured two of the more memorable clutch
moments of Jordan's career. He won Game 1 for the Bulls with a
buzzer-beating
jump shot. In Game 5, with the series tied at 2, Jordan played despite
being feverish and dehydrated from a stomach virus. In what is known as
the "
Flu Game", Jordan scored 38 points, including the game-deciding 3-pointer with 25 seconds remaining.
[64] The Bulls won 90–88 and went on to win the series in six games.
[63] For the fifth time in as many Finals appearances, Jordan received the
Finals MVP award.
[33] During the 1997 NBA All-Star Game, Jordan posted the first
triple double in All-Star Game history in a victorious effort; however, he did not receive the MVP award.
Jordan and the Bulls compiled a 62–20 record in the
1997–98 season.
[21] Jordan led the league with 28.7 points per game,
[24]
securing his fifth regular-season MVP award, plus honors for All-NBA
First Team, First Defensive Team and the All-Star Game MVP.
[2]
The Bulls captured the Eastern Conference Championship for a third
straight season, including surviving a grueling seven-game series with
Reggie Miller's Indiana Pacers
in the Eastern Conference Finals; it was the first time Jordan had
played in a Game 7 since the 1992 series with the Knicks. After
prevailing, they moved on for a rematch with the Jazz in
the Finals.
The Bulls returned to Utah for
Game 6
on June 14, 1998 leading the series 3–2. Jordan executed a series of
plays, considered to be one of the greatest clutch performances in NBA
Finals history.
[65]
With the Bulls trailing 86–83 with 41.9 seconds remaining, Phil Jackson
called a timeout. When play resumed, Jordan received the inbound pass,
drove to the basket, and hit a layup over several Jazz defenders.
[65] The Jazz brought the ball upcourt and passed the ball to forward Karl Malone, who was set up in the
low post
and was being guarded by Rodman. Malone jostled with Rodman and caught
the pass, but Jordan cut behind him and swatted the ball out of his
hands for a steal.
[65] Jordan then slowly dribbled upcourt and paused at the top of the key, eyeing his defender, Jazz guard
Bryon Russell.
With fewer than 10 seconds remaining, Jordan started to dribble right,
then crossed over to his left, possibly pushing off Russell,
[66][67][68] although the officials did not call a
foul.
Jordan then made the climactic jump shot of his career. After John
Stockton missed a desperation 3-pointer, Jordan and the Bulls claimed
their sixth NBA championship, and secured a second three-peat. Once
again, Jordan was voted the Finals MVP,
[33] having led all scorers by averaging 33.5 points per game, including 45 in the deciding Game 6.
[69] Jordan's six Finals MVPs is a record;
Shaquille O'Neal,
Magic Johnson, and
Tim Duncan are tied for second place with three apiece.
[33]
The 1998 Finals holds the highest television rating of any Finals
series in history, and Game 6 holds the highest television rating of any
game in NBA history.
[70][71]
Second retirement
Plaque at the United Center chronicling Jordan's career achievements.
With
Phil Jackson's contract expiring, the pending departures of
Scottie Pippen (who stated his desire to be traded during the season) and
Dennis Rodman (who would sign with the
Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent) looming, and being in the latter stages of an owner-induced
lockout of NBA players, Jordan retired for the second time on January 13, 1999.
On January 19, 2000, Jordan returned to the NBA not as a player, but
as part owner and President of Basketball Operations for the
Washington Wizards.
[72]
Jordan's responsibilities with the Wizards were comprehensive. He
controlled all aspects of the Wizards' basketball operations, and had
the final say in all personnel matters. Opinions of Jordan as a
basketball executive were mixed.
[73][74] He managed to purge the team of several highly paid, unpopular players (such as forward
Juwan Howard and point guard
Rod Strickland),
[75][76] but used the first pick in the
2001 NBA Draft to select high schooler
Kwame Brown, who did not live up to expectations and was traded away after four seasons.
[73][77]
Despite his January 1999 claim that he was "99.9% certain" that he would never play another NBA game,
[34] in the summer of 2001 Jordan expressed interest in making another comeback,
[78][79] this time with his new team. Inspired by the
NHL comeback of his friend
Mario Lemieux the previous winter,
[80]
Jordan spent much of the spring and summer of 2001 in training, holding
several invitation-only camps for NBA players in Chicago.
[81] In addition, Jordan hired his old Chicago Bulls head coach,
Doug Collins, as Washington's coach for the upcoming season, a decision that many saw as foreshadowing another Jordan return.
[78][79]
Washington Wizards comeback
Jordan as a member of the Washington Wizards on April 14, 2003
On September 25, 2001 Jordan announced his return to professional
play with the Wizards, indicating his intention to donate his salary as a
player to a relief effort for the victims of the
September 11, 2001 attacks.
[82][83] In an injury-plagued
2001–02 season, he led the team in scoring (22.9 ppg), assists (5.2 apg), and steals (1.42 spg).
[2] However, torn
cartilage
in his right knee ended Jordan's season after only 60 games, the fewest
he had played in a regular season since playing 17 games after
returning from his first retirement during the
1994–95 season.
[12]
Playing in his 14th and final NBA All-Star Game in 2003, Jordan passed
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the all-time leading scorer in All-Star game history (a record since broken by
Kobe Bryant).
[84]
That year, Jordan was the only Washington player to play in all 82
games, starting in 67 of them. He averaged 20.0 points, 6.1 rebounds,
3.8 assists, and 1.5 steals per game.
[2] He also shot 45% from the field, and 82% from the free throw line.
[2]
Even though he turned 40 during the season, he scored 20 or more points
42 times, 30 or more points nine times, and 40 or more points three
times.
[20] On February 21, 2003, Jordan became the first 40-year-old to tally 43 points in an NBA game.
[85] During his stint with the Wizards, all of Jordan's home games at the
MCI Center
were sold out, and the Wizards were the second most-watched team in the
NBA, averaging 20,172 fans a game at home and 19,311 on the road.
[86]
However, neither of Jordan's final two seasons resulted in a playoff
appearance for the Wizards, and Jordan was often unsatisfied with the
play of those around him.
[87][88]
At several points he openly criticized his teammates to the media,
citing their lack of focus and intensity, notably that of the
number one draft pick in the
2001 NBA Draft,
Kwame Brown.
[87][88]
With the recognition that 2002–03 would be Jordan's final season,
tributes were paid to him throughout the NBA. In his final game at his
old home court, the
United Center in Chicago, Jordan received a four-minute standing ovation.
[89] The
Miami Heat retired the number 23 jersey on April 11, 2003, even though Jordan had never played for the team.
[90] At the 2003 All-Star Game, Jordan was offered a starting spot from
Tracy McGrady and
Allen Iverson,
[91] but refused both. In the end he accepted the spot of
Vince Carter, who decided to give it up under great public pressure.
[92]
Jordan's final NBA game was on April 16, 2003 in
Philadelphia.
After scoring only 13 points in the game, Jordan went to the bench with
4 minutes and 13 seconds remaining in the third quarter and with his
team trailing the
Philadelphia 76ers, 75–56. Just after the start of the fourth quarter, the
First Union Center
crowd began chanting "We want Mike!". After much encouragement from
coach Doug Collins, Jordan finally rose from the bench and re-entered
the game for
Larry Hughes with 2:35 remaining. At 1:45, Jordan was intentionally fouled by the 76ers'
Eric Snow, and stepped to the line to make both free throws. After the second foul shot, the 76ers in-bounded the ball to rookie
John Salmons, who in turn was intentionally fouled by
Bobby Simmons
one second later, stopping time so that Jordan could return to the
bench. Jordan received a three-minute standing ovation from his
teammates, his opponents, the officials and a crowd of 21,257 fans.
[93]
Olympic career
Jordan played on two Olympic
gold medal-winning American basketball teams. As a college player he participated, and won the gold, in the
1984 Summer Olympics. The team was coached by
Bob Knight and featured players such as
Patrick Ewing,
Sam Perkins,
Chris Mullin,
Steve Alford, and
Wayman Tisdale. Jordan led the team in scoring, averaging 17.1 ppg for the tournament.
[94]
In the
1992 Summer Olympics he was a member of the star-studded squad that included
Magic Johnson,
Larry Bird, and
David Robinson and was dubbed the "
Dream Team". Jordan was the only player to start all 8 games in the Olympics. Playing limited minutes due to the frequent
blowouts, Jordan averaged 14.9 ppg,
[95] finishing second on the team in scoring.
[96] Jordan,
Patrick Ewing, and fellow Dream Team member
Chris Mullin are the only American men's basketball players to win Olympic gold as amateurs and professionals.
[94][95]
Post-retirement
Jordan on a golf course in 2007
After his third retirement, Jordan assumed that he would be able to
return to his front office position of Director of Basketball Operations
with the Wizards.
[97]
However, his previous tenure in the Wizards' front office had produced
the aforementioned mixed results and may have also influenced the trade
of
Richard "Rip" Hamilton for
Jerry Stackhouse (although Jordan was not technically Director of Basketball Operations in 2002).
[73] On May 7, 2003, Wizards owner
Abe Pollin fired Jordan as Washington's President of Basketball Operations.
[73]
Jordan later stated that he felt betrayed, and that if he knew he would
be fired upon retiring he never would have come back to play for the
Wizards.
[42]
Jordan kept busy over the next few years by staying in shape, playing
golf in celebrity charity tournaments, spending time with his family in
Chicago, promoting his Jordan Brand clothing line, and riding
motorcycles.
[98]
Since 2004, Jordan has owned Michael Jordan Motorsports, a professional
closed-course motorcycle road racing team that competes with two
Suzukis in the premier Superbike class sanctioned by the
American Motorcyclist Association (AMA).
[99][100] Jordan and his then-wife Juanita pledged $5 million to Chicago's
Hales Franciscan High School in 2006,
[101] and the Jordan Brand has made donations to
Habitat for Humanity and a
Louisiana branch of the
Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
[102] On June 15, 2006, Jordan bought a minority stake in the
Charlotte Bobcats, becoming the team's second-largest shareholder behind majority owner
Robert L. Johnson.
As part of the deal, Jordan was named "Managing Member of Basketball
Operations," with full control over the basketball side of the
operation.
[103] Despite Jordan's previous success as an endorser, he has made an effort not to be included in Charlotte's marketing campaigns.
[104]
In February 2010, it was reported that Jordan was seeking majority ownership of the Bobcats.
[105] As February wore on, it emerged that the leading contenders for the team were Jordan and former
Houston Rockets
president George Postolos. On February 27, the Bobcats announced that
Johnson had reached an agreement with Jordan and his group, MJ
Basketball Holdings, to buy the team pending NBA approval.
[106]
On March 17, the NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved Jordan's
purchase, making him the first former NBA player ever to become the
majority owner of a league franchise.
[107]
During the
2011 NBA lockout,
The New York Times
wrote that Jordan led a group of 10 to 14 hardline owners wanting to
cap the players' share of basketball-related income at 50 percent and as
low as 47. Journalists observed that, during the
labor dispute in 1998, Jordan had told
Washington Wizards then-owner
Abe Pollin, "If you can’t make a profit, you should sell your team."
[108] Jason Whitlock of
FoxSports.com called Jordan a "sellout" wanting "current players to pay for his incompetence."
[109] He cited Jordan's executive decisions to draft disappointing players
Kwame Brown and
Adam Morrison.
[109]
During the
2011–12 NBA season, which was shortened to 66 games, the Bobcats posted a 7–59 record. Their .106 winning percentage was the worst in NBA history.
[110] "I'm not real happy about the record book scenario last year. It's very, very frustrating," Jordan said later that year.
[111]
Player profile
Jordan was a
shooting guard who was also capable of playing
small forward (the position he would primarily play during his second return to professional basketball with the
Washington Wizards).
Jordan was known throughout his career for being a strong clutch
performer. He decided numerous games with last-second plays (e.g.,
The Shot) and performed at a high level even under adverse circumstances (e.g.,
Flu Game). His competitiveness was visible in his prolific
trash-talk[112] and well-known work ethic.
[113][114]
Jordan had a versatile offensive game. He was capable of aggressively
driving to the basket, as well as drawing
fouls from his opponents at a high rate; his 8,772
free throw attempts are the ninth highest total of all time.
[115] As his career progressed, Jordan also developed the ability to
post up his opponents and score with his trademark
fadeaway jump shot, using his leaping ability to "fade away" from block attempts. According to
Hubie Brown, this move alone made him nearly unstoppable.
[116] Despite media criticism as a "selfish" player early in his career, Jordan's 5.3 assists per game
[12] also indicate his willingness to defer to his teammates. In later years, the NBA shortened its
three-point
line to 22 feet (from 23 feet, 9 inches), which coupled with Jordan's
extended shooting range to make him a long-range threat as well—his
3-point stroke developed from a low 9/52 rate (.173) in his rookie year
into a stellar 111/260 (.427) shooter in the 1995–96 season.
[12] For a guard, Jordan was also a good rebounder (6.2 per game).
[12]
In 1988, Jordan was honored with the NBA's Defensive Player of the
Year Award and became the first NBA player to win both the Defensive
Player of the Year and MVP awards in a career (since equaled by
Hakeem Olajuwon,
David Robinson, and
Kevin Garnett;
Olajuwon is the only player other than Jordan to win both during the
same season). In addition he set both seasonal and career records for
blocked shots by a guard,
[117] and combined this with his ball-thieving ability to become a standout defensive player. His 2,514
steals are second highest all-time behind
John Stockton, while his steals per game average is third all-time.
[118] Jerry West often stated that he was more impressed with Jordan's defensive contributions than his offensive ones.
[119]
Legacy
Jordan's basketball talent was clear from his rookie season.
[15][17] In his first game in
Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks, Jordan received a prolonged standing ovation,
[17] a rarity for an opposing player. After Jordan scored a playoff record 63 points against the
Boston Celtics in 1986, Celtics star
Larry Bird described him as "God disguised as Michael Jordan."
[23]
Jordan led the NBA in scoring in 10 seasons (NBA record) and tied
Wilt Chamberlain's
record of seven consecutive scoring titles. He was also a fixture on
the NBA All-Defensive First Team, making the roster nine times (NBA
record shared with
Gary Payton). Jordan also holds the top career regular season and playoff scoring averages of 30.1 and 33.4 points per game,
[2] respectively. By 1998, the season of his Finals-winning shot against the Jazz, he was well known throughout the league as a
clutch performer.
In the regular season, Jordan was the Bulls' primary threat in the
final seconds of a close game and in the playoffs, Jordan would always
demand the ball at crunch time.
[120] Jordan's total of 5,987 points in the playoffs is the highest in NBA history.
[121] He retired with 32,292 points in regular season play,
[122] placing him third on the NBA's all-time scoring list behind
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and
Karl Malone.
[122]
With five regular-season MVPs (tied for second place with
Bill Russell; only
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
has won more, six), six Finals MVPs (NBA record), and three All-Star
MVPs, Jordan is the most decorated player ever to play in the NBA.
Jordan finished among the top three in regular-season MVP voting a
record 10 times, and was named one of the
50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996.
"There's Michael Jordan and then there is the rest of us."
Many of Jordan's contemporaries label Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time.
[119] An
ESPN
survey of journalists, athletes and other sports figures ranked Jordan
the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century, above icons
such as
Babe Ruth and
Muhammad Ali.
[123] Jordan placed second to Babe Ruth in the
Associated Press's list of 20th century athletes.
[124] In addition, the Associated Press voted him as the basketball player of the 20th century.
[125] Jordan has also appeared on the front cover of
Sports Illustrated a record 49 times.
[126] In the September 1996 issue of
Sport, which was the publication's 50th anniversary issue, Jordan was named the greatest athlete of the past 50 years.
[127]
Jordan's athletic leaping ability, highlighted in his back-to-back
slam dunk contest championships in 1987 and 1988, is credited by many with having influenced a generation of young players.
[128][129] Several current NBA All-Stars have stated that they considered Jordan their role model while growing up, including
LeBron James[130] and
Dwyane Wade.
[131]
In addition, commentators have dubbed a number of next-generation
players "the next Michael Jordan" upon their entry to the NBA, including
Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway,
Grant Hill,
Allen Iverson,
Kobe Bryant, LeBron James,
Vince Carter, and Dwyane Wade.
[132][133][134]
Although Jordan was a well-rounded player, his "Air Jordan" image is
also often credited with inadvertently decreasing the jump shooting
skills, defense, and fundamentals of young players,
[128] a fact Jordan himself has lamented.
I think it was the exposure of Michael Jordan; the
marketing of Michael Jordan. Everything was marketed towards the things
that people wanted to see, which was scoring and dunking. That Michael
Jordan still played defense and an all-around game, but it was never
really publicized.
[128]
Although Jordan has done much to increase the status of the game,
some of his impact on the game's popularity in America appears to be
fleeting.
[135][136]
Television ratings in particular increased only during his time in the
league and have subsequently lowered each time he left the game.
[135][136]
In August 2009, the
Basketball Hall of Fame in
Springfield, Massachusetts, opened a Michael Jordan exhibit containing items from his college and NBA careers, as well as from the
1992 "Dream Team". The exhibit also has a
batting glove to signify Jordan's short career in baseball.
[137] After Jordan received word of his being accepted into the Hall of Fame, he selected Class of 1996 member
David Thompson to present him.
[138]
As Jordan would later explain during his induction speech in September
2009, growing up in North Carolina, he was not a fan of the Tar Heels,
and greatly admired Thompson, who played at rival
North Carolina State. He was inducted into the Hall in September, with several former Bulls teammates in attendance, including
Scottie Pippen,
Dennis Rodman,
Charles Oakley,
Ron Harper,
Steve Kerr, and
Toni Kukoc.
[139] Former coaches of Jordan's, Dean Smith and Doug Collins, were also among those present.
Personal life
Jordan is the fourth of five children. He has two older brothers,
Larry Jordan and James R. Jordan, Jr., one older sister, Deloris, and a
younger sister, Roslyn. Jordan's brother James retired in 2006 as the
Command Sergeant Major of the
35th Signal Brigade of the
XVIII Airborne Corps in the
U.S. Army.
[140]
He married Juanita Vanoy in September 1989, and they have two sons,
Jeffrey Michael and
Marcus James,
and a daughter, Jasmine. Jordan and Vanoy filed for divorce on January
4, 2002, citing irreconcilable differences, but reconciled shortly
thereafter. They again filed for divorce and were granted a final decree
of dissolution of marriage on December 29, 2006, commenting that the
decision was made "mutually and amicably".
[141][142]
It is reported that Juanita received a $168 million settlement, making
it the largest celebrity divorce settlement in history at the time on
public record.
[143]
In 1991, Jordan purchased a lot in
Highland Park, Illinois, to build a 56,000 square foot mansion, which was completed four years later.
[144] Both of his sons attended
Loyola Academy, a private Roman Catholic high school located in
Wilmette, Illinois.
[145]
Jeffrey graduated as a member of the 2007 graduating class and played
his first collegiate basketball game on November 11, 2007, for the
University of Illinois. After two seasons, Jeffrey left the
Illinois basketball team in 2009. He later rejoined the team for a third season,
[146][147] then received a release to transfer to the
University of Central Florida, where Marcus was attending.
[148][149] Marcus transferred to
Whitney Young High School after his sophomore year at Loyola Academy and graduated in 2009. He began attending UCF in the fall of 2009,
[150] and played three seasons of basketball for the school.
[151]
On July 21, 2006, a
Cook County, Illinois judge determined that Jordan did not owe his alleged former lover Karla Knafel $5 million.
[152] Jordan had allegedly paid Knafel $250,000 to keep their relationship a secret.
[153][154][155] Knafel claimed Jordan promised her $5 million for remaining silent and agreeing not to file a
paternity suit after Knafel learned she was pregnant in 1991. A
DNA test showed Jordan was not the father of the child.
[152]
He proposed to his longtime girlfriend,
Cuban-American model Yvette Prieto, on Christmas Eve, 2011, and is engaged.
[156] Jordan listed his Highland Park mansion for sale in 2012.
[144]
Jordan's private jet features a stripe in North Carolina blue, the
"Air Jordan" logo on the tail, and references to his career in the
identification number.
[157]
Media figure and business interests
Jordan is one of the most marketed sports figures in history. He has been a major spokesman for such brands as
Nike,
Coca-Cola,
Chevrolet,
Gatorade,
McDonald's,
Ball Park Franks,
Rayovac,
Wheaties,
Hanes, and
MCI.
[158]
Jordan has had a long relationship with Gatorade, appearing in over 20
commercials for the company since 1991, including the "Like Mike"
commercials in which a song was sung by children wishing to be like
Jordan.
[158][159]
Nike created a signature shoe for him, called the
Air Jordan. One of Jordan's more popular commercials for the shoe involved
Spike Lee playing the part of
Mars Blackmon.
In the commercials Lee, as Blackmon, attempted to find the source of
Jordan's abilities and became convinced that "it's gotta be the shoes".
[158]
The hype and demand for the shoes even brought on a spate of
"shoe-jackings" where people were robbed of their sneakers at gunpoint.
Subsequently Nike spun off the Jordan line into its own division named
the "Jordan Brand". The company features an impressive list of athletes
and celebrities as endorsers.
[160][161] The brand has also sponsored college sports programs such as those of
North Carolina,
Cincinnati,
Cal,
St. John's,
Georgetown, and
North Carolina A&T.
Jordan also has been associated with the
Looney Tunes cartoon characters. A Nike commercial shown during the 1993
Super Bowl XXVII featured Jordan and
Bugs Bunny playing basketball against a group of Martian characters.
[162] The Super Bowl commercial inspired the 1996 live action/animated movie
Space Jam, which starred Jordan and Bugs in a fictional story set during his first retirement.
[163] They have subsequently appeared together in several commercials for MCI.
[163]
Jordan's yearly income from the endorsements is estimated to be over forty million dollars.
[164][165]
In addition, when Jordan's power at the ticket gates was at its highest
point the Bulls regularly sold out every game they played in, whether
home or away.
[166] Due to this, Jordan set records in player salary by signing annual contracts worth in excess of US $30 million per season.
[167]
An academic study found that Jordan’s first NBA comeback resulted in an
increase in the market capitalization of his client firms of more than
$1 billion.
[168]
Most of Jordan's endorsement deals, including the first deal with Nike, were engineered by his agent,
David Falk.
[169]
Jordan has said of Falk that "he's the best at what he does", and that
"marketing-wise, he's great. He's the one who came up with the concept
of 'Air Jordan.'"
[170]
In June 2010, Jordan was ranked by
Forbes Magazine
as the 20th most powerful celebrity in the world with $55 million
earned between June 2009 and June 2010. According to the Forbes article,
Jordan Brand generates $1 billion in sales for Nike.
[171]
Honors and awards
Jordan won numerous awards and set many records during his career. The following are some of his achievements:
[2][172][173]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Jordan