Michael Jordan – Greatest Superstar

Many people have heard of Michael Jordan, he is known to be one of basketball’s greatest superstars. Even those who don’t follow professional basketball still know who he is. Lots of basketball players made an impact on the lives of others. One of the most famous players is Michael Jordan. His legacy and many great accomplishments will be remembered forever.

Michael was born on February 17, 1963 in Brooklyn, New York. He was the third son in a family of five children.

His dad was James, he worked as a General Electric plant supervisor, and his mother Delores, was a customer service representative for United Carolina Bank. They both stressed good grades and pushed Michael to achieve his goal. His father taught him to work hard and not to be tempted by street life. His mother taught him to sew, clean, and do laundry. He preferred baseball and football, only liking the sport when he grew four inches between his sophomore and junior years. Although he failed to make his high school basketball team as a sophomore..

Motivated to prove his worth, Jordan became the star of Laney’s junior varsity team, and had several 40-point games. The following summer, he grew four inches and trained every chance he could get.. Upon earning a spot on the varsity roster, Jordan averaged about 20 points per game over his final two seasons of high school play. Jordan himself cites that incident as one of the most important in his life.

As a senior, he was selected to the McDonald’s All-American Team after averaging a triple-double, 29.2 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 10.1 assists. Jordan was recruited by many college basketball programs, including Duke, North Carolina, South Carolina, Syracuse, and Virginia. Jordan accepted a basketball scholarship to North Carolina, where he majored in cultural geography. In his first season at North Carolina he became only the second Tarheel player to start every game as a freshman and was named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Rookie of the Year in 1982. That was a big accomplishment for Jordan and really was a turning point for him. Even if he went to other arenas, he had many fans that were on the opposing team. Although he had got lots of attention after his first year, Jordan didn’t get the big head. After his sophomore and junior years, Jordan again lead the ACC in scoring.

Jordan decided to play professional basketball rather than finish his senior season at North Carolina. He was signed by the Chicago Bulls that were desperate for a good player. He went first round third pick and was signed to a seven- year, $6 million contract. Attendance at Chicago Stadium skyrocketed after his arrival. Unlike many others, Jordan had automatic success in his first year in the NBA. He was named to the All-Star Team in his first season and also became Rookie of the Year. He broke his foot during most of his second season. He returned in time for the playoffs and set a NBA playoff scoring record with 63 points in his second playoff game. Also, he averaged 37.1 points per game during his third season. In 1989 Jordan led the Bulls to the conference finals.The Bulls won three straight championships from 1991 to 1993 and was named MVP all three times.

One month after winning his third title, Jordan’s dad was murdered. Jordan stated ”he had nothing left to accomplish.” That same year he retired from the NBA leaving as the Bulls all-time leading scorer. The next year he moved to a different field and joined the Chicago White Sox. He spent 17 months in the minors. He didn’t last very long in his baseball career and returned to basketball. The Bulls made it back to the finals, but lost to the Orlando Magic. Jordan made two errors in the last 18 seconds of the game. In January of 1999, he again announced his retirement from the game. This time he made sure his fans knew he meant it.

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