Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan
By: Ben Byrum

Early Years
Born on February 17, 1963 in Brooklyn, New York
Growing up in Wilmington, North Carolina, Jordan developed a competitive edge
at an early age.
Growing up Jordan played baseball, basketball, and football.
He was a very good pitcher in Little League and threw several no-hitters, coming
one game away from leading his team to the Little League World Series.
During his sophomore year at Laney, Jordan tried out for the basketball team. He
was passed over for the final spot on the varsity team when coach Clifton Herring
decided he preferred sophomore Leroy Smith over Jordan.
He then joined the jr varsity team that season with one of the best performances
and then later joined varsity the next year. He led Laney high to the state playoffs.
College Career
Michael Jordan's play in high school drew the attention of University of
North Carolina assistants Roy Williams and Bill Guthridge.
He led UNC to win a national championship in 1982.
He was named an All-American in both his sophomore and junior seasons,
and was the College Player of the Year after his junior campaign.
He averaged 17.7 points per game over his college career with North
Carolina.
Olympics
Michael Jordan was a member of two gold-medal winning USA basketball teams.
He participated in the 1984 Olympics Games in Los Angeles, California, and the 1992
Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.
1984 Olympics Games in Los Angeles, California
Although Jordan had been drafted by the Bulls prior to the 1984 Games, he had yet to
appear in a professional game, so he was still considered an amateur.
Jordan averaged over 17 points per game during his first appearance in the Olympics.
1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain
Michael Jordan joined superstars such as Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, David
Robinson, and Magic Johnson on what was dubbed "the Dream Team".
The Dream Team averaged 43.8 points
To avoid controversy with sponsor Nike, Jordan placed an American flag over the Reebok logo
on his jersey during the gold medal celebration.

Professional Career (1990-1993)
Michael Jordan was drafted third overall by the Chicago Bulls in 1984.
Jordan led the Bulls in scoring his rookie year of '84-85 with 28.2 points
per game.
His 2,313 points were the most scored by any player in the NBA that
season.
Jordan help lead the Chicago Bulls to a NBA championship in 1991,1992,
and 1993.
Michael Jordan surprised many by announcing his retirement from
basketball on October 6, 1993

Professional Baseball
February 7, 1994, 31-year-old Michael Jordan signed
a minor-league contract with the Birmingham Barons
Jordan finished the 1994 minor-league season
batting .202 with 114 strikeouts in 436 at-bats.
Jordan also recorded 51 RBIs and 30 stolen bases,
one of only six minor-leaguers to reach that total in
1994.
Professional Career (1995-1998)
Jordan announced that he was coming back on March 18, 1995 and came
to play the next day
He led the Chicago Bulls again to a NBA Championship in 1996,1997, and
1998.
Jordan even played a NBA Championship game with the flu and still won.
Jordans contract expired following the 1997-1998 season. He later
announced he would retire for the second time.
Washington Wizards(2001-2003)
Michael Jordan averaged 22.9 points per game in his first year with the
team, and 20.0 points per game in his second.
He was named to the 2002 and 2003 All-Star teams.
The Wizards finished the regular season with identical 37-45 records in
Jordan's two seasons, and would miss the playoffs each time.
Jordan's final NBA appearance came on April 16, 2003, in a 107-87 loss to
the Philadelphia 76ers.
His 32,292 career points stand as the third-most all-time behind Kareem
Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.
After the NBA
In 1989, Jordan married girlfriend Juanita Vanoy after the couple had a son
together the prior year. They had three children: Jeffrey Michael, Marcus
James, and Jasmine Mickael.
Jordan's son Jeffrey played three seasons of basketball at the University of
Illinois before transferring to Central Florida, where Marcus also plays.
Jordan didn't return to the NBA until 2006 when he invested between $10
million and $20 million to become part-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats.
He was named the team's Managing Member of Basketball Operations.
In December 2006, and after 17 years together, Jordan and his wife Juanita
divorced

Michael Jordan

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Michael Jordan

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Michael Jordan

By: Ben Byrum

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