Michael Jordan

A brief historical overview.

Michael Jordan, who ESPN named the Greatest North American Athlete of the 20th Century, was born on February 17, 1963.  Jordan began playing basketball in high school and never looked back.  During his career, he would win numerous awards and honors including two Olympic gold metals, two Slam Dunk contest wins, and 5 NBA MVP titles.

Michael Jordan began playing professionally with the Chicago Bulls after being drafted in 1984.  Although the beginning of his career was tainted with injury and jealousy from other players, Jordan managed to rise to the top winning Rookie of the year in 1985.  He set many records including the most points scored in a playoff game (63) and 3000 points in one season.

Michael Jordan would lead the Bulls to three consecutive NBA Championship wins, from 1990-1993, before announcing his retirement shortly after his fathers murder and a gambling controversy in 1993.  It didn’t take long before Michael hungered the thrill of the court.  The Bulls couldn’t seem to recover from the loss of their star player and missed the finals both seasons.  Michael Jordan returned to the NBA in 1995 after an uneventful professional baseball career.  He would help the Bulls win their second three-peat of NBA Championships before retiring again in January 1999.

Michael Jordan then became part owner and operations manager for the Washington Wizards before returning back to the court to play for them in 2001.  After his last NBA game in April 2003, Jordan kept himself busy.  He enjoyed golfing between doing many product endorsements.  One of his most famous endorsements was for Nike shoes and the product line of “Air Jordan,” which were named after him.  Michael Jordan also tried his hand at acting in the 1996 movie “Space Jam” with the Looney Toons.