biography for michael jordan

Michael Jordan

Basketball legend Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships and won the MVP Award five times.

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Who Is Michael Jordan?

Quick facts, early life and family, college career, professional basketball career, jordan’s jersey numbers, awards and honors, retirements from basketball, jordan’s business ventures, wives and children, michael jordan in pop culture.

1963–present

Latest News: Michael Jordan Completes Sale of Hornets

Basketball icon Michael Jordan officially sold his majority ownership in the Charlotte Hornets NBA team on August 3. The team was sold for an estimated $3 billion, more than 10 times the $275 million Jordan purchased it for in 2010. The Hornets made the playoffs only three times under Jordan’s leadership. “I’m excited about the future of the team and will continue to support the organization and the community in my new role in the years ahead,” said Jordan, who kept a minority stake in the franchise.

Michael Jordan is a former professional basketball player, American Olympic athlete, businessperson, and actor. Considered one of the best basketball players ever, he dominated the sport from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships and earned the league’s MVP Award five times. With five regular-season MVPs and three All-Star MVPs, Jordan became the most decorated player in the NBA.

FULL NAME: Michael Jeffrey Jordan BORN: February 17, 1963 BIRTHPLACE: Brooklyn, New York SPOUSES: Juanita Vanoy (1989–2006), Yvette Prieto (2013–present) CHILDREN: Jeffrey, Marcus, Jasmine, Ysabel, and Victoria ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aquarius

Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York. His mother, Deloris, was a bank teller who has since written several books. His father, James, was a maintenance worker turned manager at General Electric. Jordan, the fourth child of Deloris and James, has four siblings: James Jr. (known as Ronnie), Deloris, Larry, and Roslyn.

Growing up in Wilmington, North Carolina, Jordan developed a competitive edge at an early age. It was James who introduced his son Michael to baseball and built a basketball court in their backyard. Michael idolized his brother Larry, and the two would often play one-on-one into the night. Michael wanted to win every game he played.

Jordan attended Laney High School in Wilmington. He was notably assigned to the school’s junior varsity basketball team as a sophomore—he was still under 6 feet tall then—before developing into one of the country’s top recruits.

During a basketball camp in the summer of 1980, Jordan grabbed the attention of legendary University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill head coach Dean Smith and his staff. He signed his letter of intent with the school in 1981.

Jordan enrolled at North Carolina in 1981 and soon became an important member of the university’s basketball team. UNC won the NCAA Division I championship in 1982, with Jordan scoring the final basket needed to defeat Georgetown University. He was also singled out as the NCAA College Player of the Year in 1983 and in 1984.

Jordan left college after his junior year to join the NBA in 1984. In 1986, Jordan finished his bachelor’s degree in geography as he continued to play basketball professionally.

The 6-foot-6 Jordan began his professional basketball career when he was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1984. He was the third overall pick, behind Hakeem Olajuwon, who was selected first by the Houston Rockets, and Sam Bowie, taken by the Portland Trail Blazers; the draft also featured legendary players John Stockton and Charles Barkley.

Jordan soon proved himself on the court. He helped the Bulls make the playoffs and scored an average of 28.2 points per game that season. For his efforts, Jordan received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and was selected for the All-Star Game.

Although his second season was marred by injury, he broke new ground on the court during the 1986-87 season. He became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to score more than 3,000 points in a single season. By the late 1980s, the Chicago Bulls were quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with, and Jordan was an instrumental part of the team’s success.

The Bulls made it to the Eastern Conference Finals in 1990 and won their first NBA championship the following year by defeating the Los Angeles Lakers. Jordan was well known by then for his superior athleticism on the court and for his leadership abilities.

In 1992, the Chicago Bulls beat the Portland Trail Blazers to win their second NBA championship. The team took their third championship the following year, dominating in the basketball world.

Following the 1993 death of his father and a short stint in minor league baseball, Jordan returned to the basketball court and the Bulls in March 1995. He came back even stronger the following year, averaging 30.4 points per game to lead the Bulls to a then-record 72 regular-season wins before they defeated the Seattle SuperSonics for the NBA championship.

Chicago nearly matched the previous year’s record with 69 wins in 1996-97, a season that ended with a Game 6 win over the Utah Jazz in the NBA Finals. The two teams faced each other again for the championship in 1998, with Jordan sinking the winning shot in Game 6 to claim his sixth and final title. In addition to those six rings, Jordan won each of his five league MVP awards with Chicago.

After his second retirement from basketball in 1999, Jordan joined the Washington Wizards in 2000 as a part owner and as president of basketball operations. In the fall of 2001, Jordan relinquished these roles to return to the court once more. He played for the Wizards for his final two NBA seasons.

Jordan is most famous for donning No. 23 during the majority of his career. He once said the number was a reference to brother Larry, as it was roughly half of his elder sibling’s high school number 45.

Jordan did wear 45 upon his 1995 return to the NBA because 23 was the number his late father knew him by, and he wanted a new beginning. That lasted only a couple months before Jordan switched back to 23 during the 1995 playoffs.

Jordan famously wore No. 12 for one game on February 14, 1990, because his jersey had been stolen. The Bulls didn’t have a backup and tried to locate a 23 jersey in the stands that would fit Jordan but couldn’t. The temporary change didn’t affect his performance, as Jordan scored 49 points in a loss to the Orlando Magic.

During the summer of 1984, Jordan made his first appearance at the Olympic Games as a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team. The team of college amateurs won the gold at the games that year, which were held in Los Angeles.

Jordan later helped the American team bring home the gold medal at the 1992 Olympic Games, held in Barcelona, Spain. The U.S. squad featured professional players for the first time that year, including Larry Bird , Magic Johnson , and Jordan, and became known as the “Dream Team.”

In 1988, Jordan received his first MVP Award from the NBA, an honor he would earn four more times, in 1991, 1992, 1996, and 1998.

In April 2009, Jordan received one of basketball’s greatest honors: He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Attending the induction ceremony was a bittersweet affair for Jordan because being at the event meant “your basketball career is completely over,” he explained.

In 2016, Jordan was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama .

Here is a rundown of Jordan’s NBA career averages and totals, according to Basketball Reference :

Career Averages

• Minutes: 38.3
• Field Goal Percentage: 0.497
• 3-Point Field Goal Percentage: 0.327
• Free Throw Percentage: 0.835
• Offensive Rebounds Per Game: 1.6
• Defensive Rebounds Per Game: 4.7
• Assists Per Game: 5.3
• Steals Per Game: 2.3
• Blocks Per Game: 0.8
• Turnovers Per Game: 2.7
• Personal Fouls Per Game: 2.6
• Points Per Game: 30.1

Career Totals

• Games: 1,072
• Games Started: 1,039
• Minutes: 41,011
• Field Goals Made: 12,192 of 24,537 attempts
• 3-Point Field Goals Made: 581 of 1,778 attempts
• Free Throws Made: 7,327 of 8,772 attempts
• Offensive Rebounds: 1,668
• Defensive Rebounds: 5,004
• Total Rebounds: 6,672
• Assists: 5,633
• Steals: 2,514
• Blocks: 893
• Turnovers: 2,924
• Personal Fouls: 2,783
• Points: 32,292

Jordan retired from the sport three times over the span of his 19-year professional career. He first stepped away on October 6, 1993, at age 30 to pursue a career in baseball following the death of his father. In July of that year, James was murdered when two teenagers shot him in his car in an apparent robbery as he was driving from Charlotte to Wilmington, North Carolina. He was missing for 23 days until his body was found in a swamp in McColl, South Carolina. The teens were later tried and convicted of the crime and received life sentences for first-degree murder.

Jordan retired from the Bulls again on January 13, 1999, at age 35 before eventually returning to the court with the Wizards. He finally hung up his jersey for good at age 40 on April 16, 2003.

In a move that shocked many, after the end of the 1992-93 basketball season, Jordan announced his retirement from basketball to pursue baseball. For one year in 1994, Jordan played for the Birmingham Barons, a minor league affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, as an outfielder.

This decision came shortly following the murder of Jordan’s father, who always wanted him to play baseball. He had last played baseball as a high school senior in 1981.

“You tell me I can’t do something, and I’m going to do it,” Jordan said.

During his short career in baseball, which many fans considered a whim, Jordan had a rather dismal .202 batting average. However, many of the people who worked with him at the time said he was an extremely dedicated player with potential.

“He had it all: ability, aptitude, work ethic. He was always so respectful of what we were doing and considerate of his teammates. Granted, he had a lot to learn,” former Barons manager Terry Francona said . “I do think with another 1,000 at-bats, he would’ve made it. But there’s something else that people miss about that season. Baseball wasn’t the only thing he picked up. I truly believe that he rediscovered himself, his joy for competition. We made him want to play basketball again.”

After his season with the Barons, Jordan went to the Arizona Fall League to play for the Scottsdale Scorpions. After hitting .252 and naming himself the team’s “worst player,” he returned to the NBA in March 1995 with a two-word press release: “I’m back.”

Outside of his career in basketball, Jordan has been involved in a number of profitable business and commercial ventures, including a longtime partnership with Nike. Jordan signed his first deal with Nike in 1984. The company launched its signature Air Jordan basketball sneakers in 1985. In its initial contract, Nike gave Jordan a generous 25 percent in royalties.

The Air Jordan quickly proved very popular, and it continues to be a best-seller for the apparel maker more than 30 years later. The collaboration mints money for Nike and Jordan, with Nike reporting nearly $2.9 billion in revenue for the Air Jordan line in 2018.

The story of Jordan’s partnership with Nike is the subject of the 2023 biographical drama Air , which stars Ben Affleck as Nike founder Phil Knight and Matt Damon as marketing executive Sonny Vaccaro.

Over the years, Jordan has signed a number of other endorsement deals with brands like Hanes, Upper Deck, Gatorade, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Chevrolet, and Wheaties. The Gatorade partnership featured a memorable ad campaign encouraging kids and adults to “Be Like Mike.”

In 1998, Jordan launched into the restaurant business as the owner of Michael Jordan’s The Steak House N.Y.C. Designed to reflect Jordan’s tastes and style, this typical steakhouse seated 150 and 60 at the bar, occupying 7,000 square feet in Grand Central Terminal, before closing in late 2018.

As of April 2023, there are four Michael Jordan’s Steak House locations: in Chicago; in Oak Brook, Illinois; at the Mohegan Sun casino in Uncasville, Connecticut; and at the Ilani Casino in Ridgefield, Washington.

Part Owner of the Charlotte Hornets

In 2006, Jordan bought a share of the Charlotte Hornets (formerly known as the Bobcats) and joined the team’s executive ranks as its managing member of basketball operations. In 2010, he became the majority owner of the Charlotte Hornets and serves as the team’s chairman.

Improving the team’s less-than-stellar record seemed to be Jordan’s priority. In November 2012, he told ESPN: “I don’t anticipate getting out of this business. My competitive nature is I want to succeed. It’s always been said that when I can’t find a way to do anything, I will find a way to do it.” While the Hornets’ on-court record wasn’t hugely successful—they failed to make the playoffs six straight seasons from 2016 through 2022—the organization grew from a $175 million valuation in 2006 to $1.7 billion by October 2022.

In March 2023, ESPN reported that Jordan was in talks to sell his majority stake in the franchise to a group led by two NBA minority owners. Five months later on August 3, Jordan completed the sale to a group including the team’s minority owner, Gabe Plotkin, as well as music artists J. Cole and Eric Church. Jordan kept a minority stake in the franchise.

Jordan’s NASCAR Team

In 2020, Jordan partnered with NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin to form the 23XI Racing team. The name is a reference to Jordan’s basketball number and Hamlin’s No. 11 race car.

Jordan is a longtime NASCAR fan and grew up watching legends of the sport like Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough, and Dale Earnhardt . Hamlin is a Jordan brand athlete and fan of the Charlotte Hornets, so the two were friends before the NASCAR partnership.

The team debuted in the 2021 Daytona 500 with Bubba Wallace driving the No. 23 car. Wallace picked up the team’s first NASCAR Cup victory later that season on October 4 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama.

The team expanded to two cars for the 2022 season, with former champion Kurt Busch driving the No. 45 car. Busch and Wallace each won a race at Kansas Speedway that year. Tyler Reddick replaced Busch in the 45 for the 2023 season and quickly gave the team a fourth race win at Circuit of the Americas.

Forbes listed Jordan’s net worth at $2 billion as of April 3, 2023. According to Sportico , he is the highest paid athlete of all time.

From 2001 through 2014, Jordan hosted an annual charity golf event known as the Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational, with proceeds benefiting foundations including Make-A-Wish, Cats Care, the James R. Jordan Foundation, Keep Memory Alive, and Opportunity Village.

The four-day tournament and celebration attracted celebrity participants, including Wayne Gretzky , Michael Phelps , Chevy Chase , Samuel L. Jackson , and Mark Wahlberg .

In 2023, Jordan made a $10 million donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation—the largest by an individual in its history—in honor of his 60th birthday.

In 1989, Jordan married Juanita Vanoy. The couple had three children together: Jeffrey, Marcus, and Jasmine. After 17 years of marriage, they divorced in December 2006.

On April 27, 2013, Jordan married 35-year-old Cuban American model Yvette Prieto in Palm Beach, Florida. Tiger Woods , Spike Lee , and Patrick Ewing, among other celebrities, reportedly attended the wedding ceremony. The couple welcomed twin daughters, Victoria and Ysabel, in February 2014.

Jordan and Juanita’s two sons, Jeffrey and Marcus, both played basketball in college and had dreams of making it to the NBA.

Jeffrey joined the basketball team at the University of Illinois in 2007. Both Jordan and his ex-wife, Juanita, supported their son and tried to help him deal with playing in the shadow of an NBA legend. “The thing that we have tried to tell Jeff is that you set your own expectations. By no means in this world can you ever live up to someone else’s expectations of who you are,” Jordan said during an appearance on the Today show.

Jeffrey played for the University of Illinois for three seasons, from 2007 to 2010. He then played for the University of South Florida for one season, from 2011 to 2012, before retiring from basketball. He later entered a management training program at Nike.

Jordan’s younger son, Marcus, played basketball for the UCF Knights, for three seasons from 2009 to 2012. He went on to open a basketball shoe and apparel store in Florida. “They wanted to be like their dad. What boy doesn’t? But they both got to a point where they said, ‘We’re not going to the NBA,’” Juanita said in 2013.

Jordan made a big splash as the lead actor in the 1996 movie Space Jam . The film mixed live action and animation and paired Jordan with Looney Tunes legends Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck on screen. Jordan did not appear in the 2021 sequel Space Jam: A New Legacy , which features LeBron James .

Jordan and the 1997-98 Bulls were the subject of the 2020 documentary The Last Dance, co-produced by Netflix and ESPN Films. ESPN aired the 10-part series after the COVID-19 pandemic halted the 2019-20 NBA season, and it became a must-watch for basketball fans. Along with featuring archival footage of Jordan and interviews with teammates and opponents, The Last Dance explored the tension between the Bulls front office and its peerless superstar over his final triumphant year with the team.

Jordan has also appeared on the cover of the popular NBA 2K video game franchise four times , including as recently as 2022.

A photograph of Jordan in tears during his 2009 induction into the Hall of Fame turned into a popular internet meme called “Crying Jordan,” in which Jordan’s teary face is superimposed on pictures of other people suffering mishaps.

• You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.
• By no means in this world can you ever live up someone else’s expectations of who you are.
• My competitive nature is I want to succeed. It’s always been said that when I can’t find a way to do anything, I will find a way to do it.
• I’ve reached the pinnacle of my career. I just feel that I don’t have anything else to prove.
• I can accept failure. Everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.
• Limits, like fear, is often an illusion.
• [A]t the end of the day, the team’s got to go out and play. I think the players win the championship, and the organization has something to do with it, don’t get me wrong. But don’t try to put the organization above the players.
• The game of basketball has been everything to me. My place of refuge, place I’ve always gone where I needed comfort and peace. It’s been the site of intense pain and the most intense feelings of joy and satisfaction. It’s a relationship that has evolved over time, given me the greatest respect and love for the game.
• I try to be a role model for Black kids, white kids, yellow kids, green kids.
• Enjoy every minute of life. Never second-guess life.
• I always thought I would be a professional athlete. I always loved sports. I knew one thing I didn’t want was a job. Me and working were never best friends. I enjoyed playing.

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Michael Jordan Biography

Born: February 17, 1963 Brooklyn, New York African American basketball player

Basketball superstar Michael Jordan is one of the most successful, popular, and wealthy athletes in college, Olympic, and professional sports history.

Michael Jordan was born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York, one of James and Deloris Jordan's five children. The family moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, when Michael was very young. His father worked as a General Electric plant supervisor, and his mother worked at a bank. 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. Jordan loved sports but failed to make his high school basketball team as a sophomore. He continued to practice and made the team the next year. After high school he accepted a basketball scholarship to the University of North Carolina, where he played under head coach Dean Smith.

In Jordan's first season at North Carolina he was named Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Rookie of the Year for 1982. The team won the ACC championship, and Jordan made the clutch jump shot that beat Georgetown University for the championship of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Jordan led the ACC in scoring as a sophomore and as a junior. The Sporting News named him college player of the year for both years. He left North Carolina after his junior year and was selected by the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) as the third pick of the 1984 draft. Before joining the Bulls, Jordan was a member of the Summer 1984 United States Olympic basketball team that won the gold medal in Los Angeles, California.

Early pro years

When Jordan was drafted by the Chicago Bulls they were a losing team, drawing only around six thousand fans to home games. Jordan quickly turned that around. His style of play and fierce spirit of competition reminded sportswriters and fans of Julius Erving (1950–), who had been a superstar player during the 1970s. Jordan's incredible leaping ability and hang time thrilled fans in arenas around the league. In his first season he was named to the All-Star team and was later honored as the league's Rookie of the Year.

By adding such players as Scottie Pippen, Bill Cartwright, Horace Grant, and John Paxson around Jordan, the Bulls' management created a strong team that won the 1991 NBA title by defeating the Los Angeles Lakers. The next year, the Bulls repeated as NBA champions by beating the Portland Trail Blazers. In 1992 Jordan also played on the "Dream Team," which participated in the Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain. The Olympic Committee had voted to lift the ban on professional athletes participating in the games. The team easily won the gold medal, winning their eight games by an average margin of 43.7 points.

Unexpected retirement

In 1993, after a tough playoff series with the New York Knicks, the Bulls met the Phoenix Suns for the NBA championship. When it was over, Jordan was again playoff MVP, and Chicago had won a third straight title. That summer Jordan's father, James, was murdered by two men during a robbery attempt. Jordan was grief stricken, and his father's death, combined with media reports about his gambling, led him to announce his retirement from professional basketball in October. Jordan had won three straight NBA titles, three regular season MVP awards, three playoff MVP titles, seven consecutive scoring titles, and he was a member of the All-Star team every year that he was in the league. In just nine seasons he had become the Bulls all-time leading scorer.

In 1994–95 Jordan played for the Birmingham Barons, a minor league baseball team in the Chicago White Sox system. Although the seventeen-month experiment showed that he was not a major league baseball player, the experience and time away from basketball provided a much-needed rest and opportunity to regain his love of basketball.

Return to glory

When Jordan returned to the Chicago Bulls during the 1994–95 regular season, people wondered, "Could he do it again?" He played well, but he was obviously rusty. The Bulls were defeated in the playoffs by the Orlando Magic. After a summer of playing basketball during breaks from filming the live-action cartoon movie Space Jam, Jordan returned with a fierce determination to prove that he had the ability to get back on top. The 1995–96 Bulls finished the regular season 72–10, an NBA record for most wins in a season, and Jordan, with his shooting rhythm back, earned his eighth scoring title. He also became the tenth NBA player to score 25,000 career points and second fastest after Chamberlain to reach that mark. The Bulls went on to win their fourth NBA championship, overpowering the Seattle Supersonics in six games. Few who watched will ever forget how Jordan sank to his knees, head bent over the winning ball, in a moment of bittersweet victory and deep sadness. The game had been played on Father's Day, three years after his father's murder.

The defending champions had a tougher time during the 1996–97 season but entered the playoffs as expected. Sheer determination took the Bulls to their fifth NBA championship. Illness, injury, and at times a lack of concentration hurt the team. In the fifth game of the finals Jordan carried the team to victory despite suffering from a stomach virus. In the 1997–98 season the Bulls were again in the playoffs, and again they faced tough competition. As before, they were able to clinch the NBA championship, and Jordan claimed his sixth NBA finals MVP award.

Jordan's other professional life as a businessman was never off track. Profitable endorsements (ads in which he voiced his support for certain products) for companies such as Nike and Wheaties, as well as his own golf company and products such as Michael Jordan cologne (which reportedly sold 1.5 million bottles in its first two months), made Jordan a multimillionaire. In 1997 he was ranked the world's highest paid athlete, with a $30 million contract—the largest one-year salary in sports history—and approximately $40 million a year in endorsement fees.

Retired again

Jordan retired for a second time in 1999, ending his career on a high note just after the official end of a labor dispute between NBA players and team owners. Many people saw him as the greatest basketball player ever, and his retirement was called the end of an era. In 2000 Jordan became part-owner and president of basketball operations of the Washington Wizards. This made him only the third African American owner in the NBA. He also gained an ownership stake in the Washington Capitals hockey team. Also in 2000, Jordan celebrated the first year of his $1 million grant program to help teachers make a difference in their schools.

In September 2001, after months of rumors, Jordan announced that he was ending his three-year retirement to play for the Wizards at age thirty-eight. At a news conference to discuss his comeback, he said, "Physically, I know I'm not twenty-five years old, but I feel I can play the game of basketball on the highest level." The Wizards, who had won only nineteen games the season before, improved with the addition of Jordan. After being voted to play in his thirteenth All-Star game (during which he missed a slam dunk), Jordan had the Wizards in the race for the playoffs until suffering a knee injury and missing the last part of the season. He was also distracted in January 2002 when his wife Juanita, whom he married in 1989, filed for divorce. (They have three children.) The next month the divorce was called off. Jordan said he planned to play one more season for the Wizards.

For More Information

Greene, Bob. Hang Time. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

Gutman, Bill. Michael Jordan: A Biography. New York: Pocket Books, 1991.

Halberstam, David. Playing for Keeps: Michael Jordan and the World He Made. New York: Random House, 1999.

Jordan, Michael. For the Love of the Game: My Story. New York: Crown Publishers, 1998.

Naughton, Jim. Taking to the Air: The Rise of Michael Jordan. New York: Warner Books, 1992.

Smith, Sam. The Jordan Rules. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992.

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Michael Jordan

• Born February 17 , 1963 · Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
• Birth name Michael Jeffrey Jordan
• His Airness
• Roster Guard
• Height 6′ 5½″ (1.97 m)
• Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born in Brooklyn, New York on February 17, 1963. He was the fourth of five children born to James and Deloris. James Jordan was a mechanic and Deloris Jordan was a bank teller. Soon after Michael's birth, James and Deloris felt that the streets of Brooklyn were unsafe to raise a family, so they moved the family to Wilmington, North Carolina. As a youngster, Michael immediately became interested in sports. However, it was baseball not basketball that was his first love. He would play catch in the yard with his father, who loved baseball. He soon started to play basketball to try and follow in the footsteps of his older brother, Larry, whom he idolized growing up. At Laney High School, as a sophomore, he decided to try out for the varsity team but was cut because he was raw and undersized. The following summer, he grew four inches and practiced tirelessly. The hard work paid off as he averaged 25 points per game in his last two years and was selected to the McDonald's All-American Team as a senior. Following high school, he earned a basketball scholarship from North Carolina University where he would play under legendary coach Dean Smith. In his first year, he was named ACC Freshman of the Year. He would help lead the Tarheels to the 1982 NCAA Championship, making the game-winning shot. After winning the Naismith College Player of the Year award in 1984, Jordan decided to leave North Carolina to enter the NBA draft. Although he decided to leave college early, he would later return to the university in 1986 to complete his degree in geography. In the 1984 NBA draft, he was selected with the third overall pick by the Chicago Bulls. As a rookie for the Bulls, he made an immediate impact, averaging an amazing 28.2 points a game, including six games where he scored 40+ points. He was selected to the NBA All-Star Game and named Rookie of the Year. This would just be the beginning of a career filled with awards and accolades. In the upcoming years, he would go on to win five regular season MVP awards, six NBA championships, six NBA finals MVP awards, three All-Star game MVP awards, and a defensive player of the year award. In 1993, tragedy struck Jordan's seemingly perfect life. On July 23, 1993, his father, James, was murdered off Interstate 95 in North Carolina. Two locals had robbed him, shot him in the chest and threw his body in a swamp. Three months later on October 6, 1993, following a run of three consecutive NBA championships, Jordan announced his retirement from basketball citing that "he no longer had the desire to play." Now "retired" at age 33, it was uncertain what Jordan would do next. Would he take a year off out of the public eye to grieve and then come back to the Bulls? Would he go out and look for a white collar job in the field of geography, his college major? Or would he take up a completely different hobby like golf? In early 1994, Jordan decided to take up a new hobby alright. However, it wasn't golf. It was baseball. Despite not playing baseball since high school some 13 years ago, he signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox in 1994. He played one unspectacular season for the Double-A Birmingham Barons. On March 18, 1995, Jordan, a man of few words since his retirement, sent two important words to media sources everywhere: "I'm Back". He celebrated his return to the NBA by doing what he always did best: winning. Although the Bulls would lose in the playoffs to the Orlando Magic, it was obvious that Jordan was still the same superstar player. He would go on to lead the Bulls to three more consecutive NBA championships and etch his place in the history as the "NBA's greatest player of all-time". On January 13, 1999, Jordan re-announced his retirement, saying that "he was 99.9 percent sure that he would never play again". Soon after, Jordan became part owner of the Washington Wizards. Near the start of the 2001-02 season, there were hints that Jordan may try another comeback to the NBA. On September 25, 2001, Jordan confirmed those rumors, announcing that he would once again return to the NBA as a member of the Wizards. His two seasons in Washington were mediocre at best. His statistics were solid and he showed some flashes of his old self but he could not lead the Wizards to the playoffs and missed several games due to injury. He retired for good following the 2002-03 season and was subsequently dismissed as president of the Washington Wizards. In June 2006, he became part owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. Later that year, he filed for divorce from Juanita, his wife of 17 years. They have three children together. - IMDb Mini Biography By: SteveG
• Michael Jordan is an American former professional basketball player and the principal owner of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Jordan played 15 seasons in the NBA, winning six championships with the Chicago Bulls . Michael Jordan's individual accolades and accomplishments include six NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, ten scoring titles (both all-time records), five MVP Awards, ten All-NBA First Team designations, nine All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen NBA All-Star Game selections, three All-Star Game MVP Awards, three steals titles, 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. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2015. In 2014, Jordan became the first billionaire player in NBA history. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Tango Papa
• Spouses Yvette Prieto (April 27, 2013 - present) (2 children) Juanita Jordan (September 2, 1989 - December 29, 2006) (divorced, 3 children)
• Children Jeffrey Jordan Marcus Jordan Jasmine Jordan Victoria Jordan Ysabel Jordan
• Number 23 jersey
• Air Jordan sneakers
• Fequently sticks his tongue out when making amazing dunks or layups
• ear ring in left ear
• In a 1988 game against the Utah Jazz, he dunked over John Stockton , who was 6' 1" and 175 pounds. A Jazz fan heckled him, saying, "Why don't you dunk on somebody your own size?" The next trip down the floor, Jordan dunked again, this time on 6' 11", 285-lb. center Melvin Turpin . He then turned to the fan and said, "Was he big enough?".
• In Space Jam (1996) , he tells the Looney Tunes that he used to wear his UNC shorts under his Bulls jersey in every game he played in. He really did do this, as a good luck charm.
• Neither of his parents are more than 5' 9" tall.
• While most are familiar with his obvious #23 and the #45 he wore when he returned from a brief baseball career in 1995, Jordan also wore #12. However, he wore it in only one game--in 1990 after an Orlando Magic Arena employee stole his uniform. It was a back-up jersey and did not even feature a last name. He scored 49 points in the game, leading the Bulls win over the Magic.
• His 1992 playoff game against the Portland Trail Blazers, where he had 35 first-half points and nailed six three-pointers in a row, has been claimed by many as "the closest anyone has ever come to playing a perfect game of basketball." Ironically, Jordan was bypassed in the 1984 draft by the Trail Blazers, who picked Sam Bowie instead, a move that has gone down in history as one of the biggest draft-day blunders.
• If you're trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I've had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.
• You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them. -- GQ, March, 1989.
• In my prime I can probably take LeBron but I'm not sure about Kobe
• [from an a 1997 American Prospect article]Republicans buy sneakers, too
• If you put in the work, the results will come.

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Michael Jordan

• Birthdate 2/17/1963
• College North Carolina
• Draft Info 1984: Rd 1, Pk 3 (CHI)
• Birthplace Wilmington, NC

Career History

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Michael Jordan

Michael Jeffrey Jordan

(Mike, Air Jordan, M.J., His Airness, Money, Black Cat, Mr. June, G.O.A.T., Superman, Captain Marvel, Black Jesus)

Position: Shooting Guard and Small Forward ▪ Shoots: Right

6-6 ,  198lb  (198cm, 89kg)

Born: February 17 , 1963 in Brooklyn,  New York us

College: UNC

High School: Emsley A. Laney in Wilmington, North Carolina

Draft: Chicago Bulls , 1st round (3rd pick, 3rd overall), 1984 NBA Draft

NBA Debut: October 26, 1984

Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2009 ( Full List )

Career Length:  15 years

• Hall of Fame
• 14x All Star
• 10x Scoring Champ
• 3x STL Champ
• 6x NBA Champ
• 11x All-NBA
• 1984-85 All-Rookie
• 1984-85 ROY
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• 6x Finals MVP
• NBA 75th Anniv. Team

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• Play-by-play data available for the 1996-97 through 2023-24 seasons. Shot type and location data quality from the 1990s is inconsistent, esp. 1996-97
• Shot location data available for the 1996-97 through 2023-24 seasons. Shot type and location data quality from the 1990s is inconsistent, esp. 1996-97
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June 19, 1984 : Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 1st round (3rd pick) of the 1984 NBA Draft.

October 6, 1993 : Retired from the Chicago Bulls .

January 13, 1999 : Retired from the Chicago Bulls .

September 25, 2001 : Signed as a free agent with the Washington Wizards .

April 17, 2003 : Retired from the Washington Wizards .

How old is Michael Jordan?

Michael Jordan is 61 years old.

Where was Michael Jordan born?

Michael Jordan was born in Brooklyn, New York.

When was Michael Jordan born?

Michael Jordan was born on February 17, 1963.

How tall is Michael Jordan?

Michael Jordan is 6-6 (198 cm) tall.

How much did Michael Jordan weigh when playing?

Michael Jordan weighed 198 lbs (89 kg) when playing.

Is Michael Jordan in the Hall of Fame?

Michael Jordan was inducted to the Hall of Fame as a Player in 2009 ( Full List ) .

When was Michael Jordan drafted?

Michael Jordan was drafted by Chicago Bulls , 1st round (3rd pick, 3rd overall), 1984 NBA Draft .

What position did Michael Jordan play?

Shooting Guard and Small Forward.

When did Michael Jordan retire?

Michael Jordan last played in 2003.

What is Michael Jordan's net worth?

Michael Jordan made at least $94,022,500 playing professional basketball.

How much did Michael Jordan make?

Michael Jordan made $33,140,000 in 1998.

What did Michael Jordan average?

Michael Jordan averaged 30.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game.

How many rings does Michael Jordan have?

Michael Jordan won 6 championships.

What schools did Michael Jordan attend?

Michael Jordan attended Emsley A. Laney in Wilmington, North Carolina and UNC .

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Michael JORDAN

Michael Jordan is considered by most experts to be the greatest basketball player of all-time. He played collegiately at the University of North Carolina, where he helped that team win an NCAA championship in 1982 and also won gold at the Pan American Games in the same year. In 1984, Jordan led the United States to an Olympic gold medal. Turning to professional basketball after his junior year in college, he became the greatest player in the NBA (National Basketball Association). In 1991, Jordan finally achieved his greatest thrill, leading the Chicago Bulls to an NBA Championship, and completing his Triple Crown of titles – NCAA, NBA, and Olympic. Jordan eventually led the Bulls to six NBA titles (1991-1993, 1996-1998). In 1992, Jordan also played on the Dream Team which won the basketball gold medal at Barcelona. He could also have played in 1996 but chose not to do so. Jordan retired briefly at the beginning of the 1993-94 NBA season, taking a short fling at playing minor league baseball, but returned to basketball at the end of the 1995 season. He retired again after helping the Chicago Bulls win their sixth NBA title in the spring of 1998. However, Jordan came out of retirement to play for the Washington Wizards in the 2001-03 NBA seasons.

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His Airness

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By Mike Greenberg

• May 29, 2014

Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player who ever lived. Of that, there is very little dispute. He was also, at the apex of his career, a global ambassador for the game and for Nike (not necessarily in that order), a veritable A.T.M. for various corporate partners, a hero to millions, if not billions, of fans, and very likely the most famous person in the world. I know this because everyone knows it, and also because I witnessed at least a little bit of it all. I covered Jordan and the Bulls for an all-sports radio station in Chicago for four years while he was at the height of his power and fame.

It was an experience I never cease reliving, in the same way you would never forget being allowed to watch Picasso paint or Mozart tinker at a piano. I have made these analogies before and will defend them to the death. Michael Jordan absolutely was an artist on the basketball court, every bit the equal in his milieu of any of the great masters in theirs. Whatever his flaws away from the game, they were easily overshadowed by the grandeur of his talent. It was, after all, difficult to speak ill of a man when your jaw was agape, having just watched him glide through the air with a combination of grace and strength that could rightly be described as superhuman.

In his thoughtful, extraordinarily well-­researched biography “Michael Jordan: The Life,” Roland Lazenby, the author of books on Phil Jackson, Kobe Bryant and Jerry West, gives us the life and much more. His jaw is as wide open as anyone’s; the exhaustive narrative of Jordan’s basketball career is written with appropriate awe. But what makes this portrayal especially worthwhile is everything else. Lazenby begins before the beginning, in a shotgun shack in rural North Carolina some 70 years before Michael’s birth, with a beautifully written account of the life of his great-grandfather. The long trail Lazenby follows is significant because it offers an explanation of how Michael developed the competitiveness for which he became legendary. And the psychology is worth the investment even if no new ground is broken (Michael’s father, James Sr., loved his older brother Larry more), because with the foundation of Jordan’s personality set, the rest of the life can be better appreciated: Michael Jordan not simply as a superhero, but as a Man in Full.

For me, the book’s most interesting section concerns Michael’s adolescence, first as the skinny kid who was left off the varsity roster his sophomore year in high school, then through a summer spent at an elite basketball camp that Jordan says was “the turning point of my life.” It was during this time that Jordan figured out just how good he really was; previously he had imagined himself as a baseball player as much as anything else. Even Jordan’s most ardent fans will not have heard every story Lazenby tells about these early years — though every basketball fan will recognize the names of many of Jordan’s contemporaries from that period of his life, some of whom were considered greater prospects and all of whose accomplishments he would eventually dwarf.

The true Jordan phenomenon began, of course, with his freshman year at the University of North Carolina, when he was playing for the renowned Dean Smith and made the shot that won the national championship in 1982. Lazenby covers Jordan’s college and pro careers, including his two Olympic gold medals, in great detail, spicing the account with the firsthand recollections of friends and foes alike. All the familiar stories are here: the disappointing losses in his final two N.C.A.A. tournaments before he turned pro after his junior year, the frustration of his early N.B.A. years, the championships he won both before and after his first, premature, retirement. Through it all, Jordan is depicted as restless, driven and often angry. None of this is surprising, but given the full context it reads differently from the way Jordan is often perceived: This is a Michael Jordan who is confused and ­naïve more than conniving. Lazenby’s portrait is not saccharine, but it is certainly more sympathetic than most. He is particularly insightful about the relationships that shaped Jordan’s career: the feud with Isiah Thomas, the grudging respect for his childhood idol Magic Johnson, the disdain for the Bulls’ general manager Jerry Krause, the connection with Phil Jackson that elevated both men to the top of their profession.

Not much time is spent on Jordan’s life after his final retirement from the game, and that is just as well. His tenure as owner of the Charlotte Bobcats has been mostly disastrous and rarely interesting. While there are some — “haters” as they are commonly known — who revel in this failure, I am not among them, and neither is Lazenby. It is painful for those of us who remember Jordan’s genius so fondly to see him diminished in this way. There is little room for it in the mind’s eye, and thus I applaud Lazenby for leaving little room for it in print.

What many will seek from this book are answers to certain questions about Jordan that seem sure to be asked forever. Questions about his enormous gambling debts, the personal check that connected him to a convicted drug dealer, and the murky circumstances surrounding his father’s murder. Those questions are not answered here, which might count as a criticism of Lazenby, except that they most likely never will be answered, and it is unfair to ask an author to do the impossible. Lazenby lays out the facts and allows us to draw our own conclusions. He didn’t set out to write a gossipy tell-all, and he did not. Readers who expect explanations for every mystery will be disappointed.

There is a poignant moment near the beginning of the book in which Jordan, as a young man, asks himself “what it will be like to look back on all of this, whether it will even seem real.” Seeing him today with his new wife, his twin baby girls, in his role as owner of a struggling franchise, heavier than we remember him but still looking every bit the best baller in the room, I wonder what he thinks of his past. He is more guarded today, more private than he was. Does it all seem real to him, or does it seem as far away for him as it does for the rest of us?

If you are one who takes joy in recalling what it was like when he, and we, were younger, you will enjoy this journey. Lazenby navigates both the peaks and valleys with an easy style. Reading “Michael Jordan: The Life,” you are sure to find yourself shaking your head in wonder at some of the memories. After all, there is nothing better than genuinely believing a man can fly.

MICHAEL JORDAN

By Roland Lazenby

Illustrated. 708 pp. Little, Brown & Company. $30.

MIKE GREENBERG, a co-host of the ESPN show “Mike & Mike,” is the author of the novel “All You Could Ask For.”

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Michael Jordan: The Journey of a Basketball Legend

Michael Jordan, often referred to simply as “MJ” or “His Airness,” is a name synonymous with excellence, greatness, and an indomitable competitive spirit. Widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time, Jordan’s career is not just the stuff of legend; it’s the embodiment of passion, perseverance, and unparalleled success.

In this comprehensive article, we’ll delve into the remarkable journey of Michael Jordan’s career, from his early days in North Carolina to his multiple retirements and comebacks, leaving an indelible mark on the world of sports.

Early Life and College Days

Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina, in a close-knit family that instilled strong values and work ethic. His father, James Jordan, was a former equipment supervisor and a pivotal figure in Michael’s life.

Jordan attended Emsley A. Laney High School, where he began to showcase his extraordinary athletic talent, excelling in basketball, baseball, and football. However, it was clear that his true passion was basketball. He played on the school’s varsity basketball team and quickly established himself as a standout player. Despite his initial setback of being cut from the varsity team as a sophomore, Jordan’s determination and work ethic only intensified.

Jordan’s college journey began at the University of North Carolina, where he played under Coach Dean Smith. In his freshman year, he hit the game-winning shot in the 1982 NCAA Championship, showcasing his potential. Over three seasons at North Carolina, he honed his skills, earning numerous accolades and averaging 17.7 points per game.

The NBA Draft and Rookie Season

Jordan declared for the 1984 NBA Draft after his junior year at North Carolina, where he was selected by the Chicago Bulls as the third overall pick. It was the beginning of an era that would forever change the landscape of professional basketball.

Jordan made an immediate impact, averaging 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game in his rookie season. He was named the NBA Rookie of the Year and selected for the All-Star Game, a preview of the greatness that lay ahead.

The Air Jordan Legacy

In 1984, Nike signed Michael Jordan to a groundbreaking endorsement deal that would ultimately lead to the creation of the iconic Air Jordan brand. The Air Jordan sneakers became a cultural phenomenon, known for their innovative technology and distinctive design. Jordan’s influence on and off the court solidified his status as a global superstar.

NBA Championships, MVPs, and Records

Michael Jordan’s career is synonymous with winning. He led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships in the 1990s (1991-1993, 1996-1998) and was named the NBA Finals MVP in each of those championship seasons. His combination of skill, work ethic, and competitive drive was unmatched.

In addition to his championships, Jordan won five regular-season MVP awards, 10 scoring titles, and numerous All-NBA and All-Defensive Team selections. He holds countless NBA records, including highest career scoring average (30.1 points per game) and the most points scored in a single playoff game (63).

Michael Jordan Career Acheivements

• NBA Championships: Michael Jordan won a total of six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls during the 1990s. He secured these titles in the years 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, and 1998.
• NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards: Jordan won the NBA MVP award five times during his career. He received this honor in the seasons 1987-88, 1990-91, 1991-92, 1995-96, and 1997-98.
• NBA Finals MVP Awards: Jordan was named NBA Finals MVP in all six of the championships he won (1991-1993, 1996-1998).
• NBA All-Star Game MVP Awards: Jordan earned two NBA All-Star Game MVP awards in 1988 and 1996.
• NBA Defensive Player of the Year : Jordan was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year in the 1987-88 season.
• NBA Rookie of the Year : In the 1984-85 season, Jordan was named NBA Rookie of the Year.
• NBA Scoring Titles : Jordan led the league in scoring for ten seasons, from 1986-87 through 1992-93 and then again from 1995-96 through 1997-98.
• NBA All-Star Appearances: Jordan was selected to the NBA All-Star Game 14 times during his career.
• NBA All-Defensive First Team Selections: Jordan was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team nine times.
• NBA All-NBA First Team Selections: Jordan was selected to the All-NBA First Team ten times.

These are just a few of the many honors Michael Jordan received during his remarkable career. His impact on the game of basketball and his legacy as a global sports icon extend beyond his on-court achievements.

Retirement and Baseball

In a shocking turn of events, Jordan announced his first retirement from basketball in October 1993, citing a loss of desire to play the game. He transitioned to professional baseball and played for the Birmingham Barons, a Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox.

His baseball career, while respectable, did not match the success of his basketball career. In March 1995, Jordan announced his return to the NBA, marking one of the most celebrated comebacks in sports history.

The Second Three-Peat

Jordan’s return to the Bulls in the 1994-95 season was met with great anticipation. His competitive fire still burned brightly, and he led the Bulls to another three consecutive NBA championships from 1996 to 1998. His return solidified his status as one of the most iconic sports figures of all time.

Retirement and the Washington Wizards

After his second retirement from the Bulls, Jordan took an ownership and executive role with the Washington Wizards. However, his passion for the game led to another comeback as a player in January 2001. He played two seasons with the Wizards before retiring for the final time in 2003.

Michael Jordan’s Legacy and Impact

Michael Jordan’s impact on the game of basketball extends far beyond his playing career. His competitiveness, work ethic, and leadership qualities have served as an inspiration to athletes and individuals worldwide. He elevated the global profile of the NBA and helped popularize the sport around the world.

Off the court, Jordan has been involved in numerous business ventures, including ownership stakes in the Charlotte Hornets and a successful line of golf courses. His philanthropic efforts include significant donations to various charitable organizations, including those focused on education and youth development.

The Last Dance: A Documentary Phenomenon

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a documentary series titled “The Last Dance” premiered. The series chronicled Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls, offering an in-depth look at his career, competitiveness, and leadership. It rekindled interest in Jordan’s legacy and introduced a new generation of fans to his greatness.

The Final Say – His Airness

Michael Jordan’s career is the stuff of legends. From his humble beginnings in North Carolina to his ascent as a global sports icon, his journey is a testament to the power of talent, hard work, and an unwavering competitive spirit. Jordan’s influence on the game of basketball and popular culture is immeasurable, and his legacy endures through the Air Jordan brand and the countless lives he has inspired.

His impact goes beyond the basketball court, as he continues to serve as a role model for aspiring athletes and individuals striving for excellence in their respective fields. Michael Jordan’s career is a story of triumph, setbacks, comebacks, and an enduring legacy that will forever be etched in the annals of sports history.

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Michael Jordan Biography, Childhood, Career, Personal Life

Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 15 seasons. During those 15 seasons in the NBA,

Michael Jordan, through sheer hard work and an ironclad determination to succeed, captured 6 NBA championships. Aside from the championships, Michael Jordan’s impressive basketball prowess, which earned him the admiration of fans, and established him as one of the most outstanding personalities in the sport, earned him individual awards.

Whenever he won, Michael Jordan does it so brilliantly with such exceptional attitude that it was clear beyond any doubt that he is the best, as evidenced by his NBA Final MVP awards. In the six NBA Finals Michael Jordan won, he stood out and thus was awarded the MVP award.

His excellent disposition, which earned him success on the courts, has been carried into the business world after he retired, and this, in turn, has brought him similar success. In this article, we’ll review Micheal Jordan’s biography facts, childhood/early life, career, and personal life.

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Table of Contents

Michael Jordan’s Biography Facts, Age, Quick Info

Here are some quick biography facts that you need to know about the American basketball legend .

• Full Name: Michael Jeffrey Jordan
• Nicknames: His Airness, Black Cat, MJ, Air Jordan, Black Cat
• Born: February 17, 1963
• Age: 61 years old
• Zodiac Sign: Aquarius
• Place of Birth: New York City, New York, USA
• Nationality: American
• Height: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
• Weight: 98 kg (216 lb)
• High School: Emsley A. Laney High School 
• College: University of North Carolina
• NBA Draft: 1984 (Round 1; Pick 3) by  Chicago Bulls
• Position: Shooting guard
• League: NBA
• Kit Number: #23, #12, #45
• Playing Career: 1984–1993, 1995–1998, 2001–2003
• Father: James R. Jordan, Sr.
• Mother: Deloris Jordan
• Brothers: Larry Jordan, James Jordan Jr.
• Sisters: Roslyn Jordan, Deloris Jordan
• Wife: Yvette Prieto (married 2013), Juanita Vanoy (married 1989–2006)
• Sons: Jeffrey Michael Jordan, Marcus Jordan
• Daughters: Ysabel Jordan, Victoria Jordan, Jasmine M. Jordan

RELATED: Interesting Michael Jordan Facts You Should Know

Michael Jordan’s Early Life & Childhood

Born in Brooklyn, New York, on February 17, 1963, Michael Jeffrey Jordan is one of five children born to his parents — James Jordan and Deloris Jordan. His father, James, worked as a General Electric Supervisor while his mother, Deloris, worked in a bank. As a young boy, his father taught him basic etiquettes such as hard work, while his mother instilled domestic skills such as sewing and laundry.

Jordan, who had an interest in sport from a young age, tried playing basketball at Emsley A. Laney High School in his second year, but Jordan, who stood at the height of 5 feet, 11 inches, was said to be too short and couldn’t play for his high school basketball team.

He, however, went on to play for his school’s junior basketball team, where he recorded several 40 point games. Soon Jordan grew and was given a spot in the maim team where he recorded an average of 25 points in his last two seasons of high school basketball.

In 1981, as a senior in high school, Jordan was invited to the McDonald’s All-American Game, where he performed brilliantly. After completing high school, he received several offers from various universities such as the University of North Carolina, Syracuse University, and the University of Virginia. He, however, chose to play for North Carolina.

Michael Jordan’s College Basketball Career

In his first season of college basketball, Jordan was instrumental in North Carolina’s NCAA Championship win and was awarded the ACC Freshman of the Year award. He continued in a superb form, which saw him earn the NCAA All-American First Team selection in his second and third year in college.

In his junior year, Jordan’s impressive form earned him the Wooden and Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year awards. Following a brilliant junior year, he decided to forgo his final year in college and enlisted in the 1984 NBA Draft, where the Chicago Bulls selected him as the draft’s third overall pick. In 1986, he returned to college, where he bagged his Bachelor of Arts degree in geography.

Michael Jordan’s Professional Basketball Career & Awards

Chicago bulls (1984–1993, 1995–1998).

In his first season in the NBA, Jordan’s performance made him a fan favorite, which led him to feature in the All-star game. The All-Star game in the 1984/85 was controversial, as the established stars were pissed about the attention Jordan was receiving from the fans and thus refused to pass to him. Jordan, who seemed not to mind the buzz around him, continued in great form and won the Rookie of the year award after averaging 28.2 points.

Jordan could not perform well in his second season due to a fractured foot, which led him to miss 64 games. He however, recovered fully and went on a scoring spree in his third season. That season saw him emerge as the second of only two players in the history of the NBA to have recorded 3,000 points in a season. He also recorded 100 blocked shots and 200 steals, which made him the first player to record such numbers.

In his fourth season in the NBA, the 1987/88 season, Jordan topped the scoring charts and also won the Defensive Player of the award. In the 1988/89 and 1989/90 seasons, Jordan led the Bulls to the Eastern Conference finals but was defeated by the Detroit Pistons in both seasons.

The 1990/91 season was the beginning of good times in the NBA for Jordan. His performance during the season earned him a second MVP award after he claimed the first in the 1988 season. He also led the Bulls to defeat LA Lakers, who had the mighty Magic Johnson in the NBA Finals.

For his performance, Jordan was named the Finals MVP. The following season, he and the Bulls maintained their top form and went on to win the NBA Finals while Jordan was named the NBA Finals MVP as well as the season’s MVP award for a second successive time.

In the 1992/93 season, Jordan did not win the NBA MVP, but he did win a third consecutive NBA Championship and set the record of being the first player ever to claim three successive NBA Finals MVP award.

First Retirement

In October 1993, Jordan retired from the NBA. He cited the death of his father as a factor which affected his decision but said his desire to play no more was the primary reason for his retirement. It was, however, rumored that Michael Jordan’s retirement was a punishment for his involvement in gambling.

Return to the NBA

In March 1995, Michael Jordan announced his return to the NBA, saying, ‘I’m back.’ In November 1994, Jordan’s #23 jersey was retired by the Bulls, and though he could use the jersey number, he chose to wear #45. But he later decided to return to his old jersey number, which led to the Bulls being fined due to not reporting the change to NBA officials.

In the 1995/96 season, Jordan was back to his old self. He won the NBA MVP, All-star game MVP, the NBA Championship, and the NBA Finals MVP awards. The championship win that season was emotional for Jordan because it was the first championship he won following his father’s murder and the championship was won on father’s day. Jordan was seen crying after the win.

The following season, Jordan did not win the All-Star MVP and NBA MVP, but went on to win the NBA Championship and also his fourth NBA Finals MVP. In the 1997/98 season, Jordan was once again on an impressive run as he claimed the NBA MVP, All-Star MVP, the NBA Finals MVP, and the NBA Championship.

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Second Retirement

In January 1999, Michael Jordan retired for the second time. A year later, he returned to the NBA as co-owner of a Basketball franchise, the Washington Wizards. 

Washington Wizards (2001–2003)

In September 2001, he returned as a Washington Wizards player and went on to play until April 2003, where he played his final NBA game against the Philadelphia 76ers in front of 21,257 spectators.

RELATED: Michael Jordan vs LeBron James | NBA GOAT Debate

Michael Jordan Baseball Career

In February 1994, Michael Jordan signed a deal with the Chicago White Sox to play in Major League Baseball (MLB). In March 1995, as a result of the MLB strike, he decided to retire from baseball.

Michael Jordan’s International Career

Michael Jordan’s international career is as glamorous as his NBA career. At the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, Jordan, who was still in college, led the US team in points and picked his first Olympics gold medal. In the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics, Jordan, who was part of the star-studded Dream team, won his second Olympics Gold medal. He also won Gold at the 1983 Caracas Pan American games and the 1992 Portland FIBA America’s Championship. 

Michael Jordan’s Wife, Personal Life & Charity

In 1989, Michael Jordan married Juanita Vanoy, who gave birth to three children for him — two sons and a daughter. In January 2002, they filed for divorce as a result of irreconcilable differences but soon reconciled. But in December 2006, they divorced amicably. Juanita Vanoy received a $168 million settlement. In 2013, he got married to Yvette Prieto, a Cuban model. In February 2014, Prieto gave birth to a set of identical twins named, Victoria and Ysabel.

In July 2006, a court declared that Jordan did not owe his ex-lover Karla Knafel, $5 million over breach of contract after it emerged that he paid her $250,000 to keep their affair a secret.

Between 2001 to 2014, Jordan held the Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational, a golf tournament, which raised money for charity. Jordan was made The Chief Wish ambassador for the Make-A-Wish Foundation in 2008. As of 2019, Jordan has helped the foundation raise as much as $5 million.

In 1984, Jordan’s Nike Air Jordan shoes were released, and it progressed to become a viral sensation. The brand generated about $1 billion in sales for Nike, as revealed by Forbes. Jordan had various endorsement deals with Gatorade, Nike, McDonald’s, Chevrolet, Wheaties, Coca-Cola, and several others.

RELATED: Top-20 Richest NBA Players Of All-Time

In 2014, following his increased stake in basketball franchise, the Charlotte Hornets, from 80% to 89.5%, Jordan became the first basketball billionaire.

SEE MORE: Biography facts, childhood and personal life of famous basketball stars

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Related Posts

• Occupation: Basketball Player
• Born: February 17, 1963 in Brooklyn, New York
• Nicknames: Air Jordan, His Airness, MJ
• Best known for: Widely considered the greatest basketball player of all time
• Michael was cut from the varsity team his sophomore year in high school. Boy, did he make a comeback!
• Michael was famous for sticking out his tongue when he made moves or dunked.
• Jordan was the NBA leader in scoring for 10 seasons.
• Michael Jordan starred with Bugs Bunny in the movie Space Jam .
• Jordan might be just as famous for his Nike shoe the Air Jordan as for his basketball career.

• The Midwest
• Reading Lists

The 10 Best Books on Michael Jordan

Essential books on michael jordan.

There are countless books on Michael Jordan, and it comes with good reason, he is widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time, won six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls, and helped popularize the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s – becoming a global cultural icon in the process.

“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed,” he remarked.

In order to get to the bottom of what inspired one of history’s most consequential athletes to the height of his craft, we’ve compiled a list of the 10 best books on Michael Jordan.

Michael Jordan: The Life by Roland Lazenby

The Shrug. The Shot. The Flu Game. Michael Jordan is responsible for sublime moments so ingrained in sports history that they have their own names. When most people think of him, they think of his beautiful shots with the game on the line, his body totally in sync with the ball – hitting nothing but net.

But for all his greatness, this scion of a complex family from North Carolina’s Coastal Plain has a darker side: he’s a ruthless competitor and a lover of high stakes. There’s never been a biography that encompassed the dual nature of his character and looked so deeply at Jordan on and off the court – until now.

Basketball journalist Roland Lazenby spent almost thirty years covering Michael Jordan’s career in college and the pros. He witnessed Jordan’s growth from a skinny rookie to the instantly recognizable global ambassador for basketball whose business savvy and success have millions of kids still wanting to be just like Mike. Yet Lazenby also witnessed the Michael Jordan whose drive and appetite are more fearsome and more insatiable than any of his fans could begin to know.

In  Michael Jordan: The Life , Lazenby draws on his personal relationships with Jordan’s coaches; countless interviews with Jordan’s friends, teammates, and family members; and interviews with Jordan himself to provide the first truly definitive study of Michael Jordan: the player, the icon, and the man.

Playing for Keeps by David Halberstam

In  Playing for Keeps , Halberstam takes the first full measure of Jordan’s epic career, one of the great American stories of our time. A narrative of astonishing power and human drama, brimming with revealing anecdotes and penetrating insights, the book chronicles the forces in Jordan’s life that have shaped him into history’s greatest basketball player and the larger forces that have converged to make him the most famous living human being in the world.

The Jordan Rules by Sam Smith

The Jordan Rules chronicles the season that changed everything for Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. After losing in the playoffs to the “Bad Boys” Detroit Pistons for three consecutive years, the Bulls finally broke through and swept the Pistons in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals, on the way to their first NBA championship.

Celebrated sportswriter Sam Smith was there for the entire ride. He reveals a candid and provocative picture of Michael Jordan during the season in which his legacy began to be defined, and seeks to figure out what drove him.

This gem among books on Michael Jordan covers everything from his stormy relationships with his coaches and teammates and power struggles with management – including verbal attacks on general manager Jerry Krause and tantrums against coach Phil Jackson – to Jordan’s obsessions with becoming the leading scorer, and his refusal to pass the ball in the crucial minutes of big games. Jordan’s teammates also tell their side of the story, from Scottie Pippen to Horace Grant to Bill Cartwright. And Phil Jackson – the former flower child who blossomed into one of the NBA’s top motivators and finally found a way to coax Jordan and the Bulls to their first title – is studied up close.

Dream Team by Jack McCallum

Acclaimed sports journalist Jack McCallum delivers the untold story of the greatest team ever assembled: the 1992 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team. As a writer for Sports Illustrated, McCallum enjoyed a courtside seat for the most exciting basketball spectacle on earth, covering the Dream Team from its inception to the gold medal ceremony in Barcelona.

Drawing on fresh interviews with the players, McCallum provides the definitive account of the Dream Team phenomenon. He offers a behind-the-scenes look at the controversial selection process. He takes us inside the team’s Olympic suites for late-night card games and bull sessions where superstars like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird debated the finer points of basketball. And he narrates a riveting account of the legendary intrasquad scrimmage that pitted the Dream Teamers against one another in what may have been the greatest pickup game in history.

Driven from Within by Michael Jordan

In  Driven from Within , Michael makes it clear that the basis for his phenomenal success came from the inside out, thanks in part to those who guided him along the way. His skill, work ethic, philosophy, personal style, competitiveness, and presence have flowed from the basketball court into every facet of his life.

“Nothing of value comes without being earned. That’s why great leaders are those who lead by example first. You can’t demand respect because of a title or a position and expect people to follow. That might work for a little while, but in the long run people respond to what they see,” he writes.

This is a book about the power of collaboration and teamwork, the awe-inspiring energy generated when people combine their creativity and passion and a fearless desire to lead.

Whether waking at 6 a.m. to work on fundamentals as a high school junior, or spending hours with legendary designer Tinker Hatfield on the intricacies of state-of-the-art shoe design, Michael Jordan has never wavered in his desire to be the best.

Eleven Rings by Phil Jackson

During his storied career as head coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson won more championships than any coach in the history of professional sports. Even more important, he succeeded in never wavering from coaching his way, from a place of deep values. Jackson was tagged as the “Zen master” half in jest by sportswriters, but the nickname speaks to an important truth: this is a coach who inspired, not goaded; who led by awakening and challenging the better angels of his players’ nature, not their egos, fear, or greed.

This is the story of a preacher’s kid from North Dakota who grew up to be one of the most innovative leaders of our time. In his quest to reinvent himself, Jackson explored everything from humanistic psychology and Native American philosophy to Zen meditation. In the process, he developed a new approach to leadership based on freedom, authenticity, and selfless teamwork that turned the hypercompetitive world of professional sports on its head.

In  Eleven Rings , Jackson candidly describes how he:

• Learned the secrets of mindfulness and team chemistry while playing for the champion new York Knicks in the 1970s.
• Managed Michael Jordan, the greatest player in the world, and got him to embrace selflessness, even if it meant losing a scoring title.
• Forged successful teams out of players of varying abilities by getting them to trust one another and perform in sync.
• Transformed Kobe Bryant from a rebellious teenager into a mature leader of a championship team.

Michael Jordan and the New Global Capitalism by Walter LaFeber

With  Michael Jordan and the New Global Capitalism , Walter LaFeber has written a biography, a social history, and a far-ranging economic critique. From basketball prodigy to international phenomenon to seductive commercial ideal, Michael Jordan is the supreme example of how American corporations have used technology in a brave, massively wired new world to sell their products in every corner of the globe.

LaFeber’s examination of Nike and its particular dominion over the global marketplace is often scathing, while his fascinating mini-biography of Michael Jordan and the commercial history of basketball reveal much about American society.

Michael Jordan: Life Lessons from His Airness by David H. Lewis

“Sometimes a winner is just a dreamer who never gave up.”

Michael Jordan defied gravity, transcended the world’s expectations, and exceeded the limits of age, soaring to fame as the world’s greatest basketball player of all time. While his talent was breathtaking to behold – those flying dunks and record-breaking 60-point games have inspired generations – the unseen forces behind his success are the kind we can all harness for our own.

M. J. and his accomplishments were founded on discipline, hard work, and knowing how to channel the deep, competitive drive within. Michael Jordan: Life Lessons from His Airness offers a courtside seat to the wild ride that made Michael Jordan a star and reveals valuable insights for anyone trying to make their own lofty dreams come true.

Michael Jordan: A Biography by David L. Porter

With the possible exceptions of boxer Muhammad Ali and baseball player Babe Ruth, no athlete has made a greater impact on American society – or in the world – than Michael Jordan. Follow the life of one of the most recognizable athletes and living brands inside this engaging and balanced biography.

I Can’t Accept Not Trying by Michael Jordan

With his own inspiring words, Michael Jordan, the most extraordinary athlete of our time, shares the rules he has lived and achieved by. Underlying his enormous accomplishments are a set of simple principles that provide the foundation for his entire life. He draws on these to show us all how we can learn to set goals and overcome obstacles, confront fear and self-doubt, commit to our dreams and avoid distraction, be a leader and a team player, master the basics to reach new heights in excellence, and reap the rewards of self-discipline.

Relentless by Tim Grover

Direct, blunt, and brutally honest, Grover breaks down what it takes to be unstoppable: you keep going when everyone else is giving up, you thrive under pressure, you never let your emotions make you weak. He details the essential traits shared by the most intense competitors and achievers in sports, business, and all walks of life.

Relentless   shows you how to trust your instincts and get in the Zone; how to control and adapt to any situation; how to find your opponent’s weakness and attack. Grover gives you the same advice he gives his world-class clients – “don’t think” – and shows you that anything is possible.

One of the few books Michael Jordan has ever written an editorial review for, Jordan tells readers, “I consider Tim Grover to be second to none in his knowledge of sports training, and he was an invaluable part of my training program. He is a take-charge person, with a deliberate but energetic and enthusiastic technique.”

If you enjoyed this guide to essential books on Michael Jordan, check out our list of The 10 Best Books on Muhammad Ali !

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A look back at the moment Michael Jordan announced his return to the NBA

• Author: Stephen Beslic

In this story:

It only took two words for Michael Jordan to set the NBA and the basketball-loving world on fire on March 18, 1995. Back then, rumors were swirling about MJ’s potential return to the Bulls after retiring 17 months before. His Airness swiftly put all speculation to rest in a succinct statement released through his agent David Falk: “I’m back.”

Nothing more to be said

When it came to Jordan , less was more. Although MJ was a media darling throughout his career, he preferred to let his game do all the talking. His 1995 announcement regarding his long-awaited comeback to the Chicago Bulls was no different.

After retiring from the NBA not long after the Bulls won their third NBA title in a row in 1993, Jordan had been pursuing a career in professional baseball. But despite his success in the minor leagues, he couldn't shake off the competitive drive that fueled him on the basketball court. After much contemplation and training, MJ decided to return to the sport that made him a household name.

Surge of electricity shot through the NBA

The announcement of his comeback was met with overwhelming excitement and anticipation from fans and players alike. It was clear that MJ's presence would once again change the landscape of the NBA and bring renewed energy to the league.

And true to form, Jordan did not disappoint upon his return. And while he and the Bulls encountered postseason failure in the 1995 NBA Playoffs, falling to the upstart Orlando Magic, Jordan returned with a vengeance the next season.

In the 1995-96 season, Jordan led the Bulls to a record-setting 72 regular-season wins and a historic fourth championship title. He then led the Bulls to two more consecutive NBA championships, solidifying his legacy as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

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Michael B. Jordan reveals it is indeed lonely at the top

Michael B. Jordan may have been named one of People Magazine’s sexiest men , but even he finds it difficult being single.

The “Creed” star and producer was last linked with influencer and entrepreneur Lori Harvey, but the pair split in 2022 after a year and a half together.

Jordan was a guest on a recent episode of the “On Purpose with Jay Shetty” podcast, where he was asked about the best and worst parts of being, well, a very in-demand Michael B. Jordan.

“I love multitasking, I love juggling, the balancing act that I do,” Jordan said. “The worst part is the loneliness that comes with that.”

“There’s a loneliness that I have. The responsibility that you have is isolating, and the weight is isolating,” he went on to say. “So I think the worst part of that is the feeling like nobody really understands and sometimes falling into the spaces of just being alone, feeling alone.”

Shetty asked how the person selected as the Sexiest Man Alive in 2020 finds love, Jordan quipped, “I revert back to the last question. It’s very lonely!”

“The sacrifice, the compromise that comes with a partnership and a relationship, and understanding how to make that all work, sometimes it gives me anxiety and pause,” he said.

Being a celebrity makes it more challenging.

“And it’s not just, ‘I love you, you love me, that should be enough,’ right? It’s not quite that simple,” he said. “Finding the right person to understand all of me, but then all that comes with me, as well.”

And even though he says he’s not currently looking for that special someone, the “Black Panther” star hopes to someday.

“It would take a very special person to understand and grow with me,” Jordan said. “I want a family.”

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