| MICHAEL JORDAN - A BASKETBALL LEGEND FOR ALL TIME | |||||||||||||||||
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If you have ever read a book or an article about a great basketball player, often there is a sentence that goes like this, �He is arguably the greatest rebounder ever�, or �He is arguably the greatest passer ever.� The statement defines the player in question as the greatest so and so ever, but the word 'arguably' suggests that this is open to discussion. In the case of Michael Jordan, though, there are no arguments, or doubts. Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. Full stop. Forget Witt the Stilt, the Big 'O', Larry and Magic. In his 10 seasons to date, Michael has enthralled and excited audiences all over the world like no one before him. Michael is the most recognizable athlete on the planet! He has come a long way from where his roots began. Born Michael Jeffrey Jordan on February 17, 1963, to James and Delores Jordan, Michael and his four other brothers and sisters grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina. During Michael�s early years, he was quite small, but this didn�t stop him from playing a variety of sports. Though baseball was his first love, Michael concentrated on basketball after he failed to make Laney�s High School varsity team, in an effort to prove his detractors wrong. Still, Michael was finding his failure hard to accept. �I was disappointed,�Michael later admitted. Michael now, with the help of a 5-inch growth spurt, practised harder than ever, even cutting classes just to get to the gym. This resulted in a new and improved basketball player, every time he stepped onto court. Now a top college prospect, Michael chose to go to North Carolina University as its basketball program was second to none. Michael impressed coaches instantly at N.C.U., while becoming only the 3rd freshman to start. Michael and the team had a great season, reaching the title game against a determined Georgetown team. Down by a solitary point with 17 seconds to go, Michael drained a jumper to give North Carolina its first N.C.A.A. championship! Michael�s clutch shot gave him instant celebrity status all over America, but he took it all in his stride. �I�m the same person I always was. I try to write and call and stay in touch with all the people I knew before. I don�t ever want to change.� | |||||||||||||||||
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Two years later, with two college Player of the Year awards in the bag, Michael decided to nominate eligibility for the 1984 N.B.A. draft. In what later was deemed as Chicago�s finest draft decision ever, Michael was picked up at number 3, after Sam Bowie. What Michael accomplished over the next 9 years is impossible to describe using the English language. Here are just a few of the more significant honours Michael has received: 7 straight scoring titles 9 times All-Star team 3 times Most Valuable Player 7 first All-N.B.A. team 6 Defensive First Team awards Defensive Player of the Year 1988 3 straight Playoff Most Valuable Player awards 3 straight N.B.A. titles Entering the 1993-4 season with the Bulls team that could win another championship, Michael stunned the sports world by announcing his retirement. �I have nothing left to prove in basketball. I have achieved everything in basketball that I could. I felt it was time to call it a career.� Although this was Michael�s excuse, many felt his father James� death affected his decision. While Michael and his family mourned over their loss, the Chicago Bulls struggled to win games. In his absence, the Bulls failed to make the N.B.A. finals for the first time in three years. With more time on his hands, Michael decided to have a go at his original sporting love, baseball. Although rusty, Michael was picked up by the Birmingham Baron�s baseball club. Unfortunately, Michael performed below expectations. He only averaged one hit in four games which is well under a professional�s average. A year passed and Michael�s form did not improve. �It�s humbling,� he admitted, �There have been days when I�ve lost confidence at the plate. I don�t remember the last time I felt that way in an athletic situation.� | |||||||||||||||||
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With 20 games left in the 1994-5 N.B.A. season and Chicago struggling, reports started circulating that Michael was training with the Bulls. Then, on March 19, 1995 the news the world was hoping to hear became reality. In a brief statement Michael issued to the press, he simply said, �I�m back!� Just as Michael had done, 18 months earlier, the sports world was stunned and amazed by his announcement. Newspapers were calling it 'The Second Coming'. Basketball fans were a buzz!! A packed Market Square arena was on hand to watch Michael�s comeback game against the Indiana Pacers. Although the Bulls lost, Michael showed everyone that he had not lost any of his skills. Then, in only his 5th game back, Michael netted 55 points, including 20 first quarter points. John Starks, the player who was meant to guard Michael, remarked that he had forgotten how to. One must wonder whether Starks ever knew how. Come playoff time, the Bulls were rated a better than good chance to win the title but unfortunately they fell to the up-and-coming Orlando Magic. A disappointed Michael geared up for the 1995-6 season with a tough off-season exercise regime. With a new psyched- up Michael, and the acquisition of rebounding whiz kid Dennis Rodman, the Chicago Bulls became an early championship favourite with pundits. How right those pundits were. In what was probably Michael�s greatest season, individually and for Chicago, Michael won numerous awards including: N.B.A. Most Valuable Player 1995-6 N.B.A All-Star MVP1995-6 N.B.A. All-Defensive Team 1995-6 N.B.A. Scoring Leader 1995-6 N.B.A. Playoff and N.B.A. Final�s Most Valuable Player 1995-6 To round things off, Chicago won the championship and broke the Los Angeles Lakers� 69-win season record by winning 72 games. Many reporters and basketball analysts claimed the 1995-6 Chicago Bulls was the best ever team to play in the N.B.A. No doubt most of the credit needs to go to Michael. His experience, and of course talent, in the clutch were invaluable. Only time will tell whether the Bulls will claim another title. Many people have attempted to describe Michael over the years but most have failed to capture the real essence of his play. Only the Showtime General, Magic Johnson, has come close. �Everybody talks about how it�s me and Larry (Bird), but really there�s Michael, and then there�s everybody else.� He is not far off the mark, but I believe this to be the perfect tribute: Michael Jordan. The best there ever was. The best there ever will be. That says it all. | |||||||||||||||||
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