Michael Jordan, the best of the best
Speaking of Michael Jordan is doing, sure, the best basketball player in history, and probably the best athlete of all time. Larry Bird, former player for the Boston Celtics, defined it as best as possible after viewing 'in situ' as his team endorsing him 63 points in his second season in the league: "Today I saw God disguised player basketball. " No doubt, Jordan has been the closest thing to a divine being on the parquet.
Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born on February 17, 1963 in the New York borough of Brooklyn, the fourth child of the marriage James and Deloris Jordan, that seven years later decided to move to
North Carolina.
His early years
In his younger years spent by various institutes in which he became interested in the sport, joining three different: basketball, baseball and football, and showing a huge athletic qualities. Although he soon discovered that the sport of basket would be yours. In 1978, representing the Laney High School, first used the number 23 would accompany him throughout his career.
After leaving school in 1980, he earned a scholarship to play at the University of North Carolina. In his debut season, coached by the prestigious Dean Smith, and was named best beginner year and in 1982 reached the final university. Opposite, leading to Georgetown Patrick Ewing. Jordan co-starred with James Worthy, one of the members of those Showtime Lakers 80. Worthy was the leader, but the title came, a few seconds left, in a suspension of Air Jordan.
1984 was a key year in the history of Jordan, as he was drafted with the number 3 for the Chicago Bulls and chosen to represent the United States in the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Along with players like Pat Ewing, Sam Perkins and Chris Mullin, Jordan hung up his first gold medal in the final after beating Spain to the Epi, Antartica and Fernando Martin.
Arrival in the NBA with the Bulls
After the Olympics made his professional debut in the NBA from the hand of the Chicago Bulls. His appearance in the League was brutal, leading his team to the playoffs after several years without it, getting Rookie of the Year trophy and going to his first All-Star in the starting lineup.
In his second season, Jordan suffered a foot injury that kept him half a season on the sidelines. However, he returned to lead the Bulls back to a playoffs where they lost to Boston where he made one of his first exhibitions scoring 63 points under the noses of Bird, Parish and McHale at the legendary Boston Garden.
During the following years, Michael chained very great seasons, with outstanding scoring records. It is the only, along with Wilt Chamberlain, to score more than 3,000 points in a season. In addition, your computer each time got better in the regular season, and so in 1988, with a record of 50-32, finally got past the first round and eliminate the Cavaliers in five grueling games. At the end of that season, Jordan won the first of his six MVP. These were years in which the Detroit Pistons, those grueling Bad Boys of Thomas, Dumars and Laimbeer, closed the passage to Michael and the Bulls to larger companies.
In the 1988-89 season, the Bulls of Jordan first came to the conference finals, where they were beaten again by the Pistons and their 'Jordan Rules', a tactic that was to make double and triple defenses on the star of Chicago . But in the first round of these playoffs, the fifth game against Cleveland Cavaliers, Jordan got one of the most famous baskets throughout his career. The legendary 'The shoot' (throw) to Craig Ehlo, in the last second of the game and decided the series.
Bulls 89-90 season were a team on the rise. Led by Jordan and new young players like Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant, became a more dangerous and cohesive team and signed a record of 55-27 under the direction of coach Phil Jackson. One more season to reach the conference finals for the third consecutive time the Pistons will depart from the glory. Detroit won its second ring followed and doubts about whether the Bulls could beat them once were present throughout the United States. Chicago entered the 90-91 season wondering if he could finally form a team capable of winning a championship.
First three-peat
That season, perfectly accompanied by Scottie Pippen, Jordan and the Bulls finally sweep the Pistons and would get his first NBA ring with the Lakers of Magic Johnson. Michael was named MVP of the season and Finals that year and begin a dictatorship domain would cover the next two seasons. In 1992 they defeated the Blazers Clyde Drexler, with Jordan's spectacular opener in which he scored 6 three pointers in the first half. The following year, the Phoenix Suns of his friend Charles Barkley, fell 4-2 with a basket at the buzzer Paxon.
During that time, Jordan accompanied by players like Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley and Karl Malone, the team formed under the name of 'Dream Team', offered a one and only show in the Barcelona Games 92, where the Americans achieved the gold medal at the Croatian Drazen Petrovic.
The murder of his father and his first withdrawal
His father, James Jordan, confessed gambling addict, was killed in August 1993 in a case not yet solved. This led to a deep depression in Michael who announced his retirement from basketball that year, at the age of 30 years. However, Air did not leave the sport and announced his joining the Baseball League, thus fulfilling an old desire of his father, playing, with little success, for the Birmingham Barons for a few months.
I'm back
With these words, Jordan announced his return to basketball on March 18, 1995. Now with the number 45 (his 23 had been retired) endorsing him 55 points for the Knicks ten days after his return. Jordan could not prevent his team was eliminated by the Orlando Magic in the conference finals and came to doubt that it was the same player as before. Jordan never trained this summer and prepared for what was to be the prelude to one of the best years of a team in the history of American professional leagues
Second three peat
Jordan returned to his best and, again with 23 on his back, led the Bulls to conquer three consecutive championships with the Seattle Supersonics Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp, and before the Utah Jazz Karl Malone and John Stockton , on two occasions. Very remembered is the final play of the sixth game against Utah in 1998, played what many consider as the best moment of the history of basketball. With 86-83 for the Jazz in the absence of 41 seconds left, Michael makes an entry to make Chicago one down. On the next play, steals the ball from Karl Malone and is about to start the last attack of the game against the defense of Byron Russell. Michael left sitting on his defender and scored from six meters basket of 86-87 that gave him his sixth NBA ring. That would be their last basket in the shirt of the Chicago Bulls. With Phil Jackson's contract running out, the likely low Pippen and Rodman and lockouts that year, Jordan announced again, in tears, his retirement in January 1999, at age 36.
Washington Wizards and second rounds to the slopes
Jordan returned to the NBA a year later, but as a shareholder and director of operations for the Washington Wizards, work done with more heat than light. Michael was not born to be in the offices and on September 25, 2001 announced his return to the slopes to play with the Wizards, donating his salary to the victims of the attacks of 11-S. He did good numbers in Washington leading some young
Wizards. In the 2002-03 season, the last one would dispute, was really spectacular. With 40 years, scored 20 or more points 42 times, 30 or more in nine and 40 or more in three, and honored in all tracks of the NBA. After nearly 20 years of career in the NBA, Jordan finally said goodbye to basketball.
Final withdrawal
In his last game in Chicago, the public's United Center gave him a big ovation that Jordan himself had to interrupt, giving an impromptu speech. The Miami Heat retired the number 23 in honor of him, despite not having ever played a game with the jersey of Florida. In their final game at the MCI Center, received a tribute from the Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, who gave him the flag hoisted at the Pentagon on September 11, 2002, one year after the tragic attacks. In the All-Star Game in 2003, Vince Carter gave up his place in the starting lineup and break ceremony was dedicated to Jordan, complete with a musical performance by Mariah Carey in his tribute.
Philadelphia was the scene of his last game as a player in the NBA, the April 16, 2003. Playing a few minutes due to the great advantage of local marker, Jordan scored 16 points. In the final minutes of the game, Jordan went back into play, after the Philadelphia public sing "we love Michael". A lack of 1:44 to go, scored his last two free throws and sat behind an incredible ovation over three minutes long.
Michael Jordan, named, among other decorations, as the best athlete of the year in 1991 by Sports Illustrated and best athlete of the twentieth century by ESPN, entered the Hall of Fame Basketball on September 11, 2009. Currently is coopropietario of the Charlotte Bobcats.
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