Table of Contents
Michael Jordan Career
In this blog post, we’ll take a look at Michael Jordan Career, early life and education, his start to his NBA career, his peak years, his accomplishments, and his awards and records.
Early Life and Education
On February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York, Michael Jordan was born. His parents, James and Deloris, quickly moved the family to Wilmington, North Carolina, where Jordan spent most of his childhood. Jordan has two older brothers, Larry and James, and one younger sister, Roslyn.
Jordan excelled at basketball from an early age, playing for his high school team as a freshman. By his senior year, he was one of the top recruits in the country. Jordan ultimately chose to play college basketball for Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina.
As a freshman at UNC, Jordan made the game-winning shot in the 1982 NCAA Championship against Patrick Ewing and Georgetown.
He went on to be named NCAA College Player of the Year in both 1983 and 1984. After his junior year, Jordan decided to forego his senior season and declare himself eligible for the NBA Draft.
Jordan was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the 1984 NBA. He quickly became one of the league’s best players, winning Rookie of the Year honors in 1985.
Jordan led the Bulls to their first NBA Championship In 1991. He would go on to win five more titles with Chicago between 1996 and 1998.
Start of career
Jordan began his professional career with the Chicago Bulls in 1984. He quickly became one of the league’s best players, winning Rookie of the Year honors.
In 1986, he was named an All-Star for the first time and helped lead the Bulls to their first playoff appearance in eight years.
The following year, Jordan averaged a league-leading 37.1 points per game en route to his first scoring title. He also led the Bulls to within one game of reaching the Eastern Conference Finals.
In 1988, Jordan won his first MVP award and Defensive Player of the Year honors. He also led the United States men’s basketball team to a gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. The following year, he was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season.
In 1990, Jordan became just the third player in NBA history to win consecutive MVP awards. He also led the Bulls to their first ever NBA Finals appearance, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.
The 1991 season saw Jordan win his third MVP award and his first NBA championship. He averaged 31.5 points per game during that season’s playoffs, including a then-record 35.8 points per game in the Finals against Lakers.
The following year, Jordan won his fourth MVP award and led the Bulls to their second consecutive NBA championship. In 1993, he became just the fourth player in NBA history to win three straight MVP awards.
That same year, he helped lead Chicago to its third straight NBA Finals appearance and third consecutive championship victory, cementing his legacy as one of basketball’s all-time greats.
Peak of career
Jordan’s individual accomplishments reached new heights in the 1996 season. He became the first player in NBA history to win four regular season MVP awards, as well as the first player to be named All-Star MVP in three straight seasons. He also set a then-record by averaging 30.4 points per game.
In the playoffs, Jordan averaged an otherworldly 35.8 points per game en route to leading the Bulls to their fourth NBA championship in six years.
The following year, Jordan again led Chicago to an NBA Finals victory, this time against the Utah Jazz. In Game 6 of that series, he hit a now-famous jump shot with 5.2 seconds left on the clock to give the Bulls a 90-88 lead.
The shot, which has come to be known simply as “The Shot”, is widely considered one of the greatest moments in basketball history.
Jordan retired from basketball for the first time after that season, but he made a comeback two years later and rejoined the Bulls for the 2001-02 season.
He helped lead Chicago to another NBA Finals appearance that year, but they were ultimately defeated by the Shaquille O’Neal-led Los Angeles Lakers.
Jordan retired for good after that season, having cemented his legacy as one of basketball’s all-time greats.
Accomplishments
Jordan’s individual accomplishments reached new heights in the 1996 season, when he became the first player in NBA history to win four regular season MVP awards.
He also set a then-record by averaging 30.4 points per game. In the playoffs, Jordan averaged an otherworldly 35.8 points per game en route to leading the Bulls to their fourth NBA championship in six years.
The following year, Jordan again led Chicago to an NBA Finals victory, this time against the Utah Jazz. In Game 6 of that series, he hit a now-famous jump shot with 5.2 seconds left on the clock to give the Bulls a 90-88 lead.
The shot, which has come to be known simply as “The Shot”, is widely considered one of the greatest moments in basketball history.
Jordan retired from basketball for the first time after that season, but he made a comeback two years later and rejoined the Bulls for the 2001-02 season. He helped lead Chicago to another NBA Finals appearance that year, but they were ultimately defeated by the Shaquille O’Neal-led Los Angeles Lakers.
Jordan retired for good after that season, having cemented his legacy as one of basketball’s all-time greats.
Awards and records
Jordan was a prolific scorer who dominated the game throughout his career. He was also a 10-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, winning the award nine times in a row.
He was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1998. Jordan is the only player in NBA history to win regular season MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, All-Star MVP, and Finals MVP awards in the same season (1988-89).
Jordan was also a member of the 1992 United States men’s Olympic basketball team, which famously won gold in the “Dream Team” era. He retired as a player in 2003 with 32,292 career points, which is the fifth most in NBA history. His career average of 30.1 points per game is also the highest in league history.
