Michael Jordan
The Basketball Legend Who Redefined Greatness
Born Michael Jeffrey Jordan on 17 February 1963 in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in Wilmington, North Carolina, Michael Jordan was left off his high school varsity team as a sophomore and went on to win six NBA championships and six Finals MVPs with the Chicago Bulls.
- 16 min listen
- Six NBA championships
- Basketball
- Air Jordan
Michael Jordan’s full 16 min audio biography, The Basketball Legend Who Redefined Greatness, is available on Lyfestori for iOS. Listen to a free preview below.
A life in brief
Michael Jordan: life and timeline.
He was cut from his high school varsity team as a sophomore and put on junior varsity. Michael Jordan practised in an empty gymnasium after school until he made it, then hit the winning shot in the NCAA final as a freshman. Portland passed on him in the 1984 draft. He won six titles with the Bulls, retired at his peak, batted .202 in the minor leagues, and came back with a two-word press release. The Air Jordan brand still earns billions.
- 1963
Born in Brooklyn
Born 17 February to James and Deloris Jordan, who move the family to Wilmington, North Carolina while he is young. He is more interested in baseball than basketball.
- 1984
Third pick
Houston takes Hakeem Olajuwon first, Portland takes Sam Bowie second, and the Chicago Bulls take Jordan third. He averages 28.2 points as a rookie, wins Rookie of the Year, and returns the Bulls to the playoffs after three years out.
- 1988
First MVP
Wins the award averaging over 35 points a game. Team success stays out of reach — the Detroit Pistons' 'Bad Boys' keep physically punishing him out of the playoffs.
- 1989
Phil Jackson arrives
The new coach brings mindfulness, teamwork and the triangle offence. Jordan is skeptical — it means touching the ball less — until Jackson convinces him that making his teammates better is what leadership means.
- 1991
First championship
The Bulls beat Magic Johnson's Lakers in five. Jordan takes Finals MVP and is photographed weeping over the trophy after years of playoff disappointment. The midair hand-switch layup comes in this series.
- 1992
Repeat, and the Dream Team
A second title, including the 'shrug' game against Portland — six three-pointers in a half, then a shrug at the cameras. That summer he anchors the Dream Team's dominance in Barcelona.
- 1993
Three-peat, then loss
A third straight championship. In July his father James is murdered during a robbery. In October, at thirty and at his peak, Jordan retires and signs with the Birmingham Barons to play baseball.
- 1995
'I'm back'
A two-word press release ends the retirement in March. He looks rusty, and the Bulls are eliminated by Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. He had hit .202 in his one minor league season.
- 1996
72 wins
After a summer of intensive conditioning he averages over 30 points and leads the Bulls to a then-record 72 regular season wins, then a fourth title over Seattle — clinched on Father's Day.
- 1997
The Flu Game
38 points against Utah while visibly ill, on the way to a fifth championship. He and his trainer later described it as food poisoning from a late-night pizza; the cause remains disputed.
- 1998
The last shot
A game-winning jumper delivers a sixth championship and completes the second three-peat. Jordan retires again, Phil Jackson leaves, and the Bulls rebuild.
- 2001
Washington
Having joined the Wizards in January 2000 as part owner and President of Basketball Operations, he returns to play in his late thirties. He shows flashes, mentors younger players, and retires for good in 2003.
Major achievements
Michael Jordan: major achievements.
- 01
Six NBA championships
Two three-peats with the Bulls — 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1996, 1997, 1998 — one of the greatest dynasties in professional sports history.
- 02
Five MVP awards and ten scoring titles
The first MVP came in 1988, averaging over 35 points a game. His scoring seemed limitless — from anywhere on the court, in any situation.
- 03
72 wins
The 1995-96 Bulls set a then-record for regular season wins, with Jordan averaging over 30 points alongside Pippen, Rodman and Kerr — perhaps the greatest individual and team season in NBA history.
- 04
The Dream Team
Central to the 1992 Olympic side widely considered the greatest collection of basketball talent ever assembled, which won every game in Barcelona by large margins.
- 05
Air Jordan
The Nike partnership revolutionised sports marketing and created the template athletes still follow. The brand generates billions for Nike decades after he stopped playing.
- 06
Making the NBA global
He arrived as the league was becoming entertainment-focused and helped turn a struggling league into a worldwide phenomenon — acrobatic, televisual, impossible to look away from.
Turning points
Michael Jordan: defining moments.
- High school
Cut from varsity
As a sophomore he failed to make the varsity team and was placed on junior varsity. It could have crushed the ambition. Instead it fuelled an intense desire to prove himself: he practised relentlessly, often staying after school in an empty gymnasium, made varsity the following year, and was drawing national recruiting attention by his senior season.
- Freshman year at UNC
The freshman's shot
In the NCAA championship game against Georgetown, in front of a national television audience, with the score tied and seconds remaining, the freshman calmly hit the jump shot that won it for North Carolina. It was his first taste of the biggest stage, and it foreshadowed the clutch performances that defined the rest.
- 1989–1991
Learning to pass
Phil Jackson's triangle offence meant Jordan would touch the ball less and trust his teammates more — a hard sell for the most competitive man in the league. Jackson's argument was that true leadership meant making teammates better, not scoring more points. It was a difficult lesson, and it produced the first championship two years later.
- 1993–1995
His father, and baseball
James Jordan was his closest confidant and biggest supporter, often travelling with the team. He was murdered during a robbery in July 1993. Three months later Jordan retired at thirty, saying he had lost the desire to play, and went to hit .202 in the minor leagues. The man who solved everything through hard work had met something hard work could not fix.
- 1996
Father's Day
After a summer rebuilding his conditioning, he took the Bulls to 72 wins and a fourth title over Seattle. He was filmed crying over the trophy again — this time on Father's Day, three years after his father's murder and his own retreat from the game.
I'm back.
Michael Jordan, press release ending his first retirement, March 1995
What you’ll take away
Lessons from Michael Jordan’s life.
- 01
Use the rejection
Being cut from varsity did not reveal talent — it created the habit. He practised in an empty gym because he had something to prove, and never stopped having it.
- 02
Winning alone is not winning
Five MVPs and no titles until Phil Jackson persuaded him that touching the ball less would make the team harder to beat. The hardest thing he learned was to trust other people.
- 03
Greatness doesn't transfer
He was the most famous athlete on earth and hit .202 in the minors. Skills are specific; the work ethic came with him and was not enough.
Did you know
Facts about Michael Jordan.
- 01
Did you know that Michael Jordan was famously cut from his high school varsity basketball team during his sophomore year because the coach thought he was too short?
- 02
Did you know that Jordan insists on wearing his University of North Carolina practice shorts under his Chicago Bulls uniform for good luck during every game?
- 03
Did you know that Michael Jordan has a phobia of water, known as aquaphobia, which developed after he witnessed a childhood friend drown?
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Michael Jordan.
How tall was Michael Jordan in high school?
About 5 feet 10 or 11 inches when he was left off the varsity team at Laney High School as a sophomore in 1978. He grew around four inches over the following year and reached his playing height of 6 feet 6 inches by college.
What high school did Michael Jordan go to?
Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, North Carolina. After a year on junior varsity he made the varsity team, earned a McDonald's All-American selection as a senior, and went on to the University of North Carolina.
How many years did Michael Jordan play in the NBA?
Fifteen seasons. He played thirteen for the Chicago Bulls between 1984 and 1998, interrupted by his first retirement and a spell in minor-league baseball, and two more for the Washington Wizards from 2001 to 2003.
What is Michael Jordan's full name?
Michael Jeffrey Jordan. He was born on 17 February 1963 in Brooklyn, New York, the fourth of five children of James and Deloris Jordan, who moved the family to Wilmington, North Carolina, when he was a toddler.
Was Michael Jordan really cut from his high school team?
He failed to make the varsity team as a sophomore and was placed on the junior varsity squad. He practised relentlessly, often staying after school to work in an empty gymnasium, made varsity the following year, and rapidly became one of the top high school players in the state.
Why did Michael Jordan play baseball?
His father James, his closest confidant, was murdered during a robbery in July 1993. That October, at thirty and still at his peak, Jordan retired saying he had lost the desire to play, and signed with the Birmingham Barons — a Chicago White Sox minor league affiliate — pursuing a childhood dream. He hit .202 in his one season.
How many championships did Michael Jordan win?
Six, all with the Chicago Bulls, in two three-peats: 1991–1993 and 1996–1998. He also won five MVP awards and ten scoring titles.
What was the 'Flu Game'?
A game in the 1997 Finals against the Utah Jazz where Jordan scored 38 points while visibly ill. He and his trainer later described it as food poisoning from a late-night pizza, though the exact cause remains disputed.
Who was drafted ahead of Michael Jordan?
Hakeem Olajuwon went first to Houston and Sam Bowie second to Portland in the 1984 draft. Olajuwon had a Hall of Fame career; Portland's decision to pass on Jordan became one of the biggest mistakes in sports history.
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16 min · one sitting