Michael Jordan The Best Ever By Sarah Houghton

An Ordinary Boy • Michael Jordan was born on February 17, 1963. He and his family lived in Brooklyn, New York. Soon after Michael’s birth they moved to Wilmington, North Carolina.

The Rack is something that Michael’s dad had built for Michael and his brother. Their dad built a homemade basketball court in the back yard. He and his brother played on the court everyday. His brother would always beat Michael, but that made him try even harder. So Michael practiced to make himself better.

The First Dunk • In order for Michael and his brother to play, the parents told them they would have to make good grades. Michael’s hard work paid off, one day when Michael and his brother were playing, Michael had his first dunk. Larry was amazed because he had never done it before.

In Trouble • Michael’s love for the game grew stronger in high school, so he started skipping class to shoot baskets and get better and better. The parents helped Michael see college was important, and to keep getting better he had get good grades so he could get to go to a good college.

Over came more adversity. . Michael tried out for his varsity team at Laney, but he did not make the team. Instead of quitting he worked harder on his game. He tried out again the next year and made the team.

College Star • It was 1981 it was time for Michael to go to college. He decided to go to University of North Carolina to play basketball. He loved the campus at UNC. He also liked the UNC coach. Other colleges had offered Michael scholarships. Coaches also offered him a starting position to come to their school. The coach for UNC didn’t. Michael respected that.

College Star Continued Michael went on to become one of the greatest players in UNC and NCAA history. His freshman year he hit the winning shot in the NCAA championship game. In 1984, Michael decided to leave UNC early and enter into the NBA draft.

Michael Jordan in the NBA • At the NBA draft in 1984, Michael Jordan was picked to play for the Chicago Bulls. They had a losing record so this gave Michael a challenge. He would really have to play hard every game. Everybody had high hopes for him. This put Michael under a lot of pressure. He continued to work hard. His hard work paid off again as he continued to grow and become a superstar.

NBA Michael and the Bulls went on to win 3 championships in a row, 1991, 1992 and 1993. They repeated that in 1996, 1997, and 1998. There is no doubt he is one of the greatest players of all time.

Accomplishments Through Michael’s hard work, he won 6 NBA championships and 2 gold medals in the Olympics. He retired in 1999, but after being out of the game for two years he came back to play for the Washington Wizards in 2001 and signed a two year contract. He donated his salary in 2001 to families that suffered the most in the September terrorist attacks in New York