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MICHAEL JORDAN
University of North Carolina (1982-84)
Chicago Bulls (1984-1999)

Michael Jordan, affectionately called "MJ", is considered to be the best basketball player of all time.

He was born in Brooklyn, New York, on Febrary 17, 1963 but his parents moved to Wilmington, NC, while he was still an infant.

Jordan played basketball for Laney High School in Wilmington. Ironically he was cut from his high school team as a sophomore, but eventually made the team and led them to the North Carolina State Championship.

He became a starter for the University of North Carolina Tarheels and made the game winning shot in the 1982 NCAA championship game against the Georgetown Hoyas.

Jordan was named the college player of the year in the 1983-84 season and led the USA Men's Basketball Team to an Olympic Gold Medal in the 1984 Summer Olympics under Bobby Knight.

Jordan was selected third in the 1984 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls. During his rookie season, he made an immediate impact on the league, averaging 28.1 points per game, and was named to the All-Star team and was chosen as Rookie of the Year.

Though he played two years for the Washington Wizards in his later years, his most immediate impact on the league came with the Bulls where he led them to six NBA world championships and earned the league MVP award five times. He also gained the reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball.

Jordan has numerous NBA records, which would have been greater had he not briefly retired in 1993 to pursue a baseball career with the Birmingham Barons. He returned to the Bulls in 1994.

His individual accolades include:

* Five NBA MVP Awards
* Six NBA Finals MVP Awards
* Ten All-NBA First team designations
* 1988 NBA Defensive Player of the Year
* Named to the NBA All-Star team fourteen times
* Three All-Star game MVP awards
* Ten NBA scoring titles
* Three NBA Steals titles
* NBA record career playoff scoring average (33.45 ppg)
* Named the greatest North American athlete of the 20th Century by ESPN

NAMED TO THE NAISMITH BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME IN 2009

His fantastic leaping ability earned him the nicknames "Air Jordan" and "His Airness" and helped lead him to become Nike's leading endorser of their basketball products. The popular "Air Jordan" Nike shoe is named for him and is changed each year. It has become a collector's item. Nike even created the Jordan Brand for him and the brand has become one of the leading brands in the world.

Jordan starred in th 1996 feature film, Space Jam.

He gives back to the youth of america with his annual basketball camp conducted at the University of California-Santa Barbara.

He currently is the majority owner and head of basketball operations for the NBAs Charlotte Bobcats.