michael jordan

ok don't be too overwhelmed by my fascination with jordan. but i really do love him. he taught me a lot when i was younger just by how hard he worked and what he was able to overcome and accomplish. being raised in a sports-run family, i took the principles of the game and applied them in my life. it's great stuff :)

so for class i had to write a paper on a sports hero i have. here's the result...

It has got to be the most overused statement of all time, the ultimate cliché, yet believable in any case: Michael Jordan is my hero. There is no other professional athlete who has influenced and inspired me as much as the one and only. I pondered on whom I could choose to be my hero, my sports idol. There are many wonderful, hard-working athletes out there, however, Jordan has sprung the biggest basketball transformation in sports history.  The 1980s and 1990s saw the “greatest basketball player of all time”.

Honestly, when I was young watching the Chicago Bulls play on TV, I had no idea how amazing it truly was when Jordan would swish the fade-away jump shot or when he floated in the air, reversing the ball under the basket. In fact, I was only 2 years old in 1989 during his most famous moment, which has been named “The Shot” – the game winning field goal with 3 seconds left against the Cleveland Cavaliers. I did not experience most of his great winning streaks or his multiple Most Valuable Player awards. Yet I remember wishing that in every limousine I saw, he was riding in the back. I remember watching him in the mid-90s, marking my face with a red Chicago Bulls marker and paying close attention to the television. He led his team to victory again and again, and I knew he was a special person.

          

     Even at such a young age, I appreciated Jordan’s soaring skills. (Although it did help being raised in a very athletic family with my dad as a dedicated basketball coach and five intensely trained brothers.) Michael Jordan was quick and powerful. He had an edge on every other player on the court. His offensive game was explosive and memorable to say the least, but he also dominated defensively. Overall, he is the most decorated basketball player of all time with five regular-season MVPs, six Finals MVPs, and three All-Star MVPs. Additionally, he is a six-time NBA champion, two-time Olympic gold medalist, back-to-back slam dunk contest champion, and more.

I remember taking note on his low stance as a defender. I remember his clutch follow through on every shot. I remember his style and spunk, playing with such intensity. There’s something else I remember about Jordan but this time it has nothing to do with physical talent. He was incredibly strong mentally. Even though there was an unbearable amount of pressure on him, he had the capability to complete his game with nothing but the greatest effort. His mentality was to be a challenge to the opponent as well as a challenge to himself. He gave every game his every bit of energy and still kept a sense of humility. I admire him for being such a devoted, passionate, creative, optimistic, and influential basketball player. 

  

He was truthfully in my mind in junior high school and the excitement carried into high school as I played sports. 

Even now, I will always remember the heroic “Air Jordan” being an outstanding example to me, making me push myself in practice. He encouraged me to envision someone better, someone higher, someone smarter, someone I could work towards and become. As my hero, he still encourages me to challenge myself in everything I do, developing invincible characteristics.

"My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength." -MJ