Michael Jordan Net Worth, Biography, Career and Personal Life
If you are a lover of basketball, then you should know who M.J is. Perhaps you don’t know him by his initials, I am referring to the African American man Michael Jordan. He is one of the most popular, successful, and wealthy athletes in the history of the sport.
Michael Jordan’s net worth as of early 2021 is $1.9 billion. That is very huge. Although retired, he is the principal owner of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
From the 1980s to the 1990s, he was considered an instrument that will make the NBA popular worldwide. Now, let us take a look at this man’s history and how he has managed to build a great fortune and legacy for himself.
Michael Jordan Biography (Childhood)
M.J, as he is fondly called, was born on the 17th of February, 1963 in Brooklyn, New York. He is the fourth of the five children of James Jordan, an electrical plant supervisor, and Deloris Peoples, a bank worker. His family moved to Wilmington, North California when he was still young.
To keep him away from street life, his parents taught him how to work and take care of himself. Michael learned to work hard, sew, clean, and do laundry. He also loved sports but when he tried out on His high school ( Emsley A Laney) varsity team as a sophomore, Michael didn’t make the basketball team at first because he was deemed too short to play at only 5’11’.
However, he made the team the following year. When he graduated from high school, he attended the University of North Carolina with a basketball scholarship. This was how his journey to becoming a professional basketball player started and also the beginning of Michael Jordan’s net worth.
Michael Jordan Career
When he got to the university, he was playing under head coach Dean Smith. In 1982 which was his first season in North Carolina, he was named Rookie of the year for the Atlantic Coach Conference (ACC).
His team won the ACC championship and it was Jordan that made the clutch jump shot that beat their opponent Georgetown University for the National Collegiate Athletic Association championship. He was named the college player of the year by sporting news.
In 1984, he was a member of the US Olympic basketball team and they won a gold medal in Los Angeles, California. When his junior year was completed, he left Carolina and the Chicago bulls picked him in the 1984 draft.
NBA Years
When he was still a rookie with the Bulls, Michael averaged 28.2 ppg on 51.5% shooting and he also helped to make a team that won 35% of games in the previous 3 season’s playoff contenders. He became everyone’s favorite even among the opposing arenas.
The New York Times described him as “the phenomenal rookie of the bulls.” In December, he was on the cover of sports illustrated with “A Star is Born” as the heading.
It was not long after before other veteran players started getting upset about the attention he was getting. With this, players refused to pass him the ball during games. After the season was over, the Bulls lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in 4 different games in the playoffs.
In the second season, Michael Jordan broke his foot in a game which made him miss 64 games. He was back to his feet in no time to participate in the postseason.
Michael Jordan has the best season of prolific scoring in the history of the NBA. He became one of the only two players to score 3000 points in one season. He is also the first player to have a record of 200 steals and 100 blocked shots in a season.
On the NBA site, his biography reads “By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time”. This is how Michael Jordan net worth came to be.
Michael Jordan Relationships
In 1989, Michael Jordan married Juanita Vanoy and they both have three children together. They have a daughter (Jasmine) and two sons (Jeffrey and Marcus). In 2002, they had irreconcilable differences and filed for divorce but the pair reconciled later. On the 29th of December, 2006 their marriage was dissolved amicably.
His ex-wife received a settlement of about $168 million which is one of the world’s largest divorce settlements of all time. Jordan also dated Karla Knafel and it was alleged that he paid her $250,000 to keep their relationship a secret.
She took him to court on a breach of contract claiming he promised her $5000 to remain silent and not file for paternity about the pregnancy she was carrying. A judge in Illinois however ruled against it and said Michael Jordan did not owe her.
Furthermore, it was revealed that Jordan was not the father of the child after a DNA test was carried out. In 2011 on Christmas, Michael proposed to his longtime girlfriend Yvette Prieto a Cuban-American model.
They tied the know on the 27th of April, 2013 in an Episcopal church. They have identical twin girls (Victoria and Ysabel) together. In 2019, he also became a grandfather when his daughter Jasmine gave birth to a baby boy.
Michael Jordan Net worth
He earned nothing less than $100 million playing for NBA. Michael Jordan net worth in 2021 is 1.9 billion dollars and this has put him on the Forbes list of billionaires. Since he retired in 2003, Mr. Jordan built a very lucrative and successful career for himself.
In 2015, he was making $100 million from the shoe, “Air Jordan” Nike created for him. He has many endorsements with companies like Gatorade, Upper Deck, Coca-Cola, Wheaties, Mc Donalds, Hanes, and much more.
In 2010, he spent $175 million to buy his NBA team, Charlotte Hornets. This also increased Michael Jordan’s net worth as the value of the team has risen drastically over the years. He has his very own golf course, customized plane, and huge mansions.
Mr. Jordan has restaurants, steak houses, and other investments. As of 2017, he has made $1.8 billion in his career and endorsements. With such a fortune, it wouldn’t be surprising that Michael Jordan lives a very luxurious life.
He owns a private jet that is painted Carolina blue which has his jersey number as its ID. In 2012, he built his Florida house at $12.8 million and also another $2.8 million house near charlotte.
Conclusion
That is all you need to know about the successful basketball player Michael Jordan net worth, career and his journey to become a professional. He has built such a great legacy for himself.
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