Magic Johnson and Larry Bird defined the word competition. Each playing as if it was their last, and going head to head in the collegiate level and in the NBA. Magic’s and Bird’s legacy was so great, people today shape the way they play basketball so it looks like Magic and Larry. Magic played for the Lakers while, Bird played for the Celtics. The Lakers and the Celtics have the greatest rivalry ever in the NBA, and those two made the rivalry greater. They both were great athletes but different personalities and different teams, and that may affect their legacies. Whose legacy is better though? It's a tough question that may never be answered. Magic Johnson or Larry Bird? Magic and Bird both were critical and competitive, but in …show more content…
Starting the Magic Johnson foundation he helps fund and educate people about HIVs and AIDS, and helps prevent the spread of HIVs and AIDs. Raising over 20 million dollars in the foundation and always helping people. Richard Spiropoulos insisted “Magic’s announcement brought the disease into the limelight, forcing the conversation into nearly every American household and causing millions to ramp up the courage to get tested.” (“Black Enterprisers”) All of this help saves lives and has helped Magic a better person. Likewise Larry Bird helps in the American Foundation for Suicide prevention. He helps people with depression and families with people who did suicide. Bird once explained “All my donations are sort of made under the table. I don’t need the publicity-I’m not doing it for publicity,” (“Look to the Stars”) Bird continued “But I do care. That’s what matters most.” (“Look to the Stars”) Bird does most of his work under the media and people don't know about that, but he helps out the families. Both of them help out the community, but they help out different causes and it helps the community out more by having more than one organization helping people. They both have made extreme contributions to society and they help many
In a year were so many great athletes are no longer with us, Payne Stewart, Wilt Chamberlain, Joe DiMaggio, Walter Payton, the man we thought would have passed away first is still among us, Magic Johnson. Rick Reilly does a remarkable job on this praising article on Magic. Reilly talks about how fit magic is. "He can bench 325 pounds. Weighing 245, he's about 20 pounds heavier than he was in his prime, but now he's ripped." He is still playing basketball in different celebrity appearances, and plays quite well in them although he is way older than everyone there. What really impressed me the most about Magic is influence as a black businessman. Reilly showed me, as well as America, a different side of Magic that is not seen on Sports Center. "He owns five Starbucks and has plans to open 10 more, nearly all of them in black neighborhoods, including one in Crenshaw and one in Harlem." Magic is willing to put money into the ghettos when other white investors are not. He owns many different businesses, from a TV company to a bank. What is truly amazing is he hires all black people to build and work his businesses. "Magic feels like many black athletes forget where they came from, I try not to." When I read this I was really stunned. He made a fortune taking risks that many other people won't try. He is living his life to the fullest and using his HIV experience to educate great number of people.
Comparing LeBron James and Michael Jordan is like comparing apples and oranges. It just isn’t a fair comparison. There are too many differences. There are too many variables. There are too many fallacies that are involved in making a fair assessment to determine who the greatest basketball player of all time is.
Some player's wish of winning a NBA Title but 'Larry Legend' won 3. Being the 5th overall pick in the 1978 NBA Draft Larry Bird played 13 seasons as a Boston Celtic, winning 3 NBA Championships in 1981, '84, and '86. He was Finals MVP twice in 1984, and '86, NBA MVP 3 straight years in 1984, ?85, and ?86, NBA All- Star for 9 straight years 1980- '89, elected to the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 1998, Nine- time All NBA 1st Team 1980- '88, and Olympic Gold Medalist in 1992 with the 'Dream Team'.
During the time of Michael Jordan and the now present Lebron James American culture has changed a lot. Both of these two superstars show how American society love and appreciate their superstars. The society loves them both, they are both amazingly talented and have supporting fans that will always be by their side no matter what happens, through the peaks and valleys. These two allstars are beyond incredible and show their talent in a variety of ways. Both are very truly “Blessed” with their talents and capabilities. Both MJ and LBJ are two of the best to ever to play the game of basketball. Jordan and James are both good at what they do, Jordan and James’ passion to get to the rim and make plays really put a spark in both of their game. These traits that both of the stars have really make their fans and supporters love them even more! Both of these stars show how American Society love their stars and role models.
People come to being on the road for countless reasons and though there is no real certainty on the road, there are two things that are certain, the road stands in opposition to home and your race and ethnicity plays a major role on the trajectory and the way others treat you on the journey. African Americans have an especially strong connection to road narratives. This is because, from the beginning, the race’s presence in America was brought by forcing them on to the road against their will. It is for this reason that there are countless narratives, fictional and non-fictional, of black peoples on the road. For Birdie Lee, a literary character, the beginning of the road marks the end of her comfortable home life and the beginning of her racial
Michael Jordan, what comes to your mind when you hear that name? Michael had played for the bulls and had gotten 6 championship rings with the team. Well, is it just me or does that sound like a lot of time in the game of basketball? In 1982 he took a big step up from highschool to college, where he wanted to pursue the basketball dream. He went to college at North Carolina where he played NCAA basketball for just one year before he was drafted in 1984. All eyes were on him when he went on the court, because that just how good he was at the game of basketball. Michael Jordan is one of the greatest players in NBA history, maybe even the greatest of all time.
This rich NBA great was not always the wealthy man everyone knows; through hard-work, he achieved status. Earvin Johnson grew up in a large and poor family. “With so many kids to take care of, my parents didn’t have enough money left over for luxuries” (Johnson 6). Johnsons’ parents believed in the value of hard-work, and stapled this into his mind at a young age. With this idea in mind, Johnson picked up a basketball. Basketball was always a great love of his, and he always wanted to make it to the next level. With the preaching of this value by his parents, he worked hard and became very good. After years of practicing and coming up through a troubled childhood, Magic was presented a great opportunity. Since he was so good at basketball, all the major colleges wanted him to play for them, “I finally narrowed down the field to two choices… the University of Michigan and Michigan State” (Johnson 51). It was a decision that would change his life, and after many hard days of going back and forth, he decided to attend Michigan State University.
College and NBA basketball aren’t that different they have many similarities and many differences. The main difference is that College has halves and NBA has quarters, The Shot clock is different too. College is 35 seconds and NBA is 24 seconds , The shooting distance is different from the 3pt line. In college you only get 5 fouls before you foul out and in the NBA you get 6. In my opinion College basketball is way more competitive and way more emotional than the NBA.
Since neither of the players was active during the same era and never went head-to-head during their primes, we cannot conclusively decide who is best. Clearly, as evident from the huge list of awards both players have complied, both Michael Jordan and LeBron James have forever changed the game of basketball. Granted, everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. I believe that both Jordan and James are two of the greatest basketball superstars to have ever lived.
When I began my report I didn’t know much about Michael Jordan, but I did know that he was “undoubtedly the greatest player in the history of the NBA'; (“Michael Air Jordan'; 1). It seemed like every time I heard the word basketball I also heard the name Michael Jordan. There’s just no avoiding him. If you are watching television you might see him playing basketball or golf. If you were reading a magazine there will probably be an advertisement with his picture. If you were walking down the street you might see a kid wearing Air Jordan shoes or a Bulls jersey with “JORDAN'; on the back of it. This man is probably as recognizable as the Pope.
Since its creation in 1893, the sport of basketball has been one of the most popular sports in the United States. One wouldn’t have to search long to find a basketball court and a pickup game in most American cities. Many people around the world look up to the stars of the National Basketball Association as role models.
At every level of basketball there are players that have shined on and off the court, this is true for two exceptional players like Michael Jordan and LeBron James. The debate over these two marvelous athletes and who is the better of the two, has divided sports fans since LeBron earned his first Finals Championship.
December 21, 1891- The birth of basketball. It has been changed from simply shooting a soccer ball into a peach basket to dunking a seven pound, leather ball into an iron rim. In the early years of the game, basketball was not as popular as other sports. In the 1985 NBA draft all this would change with the emergence of a 6'6" basketball phenomenon from Wilmington, North Carolina. Although going third in the draft, he recreated the game and is known as the best player to ever touch a basketball; he is Michael Jordan.
Due to the mark Michael Jordan has left on the world as the “G.O.A.T.”, it will be very difficult for any player to surpass his legacy. Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant and LeBron James all have similarities of Michael Jordan but, out of all three players James is the closest. LeBron has the most similarities and the potential to surpass Michael Jordan’s legacy with his personality, stats and he popularity on and off the court. Even though James has the potential to surpass his legacy, there is still a very long journey ahead of James if he ever wants to be considered the “G.O.A.T.”.
Kobe Bryant vs Michael Jordan? This is a controversial question in the NBA league. Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest basketball players of all time who was approaching or even goes beyond Michael Jordan. Both player are well-known to the world and as well as their basketball skills. As a similarity, both players are playing shooting guard and with similar play-style. I grew up with Kobe Bryant as a personal hero and barely knew who Michael Jordan was, now that I have examined the two players objectively. I concede that Michael Jordan’s skills are superior.