Research Paper On Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan is a former professional basketball player, who played for the Chicago Bulls and the Washington Wizards for 15 seasons. He has an amazing record of winning 6 NBA Championship titles, 5-time NBA Most Valuable Player, 6-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, 14-time NBA All Star and much more. Because of him, Chicago Bulls went from one of the weakest teams in the league, to a six-time championship winning team. Not only was he a great athlete but also he had great sportsmanship and was seen to be a role model to millions of people. “Jordan can certainly be considered a sports hero.” (Ayemang, 2012, p.2) Michael Jordan exemplifies how athletes should have the drive and dedication like him in order to accomplish something great and

to give people someone to idolize. With all the rewards and accomplishments throughout his time in the NBA, Michael Jordan was able to make history in the NBA and be a model figure that people can always remember.
In high school, Michael Jordan did not make the varsity basketball team which was very disappointing to him.

He had to start from the bottom on the junior varsity team. Luckily for Jordan, with hard work and dedication in order to become the best, he was able to make his way up and reach the varsity team. As he began working hard toward his goal, he did not let it bring him down; he only grew stronger from it. As he finally reached the varsity team he was then recruited by the University of North Carolina and from then on continued in the NBA. His story of being rejected at first, gave people around the world hope that rejection should not bring you down but yet only make you stronger. This is a good example that shows to people all over the world that everyone goes through hard obstacles throughout their life and with hard work and dedication you can eventually reach your goals. If Michael Jordan were to give up after not making the varsity basketball in high school, then he would have never changed the game of

basketball.
Michael Jordan became a big influence on black male athletes who aspire to have a mentality like him. “Due to Michael Jordan’s visibility to the public, name recognition, success on and off the court, black male athletes endeavor to be ‘be like Mike’”. (Ayemang, 2012, p.8) With this, Michael Jordan teamed up with Gatorade and made a campaign called “Be Like Mike”. “Black media personalities like Michael Jordan, organize and translate blackness into commodifi able representations and desires that can be packaged and marketed across the landscape of American popular culture.” (Denzin, 1996, p. 5) His campaign was to impact people in such a way that they would follow his actions. Jordan believed in his campaign and knew that athletes could follow his footsteps, which is what made it so influential. It may have just been a marketing campaign, but it was more than that, this campaign was a dream that many players before and now aim for today. With this, he was able to utilize his fame in order to give athletes the motivation to play. “Because black male athletes are high influenced by sports heroes, they wish to carry out Jordan’s actions.” (Ayemang, 2012, p.9) An example of two black male athletes under the “Be Like Mike” campaign is Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. These two athletes, who imitated his style are coming very far in their career basketball while looking up to their hero, Michael Jordan.
The way Michael Jordan played basketball was so unique and different compared to other athletes. “Jordan’s image was about individuality, self confidence, self-motivation and those things sold nothing like nothing in any sport have ever had.” (Sporting News, 2011, p. 27) Basketball grew popular, once Michael Jordan stepped on the court. He was able to change the way people viewed basketball. People were not interested in watching basketball before because they did not find it as exciting. Once Michael Jordan stepped on the court showing off his skill in slam dunks, fadeaways, jumpshots and reverse layups, he made the game of basketball and the NBA entertaining. No matter what age or nationality, people around the world would tune in to watch him play. He did not use performance-enhancing drugs to be great, which made him a natural athlete. He grew stronger through practicing and working out daily. He was so competitive in basketball, which made it impossible to compare him to any other athlete.
By being a part of the NBA, Michael Jordan made it more popular than it was before.

He invested endorsement deals on products such as shoes and clothing line and did everything he could to make his brand grow. His shoe brand, Air Jordan has been very popular once it was first released to the public in 2001 and is still a popular and well-known brand today. “Michael Jordan is, thus a dazzling sports spectacle who promotes both commercial sports and products of corporations that market products to sports audiences.” (Kellner, 1996, p. 3) He soon became one of the biggest endorsers, affecting the U.S. economy by making people believe that if they purchased his shoes or other sporting goods then they can “Be Like

Mike.”
What makes Michael Jordan inform kinesiology today, is that with his basketball career and achievements, he was able to shape sport and physical activity in a good way. “Michael Jordan sums up his epoch, the most widely recognized professional athlete in the world today.” (Denzin, 1996, p. 8) Even though he was famous for basketball, he still influences others even if they play different sports. He teaches people to be passionate about the sport you play and to respect everyone around you. Some people still study his movement of how he acquired to accomplish so many achievements throughout his career in basketball. Michael Jordan’s technique of playing basketball is something that we can all learn form today. Many athletes today still try to have the same mentality as Michael Jordan in order to increase his or her performance in sport. If it took one man to change the viewer’s perspective of basketball, then it is possible for anyone to make a difference in any sport. Without athletes, sports are nothing which is also like saying basketball is nothing without Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan also informs kinesiology today by being a sports hero to athletes around the world. He played for the love of the game, not for the money and the popularity, which is why athletes should look up to him because how passionate he was. Athletes today should “Be Like Mike” in a sense that they should have good sportsmanship and are able to have leadership qualities on and off the court. Michael Jordan made history and sport and will always be remembered as a sports hero, an inspirational man and one of the best athletes to have ever played basketball in the NBA.