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Lazenby, Roland. Michael Jordan The Life. New York, Boston, London, Little, Brown and Company, 2014.

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One experience/event that was very important in the shaping and life of Michael Jordan was his growing up with 4 generations of Jordan men, the bibliography, "Michael Jordan The Life", states, "In such an exceptional life, it's easy to overlook the one factor that arguably shaped Michael Jordan's character more than any other: through most of his formative years, he lived with four generations of Jordan men, [...] His great grandfather "Dasson," as he was often called, loomed as a figure of authority in the young life of Michael Jordan" (Lazenby 14).

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Another experience/factor that contributed greatly to Michael Jordan growing up was the hard work ethic in his family; in Chapter 2, on pages 26 and 27, Lazenby talks about how some of Michael's ancestors were hardworking men who worked on the farm and how that work ethic shaped the family and Michael.

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One very important experience/event in Michael's life is his birth; Lazenby states, "Even before the hospital attendants could get [Michael's mom] onto an emergency room gurney, the large, strapping male child made his startling appearance, clogged with mucus and struggling to breathe" (40).

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One experience that had a large impact on Michael Jordan's life was his family's moving from the rural early in his life; his family wanted more than a rural life and wanted to see more. If this move had not been made Michael may have never accomplished what he did.

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Another experience that was important in Michael's life is when his competitive spirit was born out of conflict with his father, ""He used to get irritated with me and say, 'You don't know what the hell you're doing. Go on in there with the women.'" His father's words rang as a challenge to his adolescent masculinity. [...] His father's mean words had activated deep within him some errant strain of DNA, a mutation of competitive nature so strong to almost seem titanium" (48).

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One experience that contributed to Michael Jordan's life is when his dad first set up a basketball hoop and court for he and his family. Michael and his brother had primarily been focused on baseball, and when his dad installed the hoop it was expected to be for Michael's brother, but soon, Michael fell in love with playing basketball.

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Later in Jordan's childhood, despite baseball being his main sport, it quickly dropped for him after it became too difficult, "However, young Michael plummeted almost as swiftly as he had peaked. [...] There was another reason that young Michael didn't get to play at age thirteen. The diamond was larger in this league" (61).

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As a teen, Michael was watching the NCAA tournament when he was watching the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Michael tried to hide his impression with the team, as he was an NC State fan, but it was hard for him to not be impressed. Later in Michael's basketball career, he went on to play with the North Carolina Tar Heels, and this was huge for him falling in love with the team that would develop the legend he became.

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Michael's Heart and Determination on the Court 

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Michael's Heart and Determination on the Court 

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Michael went to Laney High School, and played basketball. In his first year, at 15 years old, he was not the great basketball player he would later be being described as a shy ballplayer. Later though, on the court Michael was different, "At each step along his path, others would express amazement at how hard he competed. At every level, he was driven as if he were pursuing something that others couldn't see" (86). This is a great outline for the great competitor Michael would later be in his career.

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In his junior year of high school after making the JV team in his sophomore year, Michael had a great growth spurt growing to about 6'3"/6'4", and this paired with his skill, drive, and competition started to create a great basketball player.

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In his first year on the varsity team for Laney High School, Michael's coach described him as too unselfish, and despite his requests, Michael refused to change, so his coach spoke with Michael's father, "Jordan listened closely to his coaches but was still hesitant to change. He still believed that basketball was a team game, and he was going to look for his teammates. Finally, Pop Herring turned to James Jordan and asked for his help. [...] It was then that the pattern was established: the more he did, the more his coaches and his audience wanted him to do" (91).

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In high school, after making the varsity team Michael began to work on his game with his high school coach Pop Herring. Michael and Herring would go to the gym at 6:30 in the morning and work for hours, working on Michael's left hand and shooting off the dribble; these training sessions not only improved Michael's game but also allowed him to develop a closer connection with his coach.

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Before Michael ended up attending the University of North Carolina and becoming the great basketball player he would become, he needed to be scouted; Lazenby states, "Among the many who took notice was Mike Brown, the athletic director of New Hanover County schools. He had been wowed by Jordan's opening salvos as a varsity player, so much so that he contacted Bill Guthridge, Dean Smith's top assistant at the University of North Carolina, and told him there was an exceptional young guard in Wilmington that he needed to see. Like that, the seed was planted" (95).

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Soon, Michael knew and was set on playing college basketball. Michael participated in lots of sports in high school, and stated he had goals of playing college basketball and baseball, but made it clear basketball would be a priority.

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As Michael's high school basketball career began to approach a close, he started meeting with college basketball teams, one of these teams being the University of North Carolina, which he later ended up attending. In Chapter 9, Lazenby states, "Dean Smith and his coaching staff got a better look at Michael Jordan early that summer of 1980 at their camp. They took a good look at his parents too. James and Deloris visited the camp and met Smith and his assistants" (117).

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Years after a bad loss to New Hanover and boldly saying that North Carolina would win a championship with Michael Jordan in the lineup, Michael Jordan's coach Pop Herring began a deep spiral into mental illness.

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In his senior year after the basketball season, Michael was invited to attend a McDonald's All-American Basketball Game, but there was a policy that those who participated in the event couldn't participate in other sports, like baseball. Michael debated whether to play baseball or participate in the game. In Chapter 10, Lazenby states, "He took the team photo with the baseball team and appeared in the season opener, but it was a miserable, error-filled outing, which settled the issue. To his father's great anguish, Jordan dropped baseball" (144).

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Coming out of college, after a stellar college basketball career, Michael was high on the Chicago Bulls' radar and the team was targeting him with the number 3 pick in the draft, but they weren't sure if he'd fall that far in the draft. Michael ended up falling to the Bulls, and with the number 3 pick, the Chicago Bulls drafted Michael Jordan out of the University of North Carolina.

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Soon after winning multiple NBA championships, Michael's father passed away. His father hadn't responded to any contact from anyone for 20-plus days, something very unusual for him. Soon, his father's Lexus was found vandalized and robbed, and that's when Michael knew something was wrong, as his father's Lexus was his most prized possession, so Michael immediately went down to North Carolina. Soon, the police found Michael's father's body. In Chapter 29, Lazenby states, "James Jordan, according to investigators, had become a victim of circumstances when he stopped his car in a well-lighted place alongside Interstate 95 near Lumberton in the early morning hours of July 23. The teenagers were armed and had reportedly talked of robbing someone that night as they waited at a nearby exit, when Jordan apparently pulled off the road to rest, said Captain Art Binder" (484).

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After a very successful career with Chicago Bulls, in which he won 6 NBA championships, on January 13th, 1999, Michael Jordan retired.

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Michael Jordan (Age 30): First Retirement Press Conference (October 6, 1993)

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Michael Jordan's Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Speech

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Rare Michael Jordan high school basketball footage

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Michael Jordan: NCAA tournament highlights, top plays