Although he has been retired for several years now, Michael Jordan is still widely regarded as the greatest basketball player to ever play the game. His influence was felt not only in the way the game was played, but also in how it was perceived around the world. Ultimately, his excellence at his sport was instrumental in catapulting the popularity of basketball and the National Basketball Association all over the world during the eighties and nineties. Beyond all this, Jordan was also a marketing force and was hands-down the most successfully marketed athlete of his generation and, possibly, all time. In 1999, Jordan was named by ESPN as the greatest athlete of the 20th century.
Jordan retired from the NBA after 15 seasons, during which he established a number of prestigious records. His 30.12 points per game average is the highest ever in NBA history. He also won six NBA titles with the Chicago Bulls and was the MVP of the NBA Finals every time they claimed the championship. In addition, Jordan has been the NBAs leading scorer for 10 straight seasons and was the leagues Most Valuable Player five times. He was also selected to the All-NBA First Team 10 times, the...