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Michael Jordan’s Height
Michael Jordan worked hard to become the greatest basketball player of all time, but his physical gifts also helped him. Jordan’s body type enabled many aspects of his skill set and established a model for the modern NBA.
It’s indisputable that Michael Jordan paved the way for stars like LeBron James.
Michael Jordan’s athletic abilities were not inherited from his parents
One of Michael Jordan’s primary origin myths is that he was cut from his high school’s varsity team.
According to Bleacher Report, that story was slightly overstated. At the moment, Jordan was not the GOAT.
Jordan, a 15-year-old 5-foot-10 guard, was passed over for his teammate, the 6-foot-7 Harvest Leroy Smith because the Laney High School Bucs lacked size.
There was little reason to anticipate he’d develop as fast as he did, both literally and metaphorically.
Jordan’s father was 5’9″ and his mother was 5’5″. None of his close family members were taller than six feet.
Jordan grew so determined to gain muscle that he hung from pull-up bars on a daily basis.
That most likely did not help matters.
He did, however, grow to 6-foot-3 the next summer on his way to becoming the 6’6″ man we know today.
Jordan was a physical abnormality in other ways as well.
He has small feet for his height, which allows him to have more fluid footwork.
Small feet are usually associated with small hands, but Jordan is an exception.
His hands are larger than other centers’, measuring 9.75 inches long and 11.375 inches wide, making it difficult for defenders to steal the ball from him.
This combination allowed Jordan to be more inventive when attacking the rim.
It also helped him become a defensive force.
Jordan did things that no other guard had ever done before
As impressive as his statistics and list of accomplishments were, they couldn’t capture Jordan’s impact on basketball as a sport and culture.
On and off the court, he was a trendsetter, an icon, and a one-man revolution.
It’s difficult to believe, decades later, that Jordan’s talent was ever questioned.
Some skeptics said he was just a volume scorer who didn’t help his teammates.
Jordan rapidly rendered that claim meaningless, and other great players began referring to him as a God while he was still playing.
His rise as the game’s first modern superstar introduced it to a new, more worldwide audience.
Jordan’s myriad highlights and rivalries remain powerful after all these years.
Despite his absence from the game for nearly two decades, his shoes continue to sell out quickly, and The Last Dance cemented his place in the hearts of fans of all ages.
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Jordan’s legacy is now represented by players in the NBA
Jordan’s greatness echoed across the basketball world, and his impact can still be seen on the present court.
His insane work ethic, unwavering confidence, and comfort with being a jerk clearly influenced the late Kobe Bryant.
The Black Mamba tried everything he could to imitate his idol and eventually exceed him. But Jordan’s influence was far greater.
MJ marked the NBA’s transition from a league dominated by big men to one dominated by wing players.
Players who could create from the outside gradually but steadily became the most important player type in the game over the span of 20 years, a development sparked by Jordan’s dominance in the 1990s.
It takes a few weeks for social media to stop debating who is the superior player between LeBron James and Jordan.
But James’ career would be very different if he didn’t have Jordan to look up to and model himself after.
James has remarked about studying Jordan and learning how to see the floor and control the game better, a talent that can be seen in the games of many of the NBA’s current stars.
Jordan’s marketing skills also provided more opportunities for players to earn money through shoe deals and off-court endorsements.
Jordan’s footprint in the league is as large as ever, despite his lack of success as an owner.
