THE G.O.A.T!!!

THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME!!!
In a society with an unlimited passion to rank, to quantify, to compare and contrast everything, Michael Jordan became the universal measuring device for judging greatness. Jordan the athlete, as well as cultural icon, had such an effect on the world that descriptions of standout athletes in other sports, as well as top artists and elite achievers in any field, began with: "He/she is the Michael Jordan of ... "

The person being described was never quite "the Jordan of ..." but it was a point of reference almost universally understood.

Jordan so dominated the basketball world that, for the second half of a pro career that spanned 1984-98, there was no debate about the game's supreme player -- an astonishing distinction in a time when superb athletes proliferate. Previous eras argued Wilt versus Russell, Robertson versus West, Magic versus Bird. But Jordan stood alone, so far ahead of his peers that individual rivalry came to an end.

Today Michael Jeffery Jordan was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Here are some of his accomplishments...I have highlighted a few of my favorites

NBA 50th Anniversary All-Time Team (1996)
Member of six NBA championship teams (1991-93, 1996-98)
Five-time NBA Most Valuable Player (1988, 1991-92, 1996, 1998)
Six-time NBA Finals Most Valuable
Player (1991-93, 1996-98)
Ten-time All-NBA First Team (1987-93, 1996-98)
All-NBA Second team (1985)
Nine-time NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987-93, 1996-98)
NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1988)
NBA Rookie of the Year (1985)
NBA All-Rookie Team (1985)
Two-time IBM Award winner, for all-around contribution to team's success (1985, 1989)
Three-time NBA All-Star Game MVP (1988, 1996, 1998)
Participated in 11 NBA All-Star Games (1985, 1987-1993, 1996-98), starting 10 times, and missed another due to injury
Holds the NBA All-Star Game career record for highest scoring average (21.3 ppg)
Recorded only triple-double in All-Star Game history, with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, in the 1997 NBA All-Star Game in Cleveland
Won the Nestle Crunch Slam Dunk in 1987 and 1988, also participating in 1985
Passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA's all-time leading playoff scorer (5,762 points) during the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals
Passed Dennis Johnson into fourth place on the NBA's all-time playoff assists list (1,006), in an 88-83 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals in 1997-98
Scored his 29,000th career point, posting a game-high 41 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists, in a 107-93 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on 4/3
Broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's NBA record by scoring in double-digits for the 788th consecutive game, scoring a
game-high 33 points, against the Minnesota Timberwolves on 12/30/97
Scored a career-high 69 points in a 117-113 overtime win at Cleveland on 3/28/90
Chicago Bulls all-time leader in scoring (29,277 points), assists (5,012) and steals (2,306)
Holds the NBA record for most seasons leading league in scoring -- 10; highest points per game average (minimum 400 games or 10,000 points) -- 31.5; most seasons leading league in field goals made -- 10; and most seasons leading league in field goals attempted -- 10
Shares the NBA career record for most seasons with 2,000 or more points -- 11; and most consecutive seasons leading league in scoring --7 (1986-87 through 1992-93)
Holds single-game records for most free throws made in one half -- 20 (December 30, 1992, at Miami); and most free-throws attempted in one half -- 23 (December 30, 1992, at Miami)
Shares single-game records for most free throws made in one quarter -- 14 (December 30, 1992, at Miami); and most free-throws attempted in one quarter -- 16 (December 30, 1992, at Miami)
Holds the NBA Finals record for highest single-series scoring average -- 41.0 ppg (1993)
Holds NBA Finals record for most three-point field goals made -- 42; and most consecutive games with 20 or more points -- 35 (June 2, 1991-June 14, 1998)
Holds the NBA Finals single-game record for most points in one half -- 35 (June 3, 1992 vs. Portland)
Shares NBA Finals single-game records for most field goals made in one half -- 14; and most three-point field goals made in one half -- 6 (June 3, 1992, vs. Portland); most free throws made in one quarter -- 9 (June 11, 1997 vs. Utah); and most free throws attempted in one half -- 15 (June 4, 1997, vs. Utah)
Holds the NBA Playoffs record for most points -- 5,987; highest points-per-game average (minimum 25 games or 625 points) -- 33.4 ppg; most field goals attempted -- 4,497; most free throws made -- 1,463; most free throws attempted -- 1,766; and most steals -- 376
Scored a career playoff-high 63 points against the Boston Celtics on 4/20/86, setting an NBA record for most points in a playoff game Holds single-game playoff records for most free throws made in one quarter -- 13; and most free throws
attempted in one quarter -- 14 (May 21, 1991, vs. Detroit)
Shares single-game playoff records for most field goals made -- 24 (May 1, 1998, vs. Cleveland); most field goals attempted in one half -- 25 (May 1, 1988, vs. Cleveland); and most three-point field goals made in one half -- 6 (June 6, 1992, vs. Portland)
Recorded two playoff career triple-doubles, both against the New York Knicks (May 9, 1989 and June 2, 1993)
Notched 28th career triple-doubles, the last being a 30 point, 11 rebound and 10 assist effort against the Toronto Raptors on 4/14/97
Member of the gold-medal-winning U.S. Olympic team (1984, 1992)
As a freshman at the University of North Carolina, hit the game-winning shot in the 1982 NCAA Championship game
Named College Player of the Year by The Sporting
News in both 1983 and 1984 and won the Naismith and Wooden Awards in 1984