Man Or God Essays - National Basketball Association Finals

Man Or God? Zack Price 9-21-00 Michael Jordan: Man or God? They say being on the cover of Sports Illustrated is a jinx, that one is doomed for failure as soon as their image is displayed on the nation's most popular sports magazine. It has previously happened to many athletes, and even entire teams have unreasonably dropped off the face of the earth after appearing on SI's cover. In 1987, Sports Illustrated's baseball preview touted an Indian Rising, featuring Joe Carter and Cory Snyder of the Cleveland Indians. It said this was the year the Indians would stop being laughed at. The Indians finished with over 100 losses and dead last in the American League. Six months later SI ran the headline: Toronto takes off when the Blue Jays took a three-game lead over the Detroit Tigers with the regular season running out. But after that cover, the Blue Jays and company collapsed and Detroit went to the playoffs. The SI jinx is widely known. Lee Smith, the bullpen star of the St. Louis Cardinals once refused to be photographed for the cover out of fear of the jinx. It's hard to argue with him. He retired as the all-time leader in saves. One man, maybe not even a man, but a sort of immortal, has been on the cover numerous times. Never once has he slumped, gone on inexplicable cold streaks, fallen apart under pressure, or lost the big one. He is Michael Jordan. Jordan was born on Feb. 17, 1963 in Brooklyn, NY, the fourth of five children. That spring, the family moved to Wilmington, North Carolina. Michael's family was never very wealthy during his childhood, and as a teenager he found himself mowing lawns for $1.90 per hour. As a high school sophomore Michael got cut from his high school's varsity team. Instead of being disappointed and dwelling on not making the team, he worked on his game as hard as he ever had and ended up becoming a high school All-American his senior year. He then went on to play for North Carolina on a basketball scholarship. He made the game winning shot in the national championship game as a freshman, and turned pro 2 years later after his junior year. The Chicago Bulls drafted him with the 3rd pick in the 1984 draft. The number 23 with the word ?Bulls? written above it is now recognizable to anyone who knows anything about basketball. His face is familiar to kids and adults alike, all around the world. He has done commercials for tennis shoes, sports drinks, cereal, and even underwear, and all have been extremely successful. He has been in movies, television shows, and music videos, and all have been popular. In the June 22, 1998 Sports Illustrated, Michael Jordan is on the cover. He is pictured holding a basketball with two hands above his head, getting ready to loft a shot towards the opposing team's basket. His body ? suspended in air, as Michael was often found during a National Basketball Association game, jumping, seemingly floating over his opponents on his way to another two points. The photo was taken in Salt Lake City, Utah, during the 6th game of the NBA Finals, the clinching game for the Chicago Bulls. This was ?The Shot? that ended the series, giving Michael and his Bulls their sixth title, third in a row. The Most Valuable Player for all six was Michael Jordan. The SI photographer who took this wonderful picture, allows us to see just about all of Michael, aside from the tips of his shoes, which are cut-off at the bottom of the page, but assumed to be off the ground. At the top of the frame we see the ball that he is about to shoot. His entire body is perfectly centered in the middle of the page, and is the only thing on the cover that is in focus. Everything about Michael in this picture is perfect. His feet are shoulder width apart, hips and shoulders facing his target and his grip on the ball is immaculate. The ball itself is sitting on the pads of his fingers with the laces in line with the hoop, prepared to be thrown in the