Jordan was not real big with the issues though, he was more into just playing the game and giving it 110 percent. When Jordan first came in to the league the NBA, it was about to go under. He may not have won a Championship his first eight years but he did something more important, he brought a certain excitement to the league. People now had somebody to root for who was an exciting all around great player. He was very influential in the advertising business. In his prime, you couldn't watch TV with out seeing one of his commercials. Whether it was Rayovac, Gatorade, Hanes, Nike, McDonalds, or just on local Chevy commercials, he was always on TV. He was also the biggest thing for players incomes since Nolan Ryan was the first million dollar man in baseball. Jordan was the reasons players contracts were going up and a reason for the lockout. In both the "97 and "98 season Jordan made 30 million each year, not even counting his endorsements. When teams try to rebuild a franchise, they don't say they just want the next great player, they want the next Jordan. .
Just from hearing one of Jordan's coaches when he was a rookie you get the sense that Jordan was one of the most devoted players ever. Bill Blair said "You knew you had somebody special because Michael was always there at practice forty-five minutes early. He wanted to work on shooting. And after practice he"d make you help him. He"d keep working on his shooting. He didn't care how long he was out there. The thing that I always loved about him, you"d take him out in practice to give him a rest during scrimmage, he was constantly back on you to put him back in. He loved to play the game." That kind of devotion throughout his career let him stay as one of the best players for all of his career.
Jordan's career numbers are pretty outrageous. Jordan owns eight career records and shares three records. Jordan has the most seasons leading the leagues in the scoring: 10.