The best of Michael Jordan on 60 Minutes
Michael Jordan ended his NBA playing career for the final time in 2003. Upon his retirement, the then-40-year-old left the game with six championships, five NBA MVP awards, and led the league in scoring a record ten times.
When Jordan walked away, he did not grant a major television interview until 2005, when correspondent Ed Bradley spoke with him for a wide-ranging profile on 60 Minutes.
Michael Jordan: "I just want to be special. I just want to be successful."
Michael Jordan's success on the basketball court was not always a forgone conclusion. He did not make his high school varsity basketball team until his junior year.
In 1982, Jordan inserted himself into the national basketball conversation when as a freshman at The University of North Carolina he made the game winning shot in the NCAA title game.
The basketball court was where Jordan was most at peace
Michael Jordan played 15 seasons across three different stints in the NBA.
The 14-time all-star retired from the Chicago Bulls twice, first forgoing the 1993-94 season to pursue a career in baseball. Jordan returned to the Bulls a year later.
In 1998, he again retired after winning his sixth NBA title.
In 2001, Jordan came out of retirement and played two seasons for the Washington Wizards.
Michael Jordan: People put too much seriousness into success and failure
Michael Jordan, now a father of five, raised two "Division 1" NCAA athletes.
In 2005, Jordan told 60 Minutes that parents should not place all of the emphasis on one shot or one situation in a game.
"If you take a shot, you can only do two things, make it or miss," Jordan said. "That's how simple it is. That's what you try to get [across] to your kids, so they're not afraid of that simple act."
"It's very difficult to deal with." Michael Jordan on father's death
On a June 1993 evening, Michael Jordan stood clinging to the Larry O'Brien trophy for the third consecutive year. The maestro of the Chicago Bulls poured in 33 points to lead his team to a come-from-behind victory over the Phoenix Suns and another NBA championship.
Less than two months later, Jordan was informed his father and mentor James Jordan was murdered, the victim of an armed carjacking off a North Carolina highway.
In a 2005 interview, Jordan told Ed Bradley about some of the challenges he dealt with after his father's death.
"The thing that I look at the death of my father, unfortunately, you know, [is that] it happened at the hands of another human being, which, in essence, it's very difficult to deal with," Jordan said. "Just the notion of being able to kill someone."