Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born at Cumberland Hospital in the Fort Greene neighborhood of New York City's Brooklyn borough on February 17, 1963, the son of bank employee Deloris (née Peoples) and equipment supervisor James R. Jordan Sr.Halberstam, p. 17. He has two older brothers, James R. Jordan Jr. and fellow basketball player Larry Jordan, as well as an older sister named Deloris and a younger sister named Roslyn.Galloway, Paul (April 7, 1999). "Mrs. Jordan's Rules". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 6, 2020.Isaacson, Melissa (September 9, 2009). "Portrait of a legend". ESPN. Retrieved December 30, 2019. James Jr. became command sergeant major of the 35th Signal Brigade of the U.S. Army's XVIII Airborne Corps and retired in 2006.Associated Press (May 16, 2006). "Michael Jordan's big brother ends Army career". Charlotte Observer. May 16, 2006. Retrieved May 9, 2017. In 1968, Jordan moved with his family to Wilmington, North Carolina.Lazenby, p. 43. He attended Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, where he highlighted his athletic career by playing basketball, baseball, and football. He tried out for the basketball varsity team during his sophomore year, but at a height of , he was deemed too short to play at that level. His taller friend Harvest Leroy Smith was the only sophomore to make the team.Halberstam, pp. 20–21.
