Ties to Michael Jordan still remain in his hometown of Wilmington, NC

Jet, June 23, 1997

While Michael Jordan has long left his hometown of Wilmington, NC, the ties to the superstar and the fond memories of him still remain there.

There is a stretch of Interstate 40 named in his honor. At Laney High School, where he couldn't make the varsity basketball team as a sophomore, there is the Michael J. Jordan Gymnasium. On Gordon Street sits the house where Jordan grew up after his family moved to Wilmington when he was 5. It still looks the same minus one of the two basketball goals that a souvenir hunter confiscated. The Boys Club still sits at the end of a deadend street where Jordan spent many hours playing basketball.

The buildings are not the only reminders of Jordan; plenty of people remember him as a playful youngster who began to show the first signs of greatness just as he was about ready to take flight toward the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

His physical education teacher Ruby Sutton remembers Jordan just like he is now. One of the most playful, mischievous kids you would ever want to meet," she told USA Today.

She also recalls having to run a young Jordan out of the school gym in the morning because he would always arrive early to work on his basketball skills.

She also said she remembers a popular Michael Jordan who didn't have many girlfriends. Since his stardom, many women have claimed that they dated a young Michael. "I know for a fact that wasn't true," Sutton said.

Assistant basketball coach Fred Lynch recalls in the paper of having to tell Jordan he did not make the varsity squad at Laney High. "He didn't sulk. He worked like he always worked." Jordan went on to start as a junior and star as a senior. His uniform number is retired. It was on display at the school until someone stole it.

And although Jordan is long gone from Wilmington, his ties to the coastal town still attract tourists.

For example, the two-story, tan-and-brick home that Jordan grew up in was purchased by the William McGlenn family in 1986. They have had tourists at the door and the curious poking through their back yard. McGlenn came home one day to find a girl kissing his driveway.

"Now that was strange to me," he told USA Today. "We're used to it. Sort of. But sometimes you still get surprised."