Before Michael Jordan became a basketball icon, he was an 18-year-old with big dreams and a heartfelt love for his high school sweetheart, Laquetta Robinson.
In 1981, as he prepared to play for coach Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina, Jordan penned a touching letter expressing his deep feelings for Robinson while also acknowledging his growing commitment to basketball.
In the handwritten note, Jordan openly admitted that he couldn’t separate the pair.
“Laquetta, you are my whole life next to basketball,” Jordan wrote.
Understanding how this might sound, he then moved to reassure her: “Please don’t get mad about that statement. You are my whole life. But you can’t have basketball.”
His words revealed not just his devotion to his girlfriend but also his recognition that basketball was his future.
The two-page letter, written in blue ink on lined notebook paper, also hinted at the success he was destined for.
“Next year I will show you things you can’t believe. Some of these things will amaze you,” he promised.
Just a year later, Jordan delivered on that promise, hitting the game-winning shot in the 1982 NCAA Championship, a moment that would mark the beginning of his legendary career.
From young romance to lifelong commitment
Jordan‘s relationship with Laquetta Robinson was a significant part of his teenage years, but his personal life took a different turn in adulthood. In the early 2000s, he met Cuban-American model Yvette Prieto through a mutual friend.
Their romance blossomed, leading to an engagement in 2011 and a grand wedding in Palm Beach, Florida, in 2013. The couple welcomed twin daughters in February 2014 and have maintained a relatively private but strong relationship.
Despite his current family life, Jordan‘s past remains a subject of fascination. His love letter to Robinson was recently auctioned by Lelands, starting at 10,000 dollars, following the sale of his prom photo with her the previous year.
These glimpses into his youth offer fans a rare look at the emotions and ambitions that shaped the man who became one of basketball’s greatest legends.
