Michael Jordan's Daughter Jasmine Struggled Having A Famous Father As A Kid

Jasmine Jordan, the daughter of basketball legend Michael Jordan and his ex-wife, Juanita Vanoy, has carved out her path and identity despite growing up in the shadows of her famous father, who was a star with the Chicago Bulls for 13 seasons. Jasmine shared that Michael was a present and loving dad, even finding time to make parent-teacher conferences and take her to school whenever possible. Still, Jasmine faced intense pressure as one of Jordan's five children. 

Even down to what she wore, Jasmine had to represent the family brand. According to a May 2020 chat with AndScape, Michael would only allow Jasmine to wear other brands occasionally as a child. "I was rocking a lot of Skechers, which was not OK in my father's eyes. I used to beg him, 'Please, let me get the light-up Skechers!' Or the shoes with the wheels. He would let me wear them for a day, then the next day they would end up in the trash ... It didn't matter what pair they were. It didn't matter who bought them. If they were in his house and they were on my feet, by the next day, they were in the trash." Now, as an adult, Jasmine works for her family's massive Jordan Brand empire and has worked hard to establish herself as a notable businesswoman and key player in the company.

Attending high school can be a rough experience for many teens, but for Jasmine Jordan, it was even more challenging as the daughter of one of the NBA's most prolific players.  However, as she planned for her college career at Syracuse University, Jasmine was involuntarily thrust into the spotlight. She ended up going viral by accident due to a harmless now-deleted tweet.

"I tweeted that I was going to Syracuse University, and at that time, I didn't have that many followers, so I didn't think much of it. A local media outlet picked up my tweet and ran it as if it were an interview, and I was pissed! I was extremely upset because it was like — first off, I didn't do an interview, and secondly, you just took my tweet and spun a story I had no say in. It was frustrating because once I arrived on campus, I had to deal with stares from everyone. I was being judged and talked about before I even had a chance to ask a question in class," Jasmine explained during a July 2018 interview with InStyle. 

Thankfully, supportive professors helped her navigate the challenges. Jasmine obtained a degree in Sports Management from Syracuse University in 2014. From there, she began carving out a career strategy that set her apart from her famous dad while still helping to run his brand.

While Jasmine Jordan has made it very clear that being the daughter of an iconic NBA star was not always easy, she has flourished in her career. After exiting Syracuse University, Jasmine was able to land a job with the Charlotte Hornets as the Coordinator of Basketball Operations. With a passion for helping athletes off the court, Jordan obtained a certification in Predictive Index Assessment, which is a behavioral assessment tool used in the workplace to understand and measure various aspects of an individual's work-related behavior. After Jasmine took the lead on this, the Hornets implemented a PI during the draft to understand their players better, as Forbes explains. 

After spending nearly a decade putting in time, work, dedication, and perseverance, Jasmine is now working as a Field Representative for the Jordan Brand. In this role, she now works with 13 WNBA athletes and has even begun exploring athletes in other realms, such as famous Peloton instructor Jess Sims. Aside from her professional strides, Jasmine is now a mother to a son, Rakeem. She is also engaged to professional basketball player Rakeem Christmas, who plays overseas, though Jasmine is careful to keep much of her personal life private. On her Instagram, she does not display photos of her son's face or of her fiance, which is likely a decision she made because of the immense spotlight shined upon her family.