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John Starks: I always tell people this, he's the most balanced athlete that I ever played against. Seemed like he was always on balance. And one thing you knew about him, the game is never over with. Even when you think you got the game one, it's never over with him because he plays to the buzzer. You know what I mean? And that's something that I learned playing against him. And that was my mentality is play towards to the buzzer.
Oh No He Didn't: Michael Jordan's advice to a star player playing at MSG: "Be you. What they're trying to get you to do is not be you and to me that is a challenge for a young kid, but it's a privilege, it's an honor. If they're coming in and they're yelling at you you're an impactful player. Shut em up. If you're not you they win"
Oh No He Didn't: Michael Jordan on playing at MSG: "It was never hostile towards me, it was more motivating at trying to get me off my game. I'm gonna keep you quiet for a while. I was never afraid of playing in New York City"
Gabriella Kreuz: Jaylon Tyson shares a story to illustrate why he plays with such passion “I was cut my 9th grade year. My whole goal is I’ll never let nobody say that about me again” #cavs Don: “Michael Jordan also got cut from his HS team” JT: “I’m not Michael Jordan” ???? #cavs
Jorge Sierra: If Luka Doncic keeps scoring at his 2025-26 pace (no easy feat), it will take him 150 games to surpass Michael Jordan for the best scoring average ever. Doncic has averaged 20.8 shots per game for his career. MJ averaged 22.9.
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Dave McMenamin: “It’s hard to compare eras and play styles. … Jordan is 1, LeBron is 1; Jordan is 2, LeBron is 2. However you want to do it, to me, they’re the two greatest players of all time” - JJ Redick on the NBA GOAT debate, with the Lakers in Chicago
“It’s hard to compare eras and play styles. … Jordan is 1, LeBron is 1; Jordan is 2, LeBron is 2. However you want to do it, to me, they’re the two greatest players of all time” - JJ Redick on the NBA GOAT debate, with the Lakers in Chicago pic.twitter.com/mQPZOTtL8s
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 27, 2026
According to former NBA All-Star guard Gilbert Arenas, this was not always the case, as press people during the 80s and 90s did not engage in negative talk about players or speak ill of them. Arenas cited Michael Jordan‘s performance in the Barcelona Olympics as an example. “There was no negativity in the early 80s, 90s. The game was glorified and pushed positive. They didn’t bash Magic/Bird/Kareem for losing in finals…. Imagine USA ’92 team today, and looking at Michael Jordan box scores are talked about today from how he performed. In ’92, nobody knows MJ was struggling in Olympics and shooting that bad against guys who were wearing AAU uniforms… We didn’t hear struggling,”
Growing up in the '90s, actor Michael B. Jordan, known back then simply as Michael Jordan, couldn't escape references to a certain NBA star with the same name who was everywhere, from the court to the movies to the shoe store. Everyone wanted to "Be Like Mike" — the other one. "I got teased so much, to the point where I almost changed my name," the Sinners star recently told CBS Sunday Morning. Looking back, Jordan said, he understood that it was being compared to the legendary athlete "was a part of the alchemy that made me who I am today. It definitely made me want to be competitive. I wanted to be great at something, if not for nothing else at that time, just to feel like I had my own identity."
Draymond Green: “Paul Pierce says there’s only three players in the NBA worth the max contract — Wimby, Joker, and SGA. And my thoughts on that was another ridiculous thing said by Paul Pierce. I understand what he’s getting at, um, I guess — but Ant-Man not? Jayson Tatum not? Giannis not worth a max? Jaylen Brown? Steph Curry? You mean to tell me none of these guys are worth max contracts? So then what Paul Pierce is saying is he was never worth a max contract, because you name three guys, and when Paul Pierce was in the league, Kobe was in the league. So definitely wasn’t Kobe. Um, Paul Pierce spent some time in the league with Michael Jordan — definitely wasn’t Michael. Kevin Garnett — definitely wasn’t Kevin. Tim Duncan — definitely wasn’t Tim Duncan. So pretty much, Paul Pierce was never a max player either, if his notion is what works. Then he was never a max player. Dwyane Wade was in the league. So Paul Pierce was never a max player, if his notion is what a max player is.”
Kevin Durant: To have a quick little celebration with people that watched me from the beginning, people that followed my career once I got into the NBA—just to celebrate with them a little bit—is pretty cool. To be up there with Dirk, like I said earlier, somebody I looked up to, idolized, competed against... we had some great battles. He always was supportive of my career and my game. So, to be up there with a legend like that—it’s just insane. And to be right underneath Michael Jordan—it's crazy, man. I always dreamt about being in the league and being a superstar-level player and all of this, but you never know exactly how your career is going to go.
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NBA on ESPN: The moment Kevin Durant passed Dirk Nowitzki for 6th all-time in scoring The Easy Money Sniper has his eyes set on Michael Jordan at 5th
The moment Kevin Durant passed Dirk Nowitzki for 6th all-time in scoring 🙌
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 19, 2026
The Easy Money Sniper has his eyes set on Michael Jordan at 5th 👀 pic.twitter.com/Fm9qp1PV6u
Mark Tatum, Adam Silver’s second hand, emphasized the desire of being in Paris for NBA Europe. “Paris is a market we absolutely want to be in,” he said. “There’s their ability to create a brand, a culture, their association with the Jordan brand (Michael Jordan’s), which is linked to basketball. We’re looking for the right partners for our project, and PSG brings a very interesting level of expertise in terms of marketing, promotion, and building a global brand.”, Tatum commented.
To date, Jordan’s special contributor role with the NBA on NBC has been limited to one long-form interview conducted by Tirico, with clips from their conversation being sprinkled in throughout the season. As for whether Jordan’s role with NBC will expand beyond that one long-form interview, it doesn’t sound like NBA fans should be expecting anything. “Nothing scheduled as of now that I know of, but it is a possibility,” Tirico told Traina. “I hope there’s something else after it. Michael was awesome.”
Gilbert Arenas: “The media who watched and covered MJ are still the most prominent voices today, and they push their love for him like it’s the only version of greatness. We never heard how many times Magic or Kareem lost in the Finals—only the positives were shared. But now, any star who might be the ‘next MJ’ gets picked apart. Only their flaws are highlighted.”