Michael Jordan’s leap into TV commentary has triggered unexpected backlash. Earlier this month, NBCUniversal announced MJ’s new role as a special contributor for their NBA coverage starting this fall—his first real dive into the sports media world. While a lot of fans were celebrating, the vibe shifted quickly when former Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn popped up with a wild theory that had LeBron James’ name dragged right into the mix.
“Michael Jordan is the greatest of all time in basketball, fair enough,” Quinn said. But then he added, “I think this is a GOAT move by the GOAT in Michael Jordan, to jump ahead of where I think LeBron James would want to be at some point in time.” According to Quinn, this is MJ flexing some power moves by getting ahead of LeBron’s potential media career. “If you were the GOAT…on a major network like this…it’s going to speak volumes,” he said.
But while Quinn might’ve been in awe, not everybody was impressed—especially a former Lakers star who’s clearly had enough of the constant Jordan worship. In fact, Lou Williams didn’t even try to hide his frustration.
On the Run It Back podcast, he bluntly stated, “Everybody is chasing the ghost of Jordan… but at some point we got to let the ghost be the ghost.” Lou isn’t against acknowledging greatness, but he’s over how Jordan still dominates the conversation every time a new star emerges. “Michael Jordan is always gonna be Michael Jordan. We got to stop making him the bar for every single guy that starts getting there.” That marked his breaking point.
September 27, 2021 – Kohler, Wisconsin, USA. – Basketball greats MICHAEL JORDAN and Steph Curry sit down at Whistling Straits, site of the Ryder Cup, to talk golf. Kohler U.S. – ZUMAce6_ 20210927_zaf_ce6_005 Copyright: xNbcxGolfx
Moreover, Lou pointed out that Jordan last played a game almost 25 years ago—basketball’s changed, evolved, and grown since then. “Like we hadn’t seen Michael Jordan play a game in close to 25 years,” he said. What really struck a nerve was the rumored reason behind MJ’s new gig. “I saw one where it said he was doing this to kind of put to bed a lot of these narratives and conversations.” And for Lou, that just didn’t sit right.
Eventually, he made it clear—this MJ obsession needs to stop. “At some point we got to move on…We got to let the game push forward,” Lou said. Constantly circling back to Jordan’s legacy, as iconic as it is, only holds the sport back. And to really shut the door on Quinn’s bizarre NBC theory, Lou’s teammate didn’t even bother being polite—they flat-out shut it down.
Is Michael Jordan really trying to outshine LeBron?
Brady Quinn thinks he is. According to Quinn, Michael Jordan might be making this jump just to beat LeBron James at his own game. “LeBron James likes trying to control the narrative,” he said. “In this case, [he] can’t really control the narrative, because no one’s going to want to listen to him as much as they will to Michael Jordan, in my opinion.” That hot take had everyone talking—and not all in agreement.
Chandler Parsons also piled on, dismissing the idea that Jordan’s PR move was aimed at LeBron. “I really don’t think Michael Jordan, with his billions of dollars and his great life and his golf course and cigars and tequila, is sitting there worried about LeBron,” Parsons said. “I don’t think he’s doing media next season to beat LeBron James.” His point? MJ’s got more than enough going on without playing media chess with LeBron.
Then came the jab. Parsons didn’t hold back, joking, “Can the football guys let us have our arguments, please? Because some bad takes.” Clearly, the panel wasn’t buying what Quinn was selling.
To top it off, Michelle Beadle stepped in with a dose of realism. She reminded everyone that Jordan won’t be clocking into pre-show meetings like a full-time analyst. “It remains unclear what exact role Jordan will have with NBC Sports,” she said, but confirmed he’s more likely to make guest appearances than do regular studio work like the Inside the NBA crew.
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