Michael Jordan is coming back to the NBA. Just take a moment and let that sink in for a second, as the clouds of nostalgia flood your mind—posterizing dunks, last-second shots, and every step of The Last Dance. NBCUniversal made a huge splash at their annual upfront event on Monday morning as they announced that Jordan will be joining the network as a “special contributor” as the NBA returns to NBC for the first time since 2002.
I grew up as a child of the 1990s and call Chicago my home. I take a lot of pride in knowing that the greatest to ever lace up a pair of sneakers won six NBA championships in my backyard. There is an aura to His “Airness” in Chicago that only Gretzky feels in Edmonton and Brady feels in Boston. Titles leave legacies, and championships create opportunities when time runs out on an athlete’s career.
The question remains: Will Michael Jordan elevate to G.O.A.T. status on NBC, or will he just be another Brady or Gretzky?
NBC Sports did the right thing on Monday morning by announcing Jordan would be joining the network for the first season of their 11-year agreement with the NBA. It created the buzz, excitement, and intrigue the network desired. The topic was trending on social media and was a hot topic on sports radio across the country.
The network didn’t reveal exactly what the plan was for the six-time NBA champion; they just left it as “special contributor.”
Vague? Yes. But what exactly could that mean?
How NBC Should Approach The Jordan Debut
Does that mean Jordan will work a game a week? All three nights per week that NBC and Peacock will be devoting to league coverage? Or will Jordan’s appearances be based on certain matchups throughout the year?
NBC is keeping the audience guessing, and that’s the smartest play of all.
FOX Sports made the mistake of announcing Tom Brady’s massive 10-year contract while he was still playing football. The bigger mistake was elevating Brady to the top analyst booth without any prior experience, leapfrogging fan favorite Greg Olsen, who was demoted to number two.
FOX gave away the full game plan before Brady even hung up his cleats, which left his no mystery to what fans could expect.
TNT Sports announced Wayne Gretzky as lead analyst when the network was set to begin its NHL coverage in late 2021. They announced the full game plan for “The Great One”—key moments during the regular season, the Winter Classic, and throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs. While the announcement seemed big for hockey fans, Gretzky quickly followed up in an interview with ESPN saying fans should expect him to be “way more positive than negative.”
Talk about wasting the surprise and killing the suspense.
NBC knows the mistakes of their competitors and didn’t reveal the full plan—something they should continue to do for the foreseeable future, leaving the audience hanging on to see what the big reveal will be.
There should be no media tour, no exclusive digital sit-down on The Today Show, and nothing on social media. Leaving the audience with more questions than answers, creating more interest overall.
Will The Real “MJ” Please Stand Up
The larger question that remains—outside of what exactly Jordan will be doing—is how he’ll approach doing it. Jordan has never been one to share much opinion during his entire career. He was made famous for not taking public stances on issues, including during the 1990 U.S. Senate race in North Carolina, when he was quoted as saying, “Republicans buy sneakers, too.”
That was a 27-year-old Jordan playing the proverbial line with politics. Can we expect a 62-year-old Jordan to be more opinionated on today’s NBA?
Jordan revisited that quote in 2020, when The Last Dance documentary was released, saying that he didn’t feel it needed to be corrected because “I said it in jest on a bus,” and he was “thrown off the cuff.” While Jordan should be more prepared for whatever comes with his “contributor” role at NBC Sports, can we expect the same hesitation to be critical or take a stance in a game that contains a plethora of controversy?
Tom Brady was ridiculed in his first full season as the lead analyst on FOX Sports for taking soft stances on big issues and showing a lack of self-awareness—whether real or perceived. He walked in with the largest paycheck an analyst has ever gotten and was handed the keys to the Cadillac without learning the craft. Viewers were expecting so much more from the man who won seven Super Bowls and yielded that payday from the network. By the end of the season, if you were watching a game he was calling, you probably wouldn’t have even noticed.
Wayne Gretzky set his tone before he even hit the air, stating he would be more positive than critical. His TV appearances were limited, and the analysis he provided in short doses was more comical than compelling. TNT Sports didn’t shine the spotlight on Gretzky as they should have, and his addition to their coverage fell flat—and has never fully recovered.
Michael Jordan must answer the call for basketball fans around the country once again in a society that craves opinion with substance and depth. Basketball fans don’t want the Michael Jordan who refused to take a political stance in an attempt to do business with both sides of the aisle.
Basketball fans want the Michael Jordan they saw in The Last Dance—cigar in mouth, baseball bat in hand—saying, “That’s the sign of a good man. If he can talk s**t when it’s even score, or talk s**t when you’re behind the score. When you’re ahead, it’s easy to talk.”
That’s the “MJ” basketball fans want. That’s the Michael Jordan basketball fans need.
Stephen A. Smith asked the same question earlier this week on First Take.
“I just want to know—is it going to be the Michael Jordan that you see on television, or is it going to be the Michael Jordan we speak to?” questioned Smith on Monday. “If it’s the Michael Jordan that we speak to, it’s going to be epic. Lord have mercy!”
Taking The Lead From “The Round Mound Of Rebound”
Jordan should look to his former teammate on “The Dream Team” as the example of how to take the approach to television. Basketball fans have flocked to the unabashed honesty of Charles Barkley for over twenty years. That tone and approach by “Sir Charles” has made Inside the NBA the signature NBA programming for league discussion that fans demand of their former superstar players.
Without question, Michael Jordan is one of the most competitive athletes to ever grace the world of sport. His desire to be the best drove his playing career to heights untouched since his retirement.
His post-playing ambition to own an NBA franchise and serve as Managing Member of Basketball Operations resulted in disaster for the Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets. His drive for greatness led to some of the worst draft picks of all time—Kwame Brown, Adam Morrison—and a record-worst 7–59 season in 2011–2012.
What NBC is providing Jordan is a new lease on his basketball life.
A man with nothing left to prove on the court, but everything still left to prove off of it. Jordan should approach this last chance as he did The Last Dance, with the same competitive edge he had playing at arenas around the country.
By remaining quiet until showtime, fans will hang on Jordan’s every word.
By being honest, fans will develop an affinity for Jordan’s authentic perspective on today’s game.
By being the “MJ” we all grew up with and saw portrayed in The Last Dance, every single moment will carry more impact than any game ever called by Tom Brady or comment ever made by Wayne Gretzky.
If there were ever a better time to “Be Like Mike,” NBC Sports would be wise to get out of the damn way—and let Mike be Mike.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
