Why Michael Jordan Cringes When People Refer To Him As NBA’s GOAT

Michael Jordan has long insisted he’s a competitor, not the GOAT.

The NBA legend explained in a 2009 interview with ESPN’s Michael Wilbon he doesn’t like when people call him the NBA’s greatest player of all time. Jordan believes giving him the GOAT title disrespects the legends that played before he entered the NBA in 1984.

“I don’t want it (the GOAT title) in a sense because I think it disrespects Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West — you know all the guys that prior to me I never had a chance to play against,” Jordan said. “What everybody is saying I am, I never had the chance to compete against other legends that was prior to me. When I hear it, I cringe a little bit because it’s a little bit embarrassing because no one knows.

“I never had the chance to, once again, to play against those guys. I would love to have played against them but I never did. And for you to say that I’m better than him … I mean it’s your opinion, it’s their opinion. I accept that as their opinion. If you ask me, I would never say that I am the greatest player. That’s because I never played against all the people that represented the league prior to Michael Jordan.”

Jordan’s nearly decade-old interview re-surfaced this week in the wake of the assertion LeBron James made in the latest episode of ESPN’s “More Than An Athlete” series he’s the NBA’s greatest-ever player.

Boston Celtics legend Kevin McHale and those who support Jordan’s claim to the throne took a dim view of James’ comment because they believe it demonstrates a lack of humility.

It turns out Jordan already showed the best way to address the eternal debate, and the old interview clip provides us a timely reminder.