Jerry Reinsdorf was so happy with the things Michael Jordan did for the Chicago Bulls that he made the decision to keep paying the GOAT even after he retired from basketball and went to try his luck in baseball in 1993, after winning his first three-peat.
Reinsdorf revealed in the latest episode of ‘The Last Dance’ that he still paid Michael Jordan his NBA contract in 1993-94 because MJ was underpaid. Despite being the greatest player in the world, MJ didn’t make the money that people believed he deserved, especially after taking the Bulls to win three straight championships, making the franchise relevant around the league.
“Along with the Bulls, I owned the Chicago White Sox,” Reinsdorf said. “When Michael was signed to play baseball, I continued paying him his basketball contract, which was something over $3 million per year,” Jerry Reinsdorf revealed.
“There was no reason to pay him other than he was underpaid his entire career. And he made a lot of money, for a lot of people.”
Before 1996, the biggest amount Jordan made in the league was $4 million. That year, he inked a one-year, $30.14 million deal with Chicago before signing for $33,140,000 in 1997-98.
It’s hard to believe that the greatest player of all time was underpaid for a big part of his career, but that’s the way things were during those days. Now, Jordan is just fine, without any financial problem, thanks to Jordan Brand and his ownership of the Charlotte Hornets.
