Jamal Crawford was a lucky man when he was young, as he got to know the widely considered GOAT, Michael Jordan. Talking with KC Johnson on the Bulls Talk Podcast, Crawford recalled how his relationship with MJ was, recalling how the Chicago Bulls legend expressed his admiration for Crawford’s game since he was in college.
He was drafted No. 8 overall in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers only to be traded to the Bulls. After that, he got an invitation to work out with Michael and the rest is history. Crawford said their relationship was so tight that he could even meet celebrities due to his status as MJ’s friend.
He explained he got so close to Michael that they played pickup games together, having a very good run, beating all their rivals over two consecutive years.
“When I say we didn’t lose, it wasn’t like we didn’t lose that whole day and they got the series, like, we didn’t lose one single game in two years. It was unbelievable, we beat everybody.
Jamal Crawford explains how he met Jay-Z, because of Michael Jordan.
“That kind of went into me meeting Jay-Z. Imagine getting so tight with Michael Jordan you’re like ‘Hey I wanna meet Jay-Z and he’s like ‘OK,’ and he makes it happens like that. It was unbelievable. Going to his house, working out with him, him picking me to be in the commercial with him to play the young Jordan…”
J Crossover also had the chance to participate in that famous commercial where Jordan plays a one-on-one game against a younger version of himself. Crawford was the person selected to play the young Michael in the commercial.
Jamal knows how lucky he is for being friends with MJ, and he doesn’t stop saying how unreal all of that is. “All of those things…incredible,” he added.
