At the height of his popularity, Michael Jordan may just have been the most famous person alive. There are very few humans in history that have enjoyed the sort of worldwide fame His Airness enjoyed. While Magic Johnson and Larry Bird had saved the NBA with their greatness and rivalry, MJ was the one to take it to new heights and make basketball one of the most popular sports in the world.
When someone is that revered, a certain amount of jealousy from others is natural. There wasn’t a single person in the world that didn’t want to be ‘like Mike’, with a common thing being people wanting to live MJ’s life for a day. Of course, this is merely wishful thinking, but it’s interesting to see how many people just didn’t see the struggles that came with constantly being in the spotlight.
Michael Jordan Opened Up About People Wanting To Live His Life For A Day To Maria Shriver, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Ex-Wife
In 1992, Jordan won his second NBA championship, and his popularity was only growing by the day. During that time, he was interviewed by Maria Shriver, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ex-wife. He explained candidly that people wanting to be him for just a day wasn’t fair, going on to elaborate that he would be okay leaving the spotlight.
(starts at 9:02 minutes):
Maria Shriver: “So many of the people I talk to, they look at your life and they think, ‘Gee, I’d like to play for just one day like Michael Jordan.'”
Michael Jordan: “A lot of people say that ‘I’d love to be Michael Jordan for one day’… See, that’s not fair. Try a year. Try two, three, or four years…then you can see the good along with the bad.”
Jordan would famously retire from basketball in 1993 after winning his 3rd championship and completing a three-peat with the Bulls. The death of his father was something that had a huge impact on him. Also, the speculation about his gambling was a factor that got to him, something that soured his strained relationship with constantly being in the limelight, although he did also just need a break.
Ultimately, being Michael Jordan takes a lifetime of sacrifice and intense hard work, so the idea of wanting to be him for a day isn’t fair. Whether people like MJ or not, it’s easy to see that while his life came with many privileges and acclaim, he also struggled with a lot of things during that time.
