John Salley and Michael Jordan are pretty good friends, and it’s easy to assume that Salley knows many details about MJ’s life after they became very close.
While he makes it clear Jordan won’t ever apologize to Isiah Thomas after calling him an ‘a**hole,’ the former Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls player revealed that Jordan still can’t swim.
“I’ve fought him [Jordan] all the time. I always said, ‘man, the greatest player of all time? I can’t believe they’re saying this about you. You can’t even swim,'” Salley said before Vlad asked him if that was true.
This was a shocker for Vlad since, as a professional athlete, many would think MJ would be a decent swimmer. However, he lived a traumatic even during his childhood that marked him for life.
“He had a bad situation. His best friend died drowning and all of that,” Sally added. “I watched him try to learn but I was like, ‘he can’t even swim.’ It’s the only thing he can’t do.”
Vlad took this opportunity to extend an invitation to Jordan to go swimming at his house, but it’s unlikely that the GOAT would take it. MJ can do a lot of things well in life, and he was the best on the basketball court during his active days. However, there was something that he never managed to do, and that was swimming.
The reasons are out there, and it’s sad that he had to endure that and could never get completely over that in the years that followed the situation.
Michael Jordan Saw His Close Friend Drown When He Was A Little Kid
Back in 1992, Jordan opened up on this fatal incident, revealing what happened and why he was never able to learn how to swim.
Playboy: You had a bad experience with swimming when you were a kid, didn’t you?
Jordan: I went swimming with a close friend one day, and we were out wading and riding the waves coming in. The current was so strong it took him under and he locked up on me. It’s called the death lock, when they know they’re in trouble and about to die. I almost had to break his hand. He was gonna take me with him.
Playboy: Did you save him?
Jordan: No, he died. I don’t go into the water anymore.
Playboy: How old were you?
Jordan: I was really young. About seven or eight years old. Now I ain’t going near the water. I can’t swim and I ain’t messing with the water.
Playboy: Even when you go on a boat?
Jordan: Not without a life jacket, I won’t. Not a little boat, either. It has to be a big boat for me.
Many years later, in 2013, Jordan revealed that he was trying to change that, and learn how to swim finally.
“HE’S TRYING TO change, taking small steps. For the past few years, he’s gone on sailing trips because Yvette loves them, even though he hates the water. The first time, he went stir-crazy on the boat. This most recent trip, he felt his rage dissolve. It was a victory. He didn’t watch basketball. Every morning he’d wake with the sun and plant himself in the fishing chair, popping his first Corona by 8 with his friends, reeling in big yellowfin tuna, which hit a trolling bait like a submarine. They make great sushi. Jordan was happy. “Drinking and eating and drinking and eating and drinking and eating” is how he described the vacation to a friend, going through cases of his favorite tequila, fully unplugged, which lasted until he flew home. Then he was around the game again, and the old urges began to eat at him.”
He’s worked on this issue little by little and in 2020, MJ started competing in fishing tournaments. The ‘Catch 23’ boat has given him plenty of reasons to smile and feel more secure on the water. They won their first tournament in 2021, with MJ adding another big trophy to his impressive resume.
It’s been three years since that moment and he keeps going strong, although we haven’t heard more about Jordan’s participation in fishing tournaments. The GOAT has overcome some of his fears, and it’s unclear if he’s taking a big step in his swimming journey, but it’s good to see that he can be on the water without losing his cool.
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