Michael Jordan’s popularity was on a different level during the 90s, he deserves a lot of the credit for making the NBA the global phenomenon it eventually became. Despite basketball not being the most popular sport in the world, everyone had heard of Michael Jordan after the 90s, even those who didn’t exactly know who he was.
It’s hard to achieve that kind of notoriety. And it rarely lasts for too long either, while MJ is still one of the world’s most famous people, he’s been out of the spotlight for a while now. His name will never be forgotten, but the nature of life and sports is such that people are often more focused on ‘the next big thing.’ Already some of the younger generations of NBA fans don’t rate Michael Jordan higher than LeBron James, and it makes sense because they never watched him play.
Michael Jordan Accepted That As Generations Change, LeBron James Might Become More Popular Than Him
LeBron James and Michael Jordan have been compared for years now, with many ready to crown the King as the GOAT as well. But so far, their careers show that MJ is still a bit ahead of LeBron. This might change when James invariably tops the all-time scoring list, but that’s hard to tell at the moment.
Michael Jordan was voted the most popular athlete in history over Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali. When asked about it, though, he told Cigar Aficionado in an interview that these polls were merely a matter of who was voting.
(starts at 4:45 minutes)
Interviewer: “In late 2015, The Harris Poll surveyed Americans to rank the most popular athletes in history. You were voted No. 1, Babe Ruth was No. 2, Muhammad Ali was No. 3. All this is wonderful.”
Michael Jordan: “So when you sit there and you say I was voted the most popular athlete, it’s ironic that I’m the youngest of the three. So in essence it’s all related to who is watching now. If you ask 20 years from now, I’m pretty sure LeBron [James] may beat me. If you ask me, I can never give you an opinion about things like that. As an athlete, all you ever want to do is be the best athlete that you can.”
Only Michael Jordan, having led the life he did, can have this much of a grounded perspective when voted the most popular ever. He is right in that as time moves along, the greats of the past cannot keep up with whoever’s on top in the present. It’s safe to say, though, that MJ’s achievements will speak for themselves for years to come. And for some, like Jamal Crawford, he will always be the greatest of all time.
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