LeBron James and Michael Jordan are widely regarded as the two greatest basketball players of all time and will forever be linked to each other. Despite them being such prominent figures in the basketball world for decades, we haven’t seen them interact with each other on too many occasions.
So, when a clip of an 18-year-old James talking to Jordan surfaced on social media, it spread like wildfire. The then-youngster wanted to know where the burning desire to win came about for his idol.
“I think it’s my passion for the game, my desire to get as close as I can to perfection,” Jordan said. “Listen to your coaches. Listen to the media, to some degree, because you’re gonna hear a lot of criticism about your game.”
“Work your way up to the top,” Jordan added. “… I know what the bottom looked like. I never wanted to go back there.
“Work your way up to the top — I know what the bottom looked like…I never wanted to go back there”
— Michael Jordan pic.twitter.com/1l7OIxpCHQ
— JordanMuse (@JordanMuse_) November 18, 2025
Chris Paul and Kendrick Perkins can also be seen at the end of the first clip. All these big names appear to have gathered for the 2003 Jordan Brand Classic.
James shone in that game for Team Black with 34 points (13-30 FG), 12 rebounds, six assists, one steal, and one block. He ended up on the losing side, though, as Team Silver won 107-102. James was at least named co-MVP of the game along with Shannon Brown.
While Brown’s career didn’t pan out the way many would have imagined at the time, James perhaps even exceeded the sky-high expectations of him. He has gone on to win four titles, four Finals MVPs, four MVPs, a scoring title, and an assists title. James is also the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
Jordan, who won six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, a DPOY, and 10 scoring titles in his career, would have realized that James had the potential to be special, but not this special. As for this meeting, it wasn’t the first time they had crossed paths.
James met Jordan for the first time in 2001 when he was 16 and even got to play a pickup game with him and other NBA veterans at one point. The Los Angeles Lakers superstar claimed he was unguardable in that game.
“MJ, Antoine Walker, and the rest of those guys did not let young guys get on the court at all,” James said. “I was 16 years old, a Sophomore in High School, and it takes a while to get on the court. It’s usually when the older guys get tired and they don’t want to play anymore. But I did and I was able to get on the court with Antoine Walker, Penny Hardaway, Ron Artest, Michael Finley, all these guys.”
“I was unguardable,” said James. “When I finally got out there, I was like, ‘I’m busting a**.’ I was nervous. I was nervous as hell, being out there with MJ and the rest of those guys. But I was like, ‘Oh, I’m about to go crazy.’ And I did, I did.”
Maybe one day, James and Jordan will sit down and reminisce about this game and the interaction in that gym together. That would be quite special. That day will only come after James retires, though. The 40-year-old revealed that Jordan doesn’t want to talk to him because he is still playing. James hopes they’ll have a good relationship after he walks away from the game.
