Michael Jordan is a larger-than-life figure. Since he entered the NBA, MJ has established himself as one of the greatest athletes to ever walk the planet. His unreal athleticism, explosiveness, and agility looked like something that came straight out of a movie. To add to his amazing game, his presence, charisma and demeanor made MJ a unique character in all of sports.
Due to his special attributes, it isn’t surprising that Jordan accomplished everything he did, from individual to team success; he got it all. That same success led him to become one of the richest athletes in the world down the road, eventually reaching billionaire status. However, for MJ, money always came second, because basketball was always the only thing on his mind.
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“I would never play an extra year for money. I play the game because I love it. I just so happen to get paid. If I don’t feel I still enjoy the game, I can care less what a year is worth. I’m not going to play the game just because of money,” Jordan said when asked if he would play longer than he wanted to if the money was right.
Money was never a thing for MJ
In the first nine years of his career, Jordan accomplished more than most players do in their whole careers.
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Before he left the game for the first time, he established one of the most dominant statistical and decorated resumes in sports history – a three-peat, three finals MVPs, three regular season MVPs, a Defensive Player of the Year, and a Rookie of the Year, while having seven consecutive scoring titles, peak scoring with 37.8 points (1986-87 season) and seven All-NBA First Team and six All-NBA Defensive First Team selections.
Despite his outstanding dominance, Jordan wasn’t the highest-paid player during his first nine years in the league, which seemed diabolical, and it does. But for MJ, that was never the problem.
“Since I came into the league, I’ve never griped about my contracts. I’ve signed them, and I’ve honored them every year. If anybody stepped up and wanted to give me a raise, I’d accept it. But I’m not going to bitch about it, because I signed the contract,” Jordan said.
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If I play out my contract, I won’t be able to get another contract until five years down the road. Who knew this was going to happen three years ago when we did my deal? No one could tell that salaries were going to jump out of the deck,” he added.
However, later on, Jordan demanded the right amount for his talents.
MJ never intended to come back
Before he retired for the first time in 1993, Jordan gradually began to lose his joy for basketball for several reasons. One of the main reasons was the death of his father, combined with the mental and physical exhaustion that came with the tremendous amount of pressure and success MJ achieved.
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A year before all of those things happened, Jordan revealed that if he left the game, that was going to be the last of him.
“People keep saying, Well, you’re never going to be able to walk away, you’re always going to want that spotlight. All these old boxers come back, but not me. Once I walk away, I’m walking away. I’m not going to embarrass myself coming back, like I really need that roar of the crowd to live. It was good while it lasted. I’ve got memories of it. I don’t need it again to continue to live,”
In turn of events, Jordan would eat his own words and return two years later in 1995, demanding and receiving a massive salary increase for the 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons, which made him the highest-paid player in the league, earning over $30 million in both seasons.
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In his last years with the Chicago Bulls, Jordan cemented his legacy by achieving another three-peat and winning two more MVPs, proving that his love for basketball had returned, despite earlier comments suggesting otherwise.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Mar 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.