Michael Wilbon: ESPN panicked over Michael Jordan joining NBA on NBC

Michael Jordan joining the NBA on NBC might not be what basketball fans were hoping for, but it was enough to put ESPN on edge.

Michael Wilbon, who has known Jordan for more than 40 years, recently joined the Awful Announcing Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation discussing Pardon the Interruption, ESPN, Stephen A. Smith, and more. And during the podcast, Wilbon was asked about Jordan joining the NBA on NBC last year and whether he was surprised that the six-time champion ultimately limited his new media role to one interview with Mike Tirico.

“People at Disney got panicky. ‘Jordan’s going to be on every…’ No, he’s not,” Wilbon said, insisting he knew Jordan was not about to be anything remotely close to a regular analyst for NBC. “Use some common sense. He’s not.”

Jordan’s lone conversation with Tirico could have been the greatest one-on-one interview in NBA history, and it still would have failed to meet the expectations that derived from NBC announcing the six-time champion as a “special contributor.” NBC was careful to provide no details about its announcement last year that Jordan would join them for their reboot season as an NBA rightsholder, which was probably by design.

The lack of information prompted fans and media to assume Jordan would occasionally show up in studio for big events. And it sounds like even ESPN thought Jordan was signing on with NBC to do more than what was agreed to. As it turned out, there was no reason for Disney to get panicky, because Jordan’s absence on NBC during the season ultimately left fans disappointed with the partnership. But Wilbon was not surprised by his utilization.

“I’ve had more conversations with Michael Jordan than the people at NBC or Disney ever have,” Wilbon said, insisting he never expected Jordan to do much more than he did for the network. “I don’t believe that was ever agreed to; I never believed it when I read the release. Like Michael was gonna be on a set five wide? Come on, stop. Networks do hype bullsh*t. All of them. They’re selling. ‘We’re gonna give you Michael Jordan.’ Who doesn’t want to see Michael Jordan talk about the NBA at any time?”

“He was never gonna be on a set,” Wilbon continued. “Let me make this clear: I have no idea what he agreed to with NBC. I know he respects Mike Tirico; I don’t know what they agreed to. I was glad when I saw him on the times I saw him. I would never not want to hear Michael opine on anything.”

Considering Jordan’s relationship with Wilbon and even Stephen A. Smith, ESPN was probably annoyed when it learned NBC had convinced one of the most popular athletes in history to be part of its basketball coverage. If Jordan was interested in doing media, ESPN likely expected Wilbon and Smith to help them get the right of first refusal. But as it turned out, Jordan was never interested in doing media; he was just part of an incredible NBA on NBC marketing ploy.

“What did people think, seriously?” Wilbon asked. “I get such a kick out of this. And I got such a kick out of that NBC release that day, and the panic, the stir it caused.”