Fox analyst Nick Wright launches blistering Michael Jordan attack over move to become an NBA analyst

By JAKE NISSE

Fox Sports analyst Nick Wright threw a jab at Michael Jordan this week after the legendary basketball player’s new broadcasting role was announced.

It was revealed on Monday that Jordan would be serving as a ‘special contributor’ for NBC and Peacock’s NBA coverage starting in the fall.

But Wright couldn’t resist taking a shot at the six-time NBA champion after the news was announced. 

‘Michael Jordan’s going to join NBC as a contributor. Listen, NBC is a different network, but fair is fair, I got to give credit where it’s due,’ he began on his What’s Wright? podcast.

‘I mean, if they’re going to use him the way he should be used, that is going to be an unbelievable addition. And by that I mean, he should be their gambling expert.’ 

The comment is a reference to Jordan’s well-known and checked history of gambling throughout his playing career.

Michael Jordan is set to join NBC as a ‘special contributor’ for their NBA coverage

But Nick Wright took a shot at the basketball legend after the news was announced

The ultra-competitive Jordan enjoyed preying on his teammates during card games, but he also took things to much higher stakes.

After golf hustler James ‘Slim’ Bouler was arrested on money laundering and drug charges, Jordan – who had previously written him a $57,000 check – was ordered to testify in 1992.

The basketball star eventually admitted that the check was to cover gambling debts from golf matchups. Bouler was ultimately sentenced to nine years in prison, with a jury acquitting him of conspiring to traffic cocaine.

In 1993, during a playoff series against the Knicks, Jordan was even caught gambling in the early hours of the morning in Atlantic City, New Jersey. 

And some fans have even pushed the conspiracy theory that his first retirement in 1993 – in which he took 18 months off to play baseball – was actually a secret suspension from the league due to his gambling habits.

Both Jordan and former commissioner David Stern strongly denied that claim in ‘The Last Dance,’ while Jordan also had to be approved by the league to become the Hornets’ owner in 2006.

Regardless, his role on NBC will be a welcome sight for many fans as the network re-gains NBA rights under the league’s new media deal.

Jordan, seen during the 1992 Olympics, has played some very high-stakes golf games over the years

Jordan is revered for his career with the Bulls but has stayed out of the spotlight since retiring

Like Wright, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith also wondered how Jordan’s new employer would utilize him. 

‘I just wanna know, is it gonna be the Michael Jordan you see on television? Or is it gonna be the Michael Jordan we speak to? Because if it’s the Michael Jordan we speak to, it’s gonna be epic,’ he said on First Take.

‘The things that he will say, and the way that he says them, and the way that he breaks them down, lord have mercy.’

‘… But if it’s NBC and the little kids out there are watching and he wants to mind his manners about every little syllable he utters – eh, he’ll be alright.’

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Fox analyst Nick Wright launches blistering Michael Jordan attack over move to become an NBA analyst

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