Michael Jordan once shared what separated him from other great players in the NBA: "I don't take the game so serious that it becomes the business"
Michael Jordan once shared what separated him from other great players in the NBA: "I don't take the game so serious that it becomes the business" originally appeared on Basketball Network.
There's dominance and then there's what Michael Jordan did to basketball. Six-time champion, five-time MVP, 10-time scoring champ, and the owner of the most iconic moments the NBA has ever seen. The resume speaks for itself — and that's just the on-court stuff.
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Off the court, MJ turned himself into a one-man global empire. He became the blueprint for modern athlete marketing, the face of a sneaker revolution and the measuring stick for every superstar that followed. No one in the history of the sport has been more successful at both the game and the business of the game.
A simple approach to the game of basketball
Yet, beneath all the otherworldly aura and brand-building, Jordan's relationship with basketball remained something simple. It was rooted in joy. The kind of joy that doesn't fade when the lights get brighter, or the stakes get higher.
That's what separated him from most of his peers and even players today. Not just the skills or the swagger, but the love. And when that love met his cutthroat will to win, it changed the sport forever.
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"I enjoy the game. I don't take the game so serious that it becomes a business. Fortunately, I am doing something that I love and I am paid to do that, but if it wasn't for the money, I would still play the game," Jordan disclosed in a rare interview on Australian TV in 1993.
But for all the stats, rings and cultural milestones, what made Jordan truly different couldn't be measured. It was the mindset and the way he approached every game like it was life or death and still managed to have fun doing it. While many others treated it like a job, His Airness made sure he enjoyed every single bit of it.
Related: "Yeah, they'll probably have to do something" - Bird says the NBA will be forced to move the 3-point line back if high volume continues
The GOAT just wanted dinner and a movie
However, there is other side to everything he did on and off the court. Fame never sat comfortably on Mike's shoulders. He handled it, wore it, maximized it — but he never truly enjoyed it, as he likes to say.
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Even during his legendary Chicago Bulls run, when he was arguably the most famous person on the planet, Jordan would often trade all of it for one quiet night with the people he loved.
In a moment of reflection, MJ divulged that his dream date night wasn't flashy or extravagant. It was a quiet dinner and a movie — as long as nobody interrupted.
"For me? Well, I mean, for the things I have to deal with, a quiet dinner or going to a movie. These are things that I've just recently extended myself to do. Because of the invasion, to some degree, of my private time with my family, my wife and my kids. To us, to be able to go to dinner, and then check out a movie is perfect. Without worrying about people intervening at that time with them," he once admitted.
And that's the twist in the Jordan story most people don't expect. The most dominant force in NBA history, a global icon who changed the culture forever, didn't crave chaos, he just wanted peace. And in the rare moments he found it, the man behind the myth could finally just be Michael.
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Related: "When a guy can pick up the ball with one hand... it's very difficult" - Phil Jackson explained why MJ would beat Kobe if they played one-on-one in their primes
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
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Final group tees off
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