Michael Jordan Leaves NBC ‘Special Contributor’ Position After One Season of Scrutiny

Michael Jordan's broadcasting career reportedly won't continue this year.

Michael Jordan Leaves NBC ‘Special Contributor’ Position After One Season of Scrutiny

Michael Jordan (Image credits - The New York Times)

Michael Jordan is arguably the greatest player to ever step foot in the NBA. He established himself as a brand through his performances and achievements. He played an instrumental role in globalizing the league in the 80s and 90s.

Despite his popularity and greatness, Jordan has largely stayed away from the public eye. He is rarely seen attending any NBA games and is often away from the spotlight.

However, many believed that would change after NBC Sports announced that Jordan would be part of the broadcasting team. The announcement sparked excitement across the NBA. He joined as a special contributor to NBC Sports.

Unfortunately, the partnership appears to be ending after just one year. According to Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports, the Chicago Bulls legend is not expected to return to NBC Sports’ NBA coverage for the 2026-27 campaign.

There was a lot of scrutiny regarding Jordan’s role as a special contributor. Many called out NBC and Jordan for being dishonest to viewers in its coverage.

Even Jordan’s recent foe-turned-friend, Charles Barkley, criticized his role. It appears that all the criticism caught up with the broadcaster and player.

NBC has not confirmed or commented on the matter as of yet. Meanwhile, McCarthy did add that Jordan could still change his mind. Jordan’s NBC chapter could end as a compelling idea that never became a full-fledged television role.

NBC will continue with its broadcast roster of Mike Tirico, Noah Eagle, Reggie Miller and Jamal Crawford. Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady will continue to serve as the in-studio analysts.

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Fans react to Michael Jordan’s one-year stint with NBC coming to an end

When the announcement was made that Jordan would be joining the NBC broadcast roster, many saw it as a huge moment in NBA broadcasting. One of the main reasons being that Jordan typically refrained from voicing his opinion on the league.

After his exit, fans took to social media to react to the news.

Fans were disappointed they didn’t get to see more of Jordan during the 2025-26 campaign. In the end, it was just a hyped up partnership but ended up being a disappointment.

Michael Jordan’s NBC role fell short as it never fully developed

During the entire season, the NBA world looked forward to hearing Michael Jordan and his opinions on the way the game is played today. Unfortunately, he sat for just one prerecorded interview with lead broadcaster Tirico.

Michael Jordan on NBC
Michael Jordan on NBC

NBC divided the entire interview into five segments titled “MJ: Insights to Excellence” and aired it throughout the 2025-26 campaign. His role sounded expansive and interesting, but it turned out to be limited.

During the interview, Jordan revealed that he joined the broadcast because he wanted to give back to the sport which had given him everything. He spoke about helping Anthony Edwards in dealing with double teams in the summer last year and also handed out some advice to the younger generation of players.

He did not appear weekly in NBC’s studio. His appearances felt more like a documentary feature than the active contributor role many anticipated. In the end, he made more appearances discussing NASCAR on Fox than he did discussing basketball for NBC.

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