LeBron James has never been shy about showing his respect for Michael Jordan, and he made a major comparison to tie that reverence together. During the height of Michael Jordan's career, two MJs were synonymous with greatness: Michael Jordan and music superstar Michael Jackson.
"I used to catch the Bulls games on WGN. … It felt like it was a night out, like going to the movies. It was like watching Michael Jackson at the Grammys or something like doing the moonwalk."
LeBron James on watching Michael Jordan and the Bulls 🤩
(via @mindthegamepod)… https://t.co/n6pwEFhJxI
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 13, 2026
On the latest episode of the Mind the Game podcast, James drew a parallel between both MJs and, specifically, Michael Jackson's famous moonwalk during the Motown 25 special in 1983.
“What I’m trying to say for the kids is, when we tuned in to watch Michael Jordan in the late ’80s, ’90s, it was like every night was like watching a special performance. It was like watching Michael Jackson at the Grammys or something, doing the moonwalk. It was like that. I vividly remember sitting on the floor and hearing that do-no-no, do-no-no, that intro on WGN, and I probably had till halftime to watch it.”
James also put Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway as one of his favorite players to watch growing up alongside Michael Jordan
Article Continues Below“So my favorite players to watch growing up…so in the early, like in the, like the mid-'90s when I first started, like really watching NBA basketball- … obviously it was, it was MJ and Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway. Those were my two guys. Obviously, you know, when we finally got cable.”
In the episode, he also admitted that while MJ was his favorite player, he mainly modeled his game after Hardaway and Grant Hill.
“MJ inspired me to play the sport, but Penny Hardaway and Grant Hill were the ones that actually shaped my game.”