How Jalen Brunson Once Turned Down A Request From Michael Jordan
To any basketball fan, an autograph from NBA legend Michael Jordan is considered priceless.
To a young Jalen Brunson, it was an attempt to damage his goods.
Brunson, now the New York Knicks star point guard, explained his first encounter with Jordan during a recent appearance on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.
Brunson got to meet Jordan when he was playing with the Washington Wizards in the early 2000s. Brunson's father, Rick, played in the NBA so he decided to introduce them.
The younger Brunson even wore a Jordan jersey to the game.
"After the game, I'm like in the locker room not thinking anything of it," Brunson said. "I do this all the time, my dad is in the NBA. I see all these players all the time. He said, `Do you want to go meet Michael? I said, `I'll go walk down there and meet Michael."'
Once inside the locker room, Brunson was presented with the ultimate honor. An offer that most would never refuse.
But ...
"[Jordan] said, `Hey, you're wearing my jersey, you want me to sign it?' I was like, Nah, you'll mess it up,"' Brunson said. "The whole locker room was going crazy, laughing and stuff ... I was like, `It's whatever, I'm good."'
Thankfully, Brunson became a millionaire. Because he left a lot of money on the table that night by turning down the autograph.
Shandel Richardson is the publisher for Back In The Day NBA. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com
