Michael Jordan Explains Why His Obsession With Competition Is Actually a ‘Curse’

“I think I’m cursed,” Jordan told CBS Sunday Morning’s Gayle King.

Michael Jordan says his competitive gene is a “curse.” | James Gilbert/Getty Images

Michael Jordan may have officially retired from basketball in 2003, but being away from playing on the court hasn’t decreased his competitive gene at all, he claims.

Jordan has notably remained in the sports world through the business side of things. He was a majority owner of the Charlotte Hornets (previously Bobcats) for 13 years before selling his stake in 2023. He still owns a minority stake in the team. In 2021, Jordan established 23XI Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series. Through racing, he’s been able to exert some of his competitiveness.

The six-time NBA champion appeared on CBS Sunday Morning this week in an interview with Gayle King. She interviewed Jordan while on the race track for part of the segment.

King asked Jordan if he wanted a “quiet life,” and if so, why he remains so present in professional sports like NASCAR. Jordan was brutally honest about how competition seems to rule his life, even in his 60s.

“I think I’m cursed,” Jordan told King. “I’m cursed with this competitive gene that anything that I do, if it’s getting dressed, I gotta get dressed before my wife gets dressed, or I gotta get dressed, you know, those types of things. I’m cursed.”

Michael Jordan takes his "competitive gene" off the court and onto the @NASCAR track as co-owner of @23XIRacing.@GayleKing sits down with the basketball legend to talk about his passion for winning, his legal fight to change the sport, and how he channels his drive into new… pic.twitter.com/BliiK2iy0m

— CBS Sunday Morning 🌞 (@CBSSunday) March 29, 2026

This would explain why Jordan continues to get involved in groundbreaking sports spaces at his age. It doesn’t sound like he’ll ever live the “quiet life” King brought up. He has to release that competitive energy somehow.

Michael Jordan explains why he doesn’t believe in a G.O.A.T. debate

Jordan hasn’t shied away from giving his thoughts on the infamous G.O.A.T. debate in the NBA. Fans typically like to choose between calling Jordan or LeBron James the league’s “Greatest of All-Time.” But, Jordan’s previously explained that he doesn’t believe in there being a G.O.A.T. because you can never compare every single basketball player to one another if they don’t get to play on the same court. For instance, Jordan never got to play with legends like Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain, nor does he get to compete against modern legends like James and Kobe Bryant (well, at least not at their primes). It seems like an impossible argument, in his opinion.

The Hall of Famer reiterated his opinion when King asked him about being called the greatest.

“There’s no such thing as a G.O.A.T. to me. Not to me,” Jordan said. “It’s only because I think we are transcended from other people, other athletes. We learn from other athletes, we progress the game as we move further. To say that one is better than the other is not really right.”

Michael Jordan tells @GayleKing that he does not believe in the concept of a GOAT: “There’s no such thing... Not to me.” https://t.co/7k1TknJ6OQ pic.twitter.com/YKhQtfNCXy

— CBS Sunday Morning 🌞 (@CBSSunday) March 29, 2026

Earlier this month, Jordan gave a similar response to NBC’s MIke Tirico during an episode of MJ: Insights to Excellence. He provided a bit more explanation to Tirico.

"The 'G.O.A.T.’ term is never gonna be something that I ever will get high or low about. It just doesn’t exist with me. I never played against Oscar Robertson or Jerry West. Would've loved to," Jordan said. "And I actually learned from them. And we paved the way for the Kobes and the LeBrons, right? And to me, that's the beauty of the game of basketball that a player, after a previous player, has evolved the game further. But don’t then ... now use that against the players that actually taught you the game or that you learned from. That's why I have a tough time [with the G.O.A.T. talk]. Look, I would have loved to play against LeBron and Kobe in my prime. ... But we’ll never be able to know that."

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