NBC Recreated Michael Jordan’s Iconic Entrance to Announce His New NBA Gig

NBC is pulling out all the stops as they prepare for their run of NBA rights beginning next season. In a surprise reveal at today's upfront presentation, the network trumpeted that Michael Jordan will be joining as a special contributor.
Of all the things Jordan has done with his post-NBA career, punditry has been noticably absent. Considering the enormous buzz Fox generated with its expesive Tom Brady experiment last season, it should be a surprise that NBC was willing whatever it takes to land basketball's G.O.A.T (or second-best player of all time depending on one's preferences).
Brady, of course, jumped right into the marquee booth and worked a Super Bowl in his first year behind a microphone. Details are still sparse as it pertains to Jordan's role as a special contributor and that distinction could mean a lot of different things in terms of visibility and workload.
But that's all stuff for a later time. Let's instead focus on how NBC made their announcement: going all-out to tap into some old school nostalgia.
The Announcement @Jumpman23 is on @NBAonNBC
— John Mamola (@JohnMamola) May 12, 2025
Video via @derekfutterman @Barrett_Media pic.twitter.com/Brno9JZfV4
The Alan Parsons intro is undefeated. After all these years it still brings palpable excitment. Even if it's for a prerecorded message from Jordan, who wasn't there.
It will be interesting to see how much, if any, critique is given to Jordan's on-air performance. Brady got a ton of that. Yet Jordan feels like someone where no one's going to really go too harshly if it isn't immediately Grade-A stuff.
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