Talk:Michael Jordan

2026 Brickyard 400

he won this race as an owner, should be added 23XIDK (talk) 10:57, 27 July 2026 (UTC)

I don't follow NASCAR, so I ask why should single races like Daytona and Brickyard be included in the infobox while others like 2026 DuraMAX Texas Grand Prix are not mentioned? Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 08:33, 30 July 2026 (UTC)

@Mazewaxie There are four races which are considered the crown jewels: the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600, Brickyard 400 and Southern 500, so they usually get featured in the achievements. 23XIDK (talk) 08:44, 30 July 2026 (UTC)

Oh ok. So we should also mention them in the "Awards and honors" section? Also couldn't we have like "Brickyard 400 Winner (2025, 2026)" instead of two separate lines? Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 08:50, 30 July 2026 (UTC)

@Mazewaxie yes, we can do that. 23XIDK (talk) 21:14, 2 August 2026 (UTC)

"His Royal Airness" listed at Redirects for discussion

The redirect His Royal Airness has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2026 August 3 § His Royal Airness until a consensus is reached. Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 20:06, 3 August 2026 (UTC)

Lede

Hi. I was thinking about rewording the opening sentence in the lede with something similar to Babe Ruth, "is regarded as one of the greatest sports heroes in American culture and is considered by many to be the greatest baseball basketball player of all time."

Since they share a similar place in American culture and consideration among sports historian, I think it's fitting. Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 17:02, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Anything is better than opening with "American businessman". ~WikiOriginal-9~ (talk) 17:38, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Even at Ruth's page, "regarded as one of the greatest sports heroes" isn't directly sourced. And regarded by who? Presumably, "widely" and not just a few, but needs sourcing. —Bagumba (talk) 17:59, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Greatest North American athlete of the 20th century by ESPN and second to Babe Ruth on the Associated Press' list of athletes of the century aren't enough? Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 19:50, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Jordan is debatably a global sports icon, not just American like Babe Ruth. "he was integral in popularizing the sport and the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s" ~WikiOriginal-9~ (talk) 20:17, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Consider just stating those specific accolades directly instead of the WP:OR-ish observation. Per the WP:SUBSTANTIATE policy:

Another approach is to specify or substantiate the statement, by giving those details that actually are factual. For example: "John Doe had the highest batting average in the major leagues from 2003 through 2006." People may still argue over whether he was the best baseball player, but they will not argue over this.

—Bagumba (talk) 21:36, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

I mean, that would be the case for questionable statements.

Here you have Ali:

"A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "the Greatest", he is often regarded as the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time."

I already mentioned Ruth beforehand. Since Jordan is regarded at least in the same category as these other all time great athletes, isn't it a bit underwhelming to state "Jordan is considered to be one of the greatest basketball players of all time"? Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 09:04, 14 August 2026 (UTC)

@Fyunck(click):, @OrdinaryOtter: I would like to hear what you guys think of this. --Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 09:30, 18 October 2026 (UTC)

@Mazewaxie: I don't find it underwhelming at all. Look at Ruth at Britannica. It's an amazing article and legacy without puffery. Same with Ali. Whether it's Novak Djokovic, Jack Nicklaus, Joe Montana, Wayne Gretzky, Helen Wills, etc, we shouldn't have to stoop to tabloid "he said she said" opinions to sell the product. Leave that to the schoolyard and obsessed fans where it belongs. Fyunck(click) (talk) 17:57, 18 October 2026 (UTC)

@Fyunck(click): I agree that it's nice, but that's Britannica. Here on Wikipedia, both Ali and Ruth are referred (fairly) as the greatest (by many). Since Jordan is, as I said up here, regarded at least in the same category as these other all time great athletes, I don't see why he should be treated differently. Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 19:01, 18 October 2026 (UTC)

You asked for my opinion. Ali and Ruth have many competitors for goat. Many. I don't think an encyclopedia should have 5-20 people all with the goat listing. It makes us look like a tabloid (especially in the lead) since it's so subjective. At least there are folks editing here and writers alive who actually saw Ali fight... I did. Ruth in his prime was in the mid-late 1920s. There's few alive from when he was old and broken down let alone his prime. How are they comparing him? From 10 second grainy film footage? Stats alone does not the greatest make. And it's a little easier with individual sports if players faced off head to head in their primes, but with team sports it's even more difficult. Kareem was a sensational center, but he won his Bucks title AFTER Oscar Robertson was brought in. He won his Laker titles AFTER Magic came on board. Jordan didn't win until Pippen rounded out the team. Charles Barkley didn't win his titles until.... well lets move on from that. Then we have to balance on whether a player padded their stats because they played long past their primes vs others that retired at or just past their primes. So you have to look at everything, and it's still so subjective.

I get it... fans all want to know who is the best of the best of the best. It's fun and argumentative to talk about. My grandpa said Clara Bow was the sexiest actress ever and I have no call to doubt him, but to compile a list doesn't seem very encyclopedia worthy. Fyunck(click) (talk) 19:57, 18 October 2026 (UTC)

So should we propose to change Ali and Ruth pages as well? Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 13:15, 19 October 2026 (UTC)

I can't fight every battle at Wikipedia. We've dropped the greatness from the leads of tennis players and I thought basketball players. I mainly deal with tennis not NBA but I think I got called over for one thing in basketball and noticed a huge discrepancy with the goat not being allowed for some players and tossed out like candy with others. It was arbitrary and unfair and unencyclopedic. I saw articles where certain sources were allowed for some players, but banned for others, and that's not right. Sure, I'm more protective in my views for this encyclopedia not becoming tabloid fodder, but if it had been decided to treat all the players and sources equally and let the floodgates open with the goat term, I could have at least been happy with the fairness. Fyunck(click) (talk) 18:09, 19 October 2026 (UTC)

There's potentially varying levels of WP:OTHERSTUFFEXISTS. For the most part, each bio should reflect what's WP:DUE coverage, which might vary between sports. —Bagumba (talk) 19:42, 19 October 2026 (UTC)

There's multiple sources saying that Jordan's widely considered the greatest basketball player at Talk:Michael Jordan/Archive 6 § Greatest player —Bagumba (talk) 16:43, 14 August 2026 (UTC)

I went on to make this edit, appropriately sourcing the claim. Mazewaxie (talk • contribs) 20:11, 14 August 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for the ping. However, I am feeling a bit exhausted by the "widely regarded" discussions, and I need a break. OrdinaryOtter (talk) 11:10, 18 October 2026 (UTC)

6 Finals MVP awards more than any athlete in any sport in history

No other athlete in any sport has won more finals MVP awards than Michael Jordan (Tom Brady is second place with 5 Superbowl MVP awards, an award that notably, almost always goes to quarterbacks). This fact should be mentioned in this page's legacy section. However, I cannot find a source that explicitly states this fact. If there is a way to maneuver to state on this page this inter-sport all-time record, please let me know. Cerebrality (talk) 04:36, 8 October 2026 (UTC)

Yeah, it needs a reliable source. We don't want WP:OR. —Bagumba (talk) 06:36, 8 October 2026 (UTC)

Not exactly what you were looking for, but here is a source by ESPN which confirms Jordan has the most Championship MVP awards in all major U.S. professional sports. GOAT Bones231012 (talk) 06:56, 8 October 2026 (UTC)

Excellent, thank you! Cerebrality (talk) 16:32, 8 October 2026 (UTC)