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As NBC prepares to broadcast NBA games this fall, the network is bringing out all the stops.
NBC's new media deal with the NBA begins in the 2025-26 season, a return to the sport after losing NBA media rights in 2002. The network had been broadcasting NBA games for 20 years, which included 12-straight NBA Finals from 1991 to 2002.
Therefore, as NBC is getting back into broadcasting basketball games, it is hiring one of the most famous players of all time: Michael Jordan. The hall-of-famer and six-time NBA champion will work on a special project for NBC, helping the network return to it's basketball roots.
Here's what there is to know about NBC hiring Michael Jordan.
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Michael Jordan NBC role, explained
On Monday, NBC announced that the network is hiring Michael Jordan as a "special contributor" for the 2025-26 season. NBC didn't specify what Jordan will be doing for the network, but the hall-of-famer will have a key role to the NBA's return to NBC.
"I am so excited to see the NBA back on NBC," Jordan said in an NBC press release. "The NBA on NBC was a meaningful part of my career, and I'm excited about being a special contributor to the project. I'm looking forward to seeing you all when the NBA on NBC launches this October."
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Jordan's contributions to NBC's NBA coverage will create a full-circle moment for the network. In the 1990s, when the NBA on NBC was at it's peak, a big reason for it was the dominance of Jordan's Bulls, as all six of Chicago's NBA titles came when NBC was broadcasting the NBA Finals.
Jordan joins a star-studded team on NBC that will be part of the network's first season broadcasting NBA games since the 1999-2000 season. Besides Jordan, NBC has hired Reggie Miller and Jamal Crawford as game analysts, and Carmelo Anthony will be part of the network's studio coverage. Additionally, Mike Tirico and Noah Eagle will serve as the main play-by-play broadcasters along with their football responsibilities.
MORE: Why Michael Jordan is the NBA's GOAT
How old is Michael Jordan?
Michael Jordan is 62 years-old and played in the NBA for most of a 20-year stretch between his age-21 and his age-40 seasons.
When did Michael Jordan retire?
Jordan officially retired from the NBA after the 2002-03 season, which was actually his third retirement from the league.
In 1993, Jordan retired the first time and eventually pursued minor league baseball before returning to the NBA in the 1994-85 season. Then, Jordan retired in January of 1999, which was after his sixth title but before the strike-shortened 1999 season began, but he came out of retirement in 2001 to sign with the Wizards.
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