Billionaire Michael Jordan, Who Refused to Give Money to a Beggar, Was Ready to Lose His Money and Sleep on a Couch for 3 People

NBA all-time great Michael Jordan has made many high-profile friends over the course of his career. He was even friends with former US Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. But his three close friends are not celebrities. They are from his hometown in North Carolina. The Chicago Bulls drafted Jordan as the #3 pick in the 1984 NBA draft. Because of this, the four friends could not be together all the time. However, MJ said that he tries to be with them whenever it is possible.

After joining the NBA, Jordan hit the ground running and started performing at the highest level. He won the Rookie of the Year with ease as he dominated both ends of the court. MJ became the face of the league in no time. Even though he could not translate his individual success to team success, he was relentless. And his individual brilliance was rewarded with his first-ever regular season MVP award in 1988.

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Stepping into the next season, ‘Air Jordan’ had bigger ambitions. Like always, he wanted to win an NBA championship. Before the start of the season, Jordan wanted to get into the best shape possible. And he headed back to where it all started, North Carolina.

Michael Jordan and his three best friends

Michael Jordan wanted to be fit as possible for the start of the 1989 season. So he went back to Chapel Hill where he would play against the current players of the University of North Carolina. During his visit back home, he would meet his three best friends. In 1989, GQ Sports did an extensive article on the Bulls legend. His best friends are Fred Kearns, a mortician, Fred Whitfield, a lawyer, and Adolph Shiver, who is in real estate. MJ could be himself when he was with his friends. He did not care about anything when he is with them.

Jordan would do anything for his best friends and did not even mind losing a lot of money on blackjack. And he did not mind sleeping on the couch when he visited them. “Without these guys,” he said, “I could easily go crazy. I try to be with them at all times. They make me feel more at home, more human, more down to earth.”?

The six-time champion is one of the richest athletes in the world. He was the first ever athlete to be a billionaire. However, Philadelphia 76ers legend Charles Barkley once claimed that Jordan did not allow him to give money to a homeless man.

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Charles Barkley said that the Chicago Bulls legend smacked his hand when he was about to give the money. He said that MJ implied that one should earn their bread by working.