NFL, American Football Herren, USA Detroit Lions at Los Angeles Rams Dec 14, 2025 Inglewood, California, USA Fox broadcaster Tom Brady is seen prior to the game between the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Inglewood SoFi Stadium California USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xKirbyxLeex 20251214_rgo_al2_060
NFL, American Football Herren, USA Detroit Lions at Los Angeles Rams Dec 14, 2025 Inglewood, California, USA Fox broadcaster Tom Brady is seen prior to the game between the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Inglewood SoFi Stadium California USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xKirbyxLeex 20251214_rgo_al2_060
As NFL legend Tom Brady dived into the Mt Rushmore of GOATs conversation, the first two names he took weren’t of other NFL icons, but two of the legendary basketball players in the sport’s history.
“Michael Jordan, he was my childhood idol. He was unbelievable. Obviously, I loved Kobe Bryant. I still love Kobe Bryant,” the 49-year-old stated, per a clip posted by Ballislife.com on X on August 4, 2026.
His iconic list included professional golfers Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, baseball stars Shohei Ohtani and Barry Bonds, swimming icon Michael Phelps, track and field athlete Michael Johnson and the WNBA stars A’Ja Wilson, Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.
Bildnummer: 00031080 Datum: 18.03.1997 Copyright: imago/Camera 4 Bulls-Guard Michael Jordan gespannt; close NBA, Saison 1996/97: Chicago Bulls Chicago United Center Spannung, Basketball Herren Mannschaft USA Einzelbild Aktion Personen
Bildnummer: 00031080 Datum: 18.03.1997 Copyright: imago/Camera 4 Bulls-Guard Michael Jordan gespannt; close NBA, Saison 1996/97: Chicago Bulls Chicago United Center Spannung, Basketball Herren Mannschaft USA Einzelbild Aktion Personen
Nowhere to be seen or heard on his list were other notable NBA names like LeBron James, Kevin Durant or Stephen Curry, etc. Neither did Brady find NFL stars like Jerry Rice, Jim Brown or Patrick Mahomes worthy enough to put on his list.
However, this isn’t really a surprise. There’s hardly an athlete who hasn’t taken at least some sort of inspiration from arguably the greatest of all time basketball player, Jordan and the inventor of the Mamba Mentality, Bryant. Both left massive legacies that are yet to be touched by any other.
However, Brady's prior statements fortify the fact that Jordan occupies an extra special place compared to the rest he named.
Tom Brady Voiced Admiration for Michael Jordan in the Past
In September 2023, the NFL icon sat for an interview with Patrick Bet-David at the 2023 VAULT conference. As he talked about his approach towards a legendary career, Michael Jordan was a special name in that conversation.
“I love Michael Jordan,” he said. “Literally there’s no athlete that doesn’t love Michael… Everyone wanted to be like Mike… So, like, even when I see Mike today, I’m still like, ‘that’s Michael Jordan right there.’ And I just think he’s the coolest guy and, you know, I loved his determination.”
So, for him to put Jordan at the top of the list is only natural. With that being said, do you agree with his list? Let us know in the comments.
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Written by
Deblina Roy