NBA
Ja Morant Confidently Claims He Would've ‘Cooked' Michael Jordan in His Prime
Writing professionally since 2015, Jack Dougherty spent six years as a sportswriter with publications such as GoPSUSports.com, the Centre Daily Times, and the Associated Press before joining Sports7 in 2020. He covers the NBA, the NFL, and the world of golf extensively and has added expertise on any team located in or around his hometown of Philadelphia. Yes, that includes the Philadelphia Eagles, the Philadelphia 76ers, and Philadelphia Phillies. When Jack isn't writing about sports, he's watching them or playing them as he regularly heads to the gym for some pickup basketball or the golf course to hit the links. He's also an avid participant in the sports betting scene who worked at a casino sportsbook for a year and learned the ins and outs of the industry before bringing his expertise to Sports7 with one excellent gambling recommendation after another.
Get to know Jack Dougherty betterUpdated10 Jul 2022
There's nothing wrong with confidence if you're an NBA player, and Ja Morant sure has a surplus of it. The Memphis Grizzlies superstar believes he could beat anyone who's ever worn an NBA jersey — past or present.
That list apparently includes Michael Jordan.
In a recent interview, Morant said he wished he could've played against Jordan in his prime, and he even claimed he would've “cooked” the NBA legend in a game of one-on-one.
Ja Morant confidently claims he would've “cooked” Michael Jordan in his prime
Morant truly believes there isn't a player in the NBA who could beat him one-on-one. That doesn't just apply to those currently playing in the league, though. The Grizzlies point guard wishes he played in Jordan's era so that he could test his game against one of the best to ever do it.
In a recent interview with Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report, Morant said he wished he could talk to Jordan and play against him in the 1990s.
“[He's] the reason a lot of people want to play the game of basketball,” Morant said. “To even be there with him is something I didn't see myself doing as a kid. But having the opportunity to be there and talk to him, introduce myself, just have that conversation with him — I don't know what I would've said. I wish I would've played in his generation. Just how he go about the game, just that mindset he had. I would've liked to play against him.”
But that's not all.
When Rooks jokingly said he would've taken down MJ in his prime, Morant said that's exactly what he would've done.
“I would've cooked him, too,” Morant said. “Nobody got more confidence than [me]. I'm never gonna go and say nobody gonna beat me one-on-one or anything. I don't care what it is.”
You have to admire the confidence in Morant, but he's got ways to go until he can consider himself even close to Jordan's level.
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