“Pay me $15,000 for a jersey or go”: When Michael Jordan cussed out rapper Chamillionaire and caused a PR disaster in 2009

Chamillionaire discusses the time his GOAT, Michael Jordan, left him heartbroken and crestfallen despite his best efforts.

Most stories about the GOAT are with regards to his competitive spirit or him trash talking his opponents. But some of these don’t paint him in the proper light. It’s good to be ultra-ccompetitive up until a certain point. But sometimes, it crosses into plain a**hole territory, and even the most one-eyed MJ fans know this to happen.

The Bulls legend has gotten off on the wrong foot with a few people over the course of his 58 years on the planet. One of them was rapper Chamillionaire – a self-confessed Jordan fan.

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How Chamillionaire and Michael Jordan met on the wrong foot

In 2009, Chamillionaire crossed paths with Michael Jordan at a party for the basketball legend. This was after he bid over $7000 for one of his jerseys at a Reggie Bush charity auction. After seeing Jordan posing for pictures with some ladies at the party, Cham tried for his own snapshot with him.

“I don’t ask nobody for nothin’ I never do. I was just like, man, this is just that one moment. I’m gonna ask Mike for a picture.” The rapper approached Jordan, who was sitting next to filmmaker Spike Lee and members of the Boston Celtics, including guard Paul Pierce.

“They were just chilling and I said, ‘I don’t mean to be rude, but Mike, I just wanted to know if I could get a picture.” Although Cham was expecting to get a “No” from him, he wasn’t expecting what Jordan actually replied; “I ain’t taking pictures with no niggas!”

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Chamillionaire thought that Jordan didn’t hear him properly and explained that he just paid $7000 for one of his jerseys. Jordan responded; “You know what, I tell you what, you pay $15,000 right now for a jersey from me and I’ll take a picture with you.”

Jordan may have thought he looked cool in this scenario, but it was clear that he was in the wrong. However, nobody dared to tell him that at the time, leading to one of the ugliest urban legends about him brewing unchecked.