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I was recently arguing with someone whom stated that MJ is a gambling addict, and I pushed back.  I think we could probably all agree that being addicted to anything is never good, no matter what it is.  Michael is famous for being a big gambler.  However, it's not like that's the only thing he does in life.  He's a billionaire with many companies and countless things to do each day. Gambling doesn't effect those important things in life.

He takes care of his family, far from broke and gambling brings him entertainment.. so my question, would MJ be considered an addict?  I argue he's not.  He just loves to do it, but any negative effects may be literally zero ..


Wiki Definition "Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behaviour that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use often alters brain function in ways that perpetuate craving, and weakens (but does not completely negate) self-control.[1] This phenomenon – drugs reshaping brain function – has led to an understanding of addiction as a brain disorder with a complex variety of psychosocial as well as neurobiological (and thus involuntary)[a] factors that are implicated in addiction's development.[2][3][4] Classic signs of addiction include compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, preoccupation with substances or behavior, and continued use despite negative consequences. Habits and patterns associated with addiction are typically characterized by immediate gratification (short-term reward),[5][6] coupled with delayed deleterious effects (long-term costs).[3][7]"

(sorry hilarious and cyrus, I know you see this same type of topic a trillion times a day but this is bit different and something I'm truly interested in discussing, being his situation is unique).

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/michael-jordan-and-gambling-a-brief-history-of-basketballs-most-famous-bettor/


Lots of celebs can't find anything else which will keep them busy in life so they find peace in gambling sadly. Sometimes you have anything you want in life but it still gets boring when you have no goals left to achieve... then you make up new goals. Sometimes those goals are as stupid as they can get... like gambling your life savings away.

Jordan probably haven't gone that far. The article is mostly talking of conspiracies anyway. Why? Because it attract clicks. MJ was a god level player and people wonder if he lost his wealth to gambling. It is like watching a train crash. If there is no crash, then it is just another boring day for the masses.

Anyone that is spending an amount of money that he can afford to lose on gambling, the person is not an addict.

But if someone is spending small amount of money on gambling but seeing himself not leaving gambling but prefer to just gamble and gambling taking his time, the person is an addict.

If gambling is not affecting someone financially and also not spending the time he supposed to spend on other important thing on gambling, then the person is not an addict.

Or simply does have that "limitation" but since we are talking about Michael Jordan then those kind of spendings are enourmous but he had been that denying that he isnt an addict.  :)

And here's some quite updated words from MJ with his $500,000 lose.

"I felt that it was unfair that I was considered a criminal for doing something that is not illegal. Gambling is legal and betting is legal," says Jordan in an interview with Ahmad Rashad of NBC. "For what I bet, yeah, it's a little bit more than I wanted to lose, I mean, I didn't bet to lose but I lost it and I paid off all my debts. I didn't want to go to NBC, anyone else, to let him know 'hey, I lost $500,000'.
Source (https://www.sportskeeda.com/basketball/michael-jordan-lost-500-000-claimed-family-problem-with-gambling)

Well, he do have a solid point when it comes to this. Losing money that big wont really be always meaning that they are addicted ones.
As long you arent in debts and compromising your finances then it should really be just that fine.

maybe you're right about it. because the money he spent on gambling is just pennies to a billionaire. maybe he is just like drake.

true that he does have lots of things he is good at especially basketball, golf, and even baseball but i think the sports are also the ones dragging him to gambling. i'm sure someone in his team or family trying to stop him from gambling but i guess he didn't stop that why there was news about his gambling addiction.

Is Drake a gambling addict? I think not in the context, same thing with Michael Jordan.
Having spent sometime with people who are actually addicted to gambling it makes it obvious that neither of these celebrities are addicts, they are just famous and it will make an attractive story to make them up to be one.

- Jay -

Most addicted and compulsive gamblers that I know are usually far from being responsible individuals in carrying out their daily life activities. What I mean by that is that some of those compulsive gamblers forget to do the very important activities of the day but will cast all their focus only on gambling, forgetting they have other important activities to do for that day.

Most compulsive gamblers usually make the mistake of gambling a very large amount, which may end up causing problems for them. Sometimes they could even gamble with money that is not their own and end up in a deep mess. For example, last week there was a thread I came across about a young guy who committed suicide after losing his bet.

I don't actually find a characterist of a compulsive gambler in the gambling lifestyle of Michael Jordan therefore I don't consider him a compulsive gambler. If he were one, he may have become poor by now because of his irresponsible gambling lifestyle, but nothing like that has happened.

Surely as long as he gambles he is encircled by the gambling dangers.Many billionaires before him started gambling for entertainment and eventually they got broke,unless he does it only in some special occasions then he can continue to gamble but if he start doing it daily and he puts gambling before his other businesses and activities then this is a big red flag for him and for his family as it means he can be drowned deep down in to gambling addiction.I also agree that he is not an addicted gambler as of yet but I also am worried for people like him who continue gambling.

I also do gambling for entertainment only from quite some time now,playing only little money from the signature campaign and never depositing money of my own from quite so many months now,I tried all the type of slots and they were all the same shit they pay up to a certain point and they suck your money in the end.

He will broke, If not have any (Royalty)

Just Dennis Rodman. The only things that make (MJ) still get a good stable financial income is because his deal (Jordan) brand name, If you read a story online. IMO, he was addicted, in the past that can lead him broke.

Feel free to search.

There was news about him being invited by Pres. Bush in DC, he didn't show up and it was known later that he was gambling with some celebrities. This was just the rumor at that time but if it were true, this certainly confirmed his gambling did affect his life.

For a billionaire like him though, I wouldn't be surprised that he is looking for something on what to do with his money. Jordan who has everything and can buy lots of expensive stuff, will bet on something just to feel like he is spending because shopping is addictive just like gambling.

For the record, I really think that Michael Jordan is not addicted to gambling but has a tendency that wants to get back his losses but eventually called it quits due to lack of sleep and this has delayed him from returning to the NBA, surely what I think is the urge in returning in basketball was just too stronger than with being addicted to gambling, so for me, Michael Jordan is not really addicted to gambling he might gamble for a couple of games but he will eventually return to his hobby and what he loves most and that is Basketball but because he is retired I really don't know if he pursues gambling again,

Antoine Walker and Michael Jordan were in a restaurant playing a stake spade for almost 2 days straight and were getting cleaned out from that game and refusing to stop that game clearly he does gambling but eventually stops so for me Michael Jordan Stops gambling so there is no urge in getting gambling uncontrollably, but maybe he was addicted at one point but come back in what he loves most, Well the baseball part was due to his father wants him to be a professional baseball player and when his father died he retired in the NBA have switch to baseball because of his father wish,

Addicted or not, its none of our business considering that they've been spending their funds on doing gambling. Its none of our concern on how much they would be able to spend since its their money.
Just like on what mentioned above and pertaining about Drake also and we know that there are other celebrities too which do really suffer with that addiction, some do make it as a hobby and there are
some might have wrecked up their lives because of it but not had been reported or surfaced out. It is really just that these people used to be famous on which in every move that they would make
and the public do able to see on whats happening then it wont be new that there's always something has to say.

We do know that when it comes to gambling then there's no exemption on speaking about addiction. Everyone does and it is really just that notable that these personalities
will really be put up focus into but just like i said that its none of our business on how they would gonna spend their funds.

Honestly, I've not read about him having any sort of problem but people with a certain level of wealth like MJ are never going to expose these sort of issues. He probably has immense wealth from a variety of sources and could spend big amounts per day while barely making a dent in that fortune. What might seem like a problem amount to us average people, is like pocket change to someone who has accrued hundreds of millions. He worked hard to earn his fortune and deserves to be able to spend it however he likes. The only people that will realistically have influence over him, if it ever became an actual problem, are his family so it's silly even talking about it really. Like you say, if he is still doing plenty of other things in life then I don't think he could be classed as an addict.

It's no secret that Michael Jordan is a gambling enthusiast.

It was even mentioned in the famous documentary about him, "The Last Dance", and shared some of his gambling-related issues way back in his prime days as a basketball superstar. He admitted that he focused on gambling but clarified that he didn't have any gambling-related problems during that time.

Fast forward to the present day, I believe MJ is still involved in gambling. Maybe we can call him a responsible addicted gambler.

We don't know how his personal life is so we won't really know if he's an addict or not. Addiction doesn't always show on the face. A person can be addicted to something and you can't tell if you're not close to him, especially something like a gambling addiction.

It would be wrong to conclude that he's a gambling addict just because he gambles. A lot of celebrities gamble. We've seen Neymar blow thousands of dollars within an hour of gambling. Drake places ridiculously large stakes on sports events like he did in the World Cup final between Argentina and France. It's normal for people to gamble. Celebrities are just like every other human being but with more money and fame.

He's enthusiastic about it, but certainly far from being an addict. If he is an addict, he would have easily lost his fortune and be put into rehab. Fortunately, he has a lot of assets and investments working for his personal wealth that saves him from succumbing to gambling completely. I would say that being a high roller doesn't necessarily mean you're addicted. It just means that you have the money to fund your activities that other people without the financial capacity think is irresponsible. They don't understand why you spend so much because they were never in a position to use that much money anyways.

I like the fact that this paragraph explains it all for itself. Addicted gamblers I think would never have such time for all these you have listed here. He sees gambling as entertainment and that alone tells you that he gambles for fun and not for profit or to make an earns meet. He is a billionaire in dollars and as such has nothing to worry about when it comes to money matters.  I believe his gambling budget is nothing to him based on his personality but to others it is something that could change their lives of opportuned to get.

Was this somehow connected to the stake he sold for his team at Hornets? Well, he made a ton of profit on that and I applaud him for being a good investor. I think he's the definition of the gambler who knows his limits and probably was more cautious than any gambler that I could have seen. I think it was explained before especially on his movies that he just loves competition on whatever he's venturing.

Base on the definition you Just gave above, and considering the fact that Michael Jordan is a self made billionaire who owns several companies, for me, I can not regard his constant engagement in staking huge sum in gambling as an addict, because inasmuch as he is gambling an amount he can always afford to lose at each moment, he is literally a high stake and not an addict. Because from the definition made above, a gambling addict is someone who is suffering from a persistent uncontrollable disorder to gamble at all cost, not minding if is the fund available or not.

Getting addicted to being successful is not such a bad thing.

I would say that he is still an addict, because even though it has not had any negative effects on him and how he manages his family, and also his other activities, he has still not been able to control himself, and lack of control is the first attribute of an addict.

The gambler who had free money and well settled in their real life can play the gambling,because the gambling had the potential to make you become a king and the joker.Everyone here come to become the king,but the luck only decide him king or joker.Some jokers also become the king with their experience,but for that he is ready to spend more dollars and the time in the gambling site.If the winner of gambling want to continue their winning in gambling site means,the first thing is he need to do the gambling in the continuous mode.The human brain had only less storage for the game memory,if the gambler play the gambling with the gap.Every time the gambler will loss their holding money.

I think this is just the case; they have already made more money than they imagined. Their source of income gives them all the time in the world to look for other things to do in life, and when they don't have something to do and when they have to link up with colleagues, most times one-on-one betting comes into play. This is just their way of having fun.
 
Many celebrities are into this life of betting a large amount in gambling, but it's only a few of them who have really turned into addicts; they are always in control, and they wager what they can afford to lose and not what they will later regret.
 
We have so many celebrities who are into gambling, but I don't think they have lost it to becoming addicts, just like Drake, who has been known for his hard wagering amount and gambling decisions. These guys, I see them as people who actually gamble for the fun, playing with money around, and still having fun all together.

I think it's more of Michael Jordan being competitive in nature that's why he always on someone, specially in golf. And there are a lot of stories that he either lost of win on that bet. Again this is his way of getting ahead of somewhat, or at least in psychological tactic or warfare.

And him being a basketball player, the desire to always win is his in mind that's why he uses this somewhat of a betting as his way to get into someone's mind and then win.

As for this gambling in casinos, well he has all the money, he can definitely play whenever or whatever he wants.

I can't recall MJ has history of big losses in a casino though, but if he did, that dude could probably make his own casino and not get broke. So I guess he could be categorically be called just a regular gambler, not that gambling addict or something.

Yeah, with his billions of dollars, he can definitely take care of his family, from his first marriage to the current one. And you can see that his kids and grandkids will not get broke because Jordan has built his generational wealth.

If he takes care of his responsibilities and does things that is expected of him, I won't call Jordan an addicted gambler. He does that for fun because he has self control on his gambling activities and I don't think that anyone can call such person a gambling addict.

I have seen a wealthy man that got broke due to his excessive gambling and under two years he had nothing anymore. He couldn't control his gambling activities and he was wrecked. There are a lot of wealthy gamblers that gambles responsible because they know that it will be worst for them if they become addicted. Since they are rich, they gamble and go home, no matter the loss that they hard on that day, it is like nothing to them and they still put things in order in their homes and in business.

Gambling is fun, but very dangerous when you allow it to control your emotions.

In my opinion, you should reference this wikipedia post before you are reposted for plagiarism, regardless of how you put it here. Even though you can sometimes quote a definition verbatim, it is crucial to cite it and reference it

People like them; in fact, that's what can be said if they're just throwing money away; they're the kind of popular celebrities who don't seem to know how to spend the money they have. Because of the amount of resources that they also have, in short, they have a lot of royalty income that comes in every day.

And the money they lose in gambling is just a coin to them, where most people will need to work for a long time before they earn the money lost in gambling by these well-known celebrities. Also, what I know is that Jordan is not addicted to gambling; he plays, but he is not an addict. I suspect that the person addicted to gambling is his son.

And if in case, they are indeed gambling addicts. It is their business to do so as it is their money.
So yes, let's mind our own business so to speak. They can spend all they want because they are capable to do so.
However, they should also be careful as they can lose a lot if they will continue this lifestyle and it may catch up on them later on in their life.
For now, this is the life that they want to portray to their followers, so be it. Just don't imitate if you are financially challenged.

Well there's a lot of internet meme as far as MJ's gambling addiction,

https://www.talkimg.com/images/2023/12/20/IwTOw.png

But I guess if you are that guy that can make more than $1-5 million day from his endorsements and his shoes, then definitely you can play and burn that money without thinking about losing.

Call him gambling addict, but we all know how much this guy is worth. So for him, he is just having fun for sure when he gambles and then lose $1 million a day.

If i've seen you trading gambling for important things in your life like family members birthday, Meetings conferences and some Interviews even if you're a billionare, I can still call you a gambling addict. Why? no matter how rich you are, as long as you have no limitations in your time, spending and decisions, means you're already addicted on what you are doing. We can't sugarcoat it as a "hobby", if it gives you satisfaction and happiness but you've already lose large amount, then that's not a hobby, it's an obsession on what you are doing.

Addicts are those who doesn't have life balance — gambling addict. In which the opposite how you describe MJ is. I don't even considered Drake as addict too. Because these people have other life than gambling, gambling to them is just entertainment, a way to spend their money.
Addiction is life imbalance, doesn't have a life except their addiction,

Numbers are really that something that not everyone would be able to reach and we do really just saw that these this something that had been burned to gambling on daily basis on which we cant really be able to avoid to tell that he had really that gambling addiction and this is something that absurd on spending up tons to gambling but just like been said that its none of our business and its his money to be spent.
I wasnt aware on the money that he's earning came from sponsorships or whatsoever but if he's really that getting 1-5M per day then losing those 1M amount in gambling
wont really be an issue.

Did MJ admit that he was an addicted gambler? So far we havent see any impulsive actions that had been made by MJ. He do just simply burning out those cash in a fast manner
and it is really just that people cant really be able to imagine on how big the money they've been burning into casinos or whatever gambling he's really that been doing.
Lets just move on and let him do as he pleases since its money after all its not ours.

If Micheal Jordan is a gambler, does it guarantee he's an addict?? I think that's what your topic would have been rather than this...

---

That aside; I think he's been gambling for a long time now and his varieties has been a spacious one... So it's safe to say he's about attached...okay; would you say Drake is an addict? Yes!! Cus why? He's been wagering lavishly and no matter how many times he's lost, nothing really changes.. I see an addict as a person that has wagered to a point of uncontrollable stake and speculations. ... They'd rather stake on an unsure odd than not.

Sandra 🧑‍🦰

I said many times that we all are addicts...


And we all have strong physical or psychological needs or urges to do some things... deal with it, we are all humans, and we have our passions & desires. Ultimately, it is important whether we can control that or it will control us, whatever that is.

And M. Jordan is a rich guy, he can afford to be addicted to whatever he wants and that will not hurt his business and family. Simply, he has too much money so he can afford to have it all.

I think he is an obvious gambling addict and after watching his documentary I feel even more secure in feeling that way.  Michael Jordan has a gambling problem definitely and even though he is tremendously successful and could gamble away a million dollars a day for the rest of his life and be fine, that doesn't change that he is an addict.  Given the definition you are referencing above, I would say he most definitely had his life/career negatively effected by gambling, but then you'd have to believe the conspiracy that he was suspended for the 1994 and 1995 seasons for betting on his team and possibly even the reason his father was murdered...

Exactly what I also feel about his gambling activities, I mean what do we always preach here in the forum? "Always Gamble what you can afford to lose" right? Well that's exactly what Micheal Jordan is actually doing because the said money that it's talk about that he currently squanders is something that he earn on a single credit alert for the day so it's just as if he is actually gambling a little percentage of his earning just to enjoy himself and for the fun that comes with gambling. Same thing goes for drake and other fucking rich celebrity stars.

well, we will never know the truth about those things but if you really do think about it. that's real possibility over there. but in any case, i also think that he has gambling addiction and it is no surprise as it is already public. social media, media and other platforms can give a glimpse of his gambling habits ... so i guess, he couldn't hide such lifestyle to anyone anymore.

on the other hand, even if he has such addiction, he won't be having financial issues. or we don't know the things behind the curtain here. so for me, we should not make this as a problem or of that sort. that's his life and so far, he is enjoying it. life is too short to regret on things that you haven't done.

The thing is that it doesn't have to end up with you losing everything you love and own for you to realize that you have a gambling problem, or you're already a gambling addict. Certain celebrities like MJ and Drake himself have been making ludicrous bets on a regular basis, which if they did without a strong financial foundation and a reputation of being "too big to fail at this point", they'd probably lose out. MJ even had speculations in the past of being banned by the NBA in the past due to his gambling addiction, covering it up as a retirement to make it seem as though their most recognizable player's not really in some deep gambling issues. He's been known to make stupid bets and lose it all on a night, only to go back the next day and bet it all again to lose the money in what can only be described as a cycle of losing money and finding it someplace else in the form of the Nike Jordan collaboration and some businesses he had.

MJ's good and all, greatest even if I do say so myself. But his gambling addiction is something to not scoff at. If a regular person does what he does (of course in their own way) you'd be concerned and have them stop before their gambling addiction worsened, but because it's Michael Jordan, arguably the greatest athlete of all time, we have to have this kind of discussion lol.

I saw a topic on this forum about if a successful gambler is seen as an addict? Now I like to rephrase that a bit to, can a successful person be seen to be an addict? The answer will not be the same for every person because when someone is rich, many of their bad behaviors and addictions are excused. This is another excuse for another addicted gambler just because they are successful. Just like Drake, Ben Affleck and others, Michael Jordan is also an addict.

There are classifications of gambling addiction and the same goes for the other types of addiction as well. We tend to say that someone has to gamble with the amount he can afford to lose and probably MJ does it and that's why he's now worth billions. He knows his thing and it can send him down to the pit if he loses his control there. As for the classifications, there goes the responsible and irresponsible ones. Well, that classification is just based on my opinion and I think that he's a responsible one and as much as we can see, he's able to achieve things despite being known as a gambler.

Like the other celebrities that are also addicted in gambling, they know how to include it on their stash and not to touch other assets and money that they have designated for other important things. So, the common tip that we say about gambling with an affordable amount to lose is what they've been doing. Well, I have never achieved such achivement in life and that's why they're all entitled to do whatever they can. That's one perk of being rich, you gamble all you want but at the same time you know that there's a limit on it and you know that it's possible that if you can't control yourself anymore, you're going to put everything on stake.

The gambler who had their good real life,better don’t get into gambling.Because the gambler who loss their funds need to wait for certain period to recover the losses.The gambler should spend time in the gambling to create the real tactics,if they are not ready for the analysis.So the results will be the negative one in the gambling site.This same was applied to the trading of cryptocurrency,the analysis was important.The life of the MJ are not going to change because of the gambling addictions.Because he had the steady income from his business,if he loss the money having in the bank account will not affect him.Because the next day income from his business is enough to live the peaceful life.

If anyone takes 30 minutes to research on the internet what happens when most people become rich and famous, they will see that they become addicted to drugs or gambling. This is something that has become very common in recent years, most singers have already consumed drugs, have been addicted to drugs and other addictions, but they know how to hide this dark side of them well and it is difficult for us not to know this at the time it is happening, people only find out months later. I believe that the reason why famous people become addicted is because they suffer a lot of psychological pressure from society as a whole, fans demand a lot from them. the big companies that sponsor them charge a lot

So as a way of relieving stress, famous people get into drugs and gambling and they do it in a very hidden way so that no one knows, I don't know all of Jordan's life history, that's because I didn't live with him, what is written on the news channels, unfortunately most of the time it is fake news, believing in a lot of things that are written on the news channels and social networks is something that I avoid doing because I see that they are places where a lot of lies are spread, only the person himself Jordan can tell the truth if he is really addicted to gambling or if he is not. and if it really is an addiction, I highly doubt that the guy would confess that he is addicted to gambling

many rich people, despite remaining very rich, don't like losing sponsorship, that's why even when they do inappropriate things, they do it very privately or anonymously and fight so that no one discovers this bad side of them, by that I mean that Jordan doesn't would come out to the public and say that he is addicted to gambling because this could have a bad impact on society and his family. so I will only believe it when he confesses with his mouth that he is addicted, until he confesses I believe he is not addicted

Yes, Michael Jordan is a gambling addict. But let's define addict here, it doesn't mean that he's wrecked or has arrogant behavior while being addicted to gambling. He has control, he is on himself, and he knows what his doing. Even spending lots of money on gambling, he already secured his finances on his responsibilities.

With how large his bankroll is specifically for gambling, it's impossible that he didn't win on some occasions. Therefore, everything is balanced. He also afford to put large amounts on his gambling bankroll because of his several investments. And since now retired from basketball for long, gambling might be one of his entertainment activities since then, with more time to spend on it.

He still have life time deals and running business so we can't expect him to see got broke just for that. If he's engaging with any gambling activities then that's fine since sometimes that's how reach people get their connections and spend their time with their friends since this is somehow rich mans game where they find it entertaining.

But for only that I can't call MJ as gambling addict since that's not enough to call a person as that since we don't see him got broke nor showing some bad behavior towards his activity.

Maybe for now its better to call it as a hobby for MJ since sometimes we really got amaze how rich people spend their money and maybe MJ find gambling a way to shaken up his stress and enjoy while he have free time to spend. He's so damn rich and he's businesses still stable so he's far being broke nor get near to that if that is what people worried about.

Real story I was at balls in Atlantic city playing blackjack one day with my friends.  Dealer mid hand told us to turn around which I thought was weird but low and behold jordan was about 10 feet behind us getting ready to go into the VIP room.  Dealer told us everyrime he came in the play the 76ers or the Nets he would come in and play in the VIP room all night.  Wish I knew I would take the under on his point total those games! Lol.  Was a lot taller than I pictured

It's worth considering that Michael Jordan was an extremely competitive individual, both on and off the basketball court. His passion for winning is well known, and it's possible that his involvement in gambling was more driven by his competitive nature rather than an addiction. This is what i think personally. Not always someone engages in gambling frequently doesn't  mean he is addicted to it. it's crucial to avoid making hasty judgments and instead focus on his remarkable career he had on the sports world.

Yeah, you can call him addict by definition, if he spend a lot of money gambling like everyday. But this guy is a billionaire, so whatever money he loses, he can easily recoup it back without actually chasing it with his investment, and then his shoe brand and others source of income.

However, for us, who doesn't have the money to gamble in the first place and then become addicted, then that is the very definition of a gambling addict as it will ruin our lives. But MJ, maybe he has control of himself or maybe not, but with the amount of money he is generating, I don't think he will be poor by gambling addict standards or the supposedly bad effects on gambling.

Basically whosoever that always gambles is a gambling addictive but a process whereby it gambles once in time or seasonal kind of gambling, Basically that person is not gambling addictive, but their is something that people misunderstood in gambling, you might be gambles and wining constantly, at that moment you are gambling and also wining gambling I know that what you are wining is Basically is because you are addicted in gambling that's what is making you to be gambling frequently, neither at situation you are losing or wining and you gambles almost every day you are addicted in gambling, the lose and wining doesn't determine addictive in gambling what matters is how regular you gambles

With just a bit of internet search, we can assume and generalize that Michael Jordan is a hardcore gambler and can be called an addictive gambler, even way back in time when he was at the peak of his career and big popularity. However, the difference between him and other addictive gamblers is, that he can afford to lose such a decent amount and even after losing those, he still has lots in his pocket like nothing happened.

With his current status as one of the richest athletes, there is no pressure at all for him to win avoiding intense emotions and inability to focus. I'm also sure he is a hi-roller therefore we can expect that his winning rate is pretty good overall. Being an addictive gambler is good as long as gamblers know their limit although MJ has no limits. :D

I think this summarizes him to a large context with regards to what is been discussed.

Addition often counts towards a “Can’t do without’. When it’s something you can do with out, it means it’s something you do at your leisure, as you please and not really a most that you would have yo gamble everyday and with huge funds too.
Being able to control how you behave with respect to gambling and addiction is what separates you from being an addict. When it’s the other way round, that’s when I can consider you an addict. It doesn’t matter if your going about your job okay or other investments but, when the force of attraction towards gambling is more than that which you could control, then you could be said yo be an addict.

I highly doubt MJ qualifies to be regarded as an addict. Nope, he ain’t one.

Those guys knows what they are doing and they are no were near addicts, because they are just after the money and nothing more for sure addicts is far different from a streamer or a brand promoter,  as long as we don't know their private lives and how they handle their finances, this is both important determining whether or not they are addicted to gambling or just going after the big winning as streamers.

So, some say yes, but Jordam has always denied it.... in fact, I don't think I've ever seen a gambling addict admit that he is addicted.
But, it seems that when former NBA star Michael Jordan's career came to an end in 2013, some rumors circulated on the internet that the main cause of this decision was his addiction to gambling as Jordan had been seen gambling at the time and Also in 2005 he told '60 Minutes' journalist Ed Bradley that he had made some reckless decisions, was he talking about the bets?

There is also a documentary that talks about this, claiming that Jordan once escaped from the hotel in New York where the team was concentrated to go to a casino, on the eve of a decisive game against the New York Knicks.... Was it just that? a normal "escape" or was it the need to suppress an addiction?

A lot of time has passed, I hope Jordan is doing well today with his money and no addiction.

A person who is poor or not and spends their income gambling, struggling to quit/control the habits is a gambling addict. Many rich people are able to cover up this habit but it doesn't matter because gambling addiction is destructive .Maybe Jordan and many of his friends are addicted but we should be talking about how gambling education can be starting point for the addicts and non addicts. A clean society is a healthy one.

I can not say Michael Jordan is a gambling addict. A person that is gambling very well but able to make it in life and still a very rich person is not an addict. It is not about how high the money he spend on gambling, it is about how gambling is in the life of the person. He is able to still remain a well know person that gambling did not turn him to an average or a poor person. He is not an addict.

Well Michael loves to gamble I see video footage of him gambling using a coin tossing to a line not sure what kind of game is that in their area, but he bet money for that.
Also look for Michael gambling before here is what I found:
https://www.casino.org/blog/michael-jordan-gambling/#:~:text=Gambling%20seems%20to%20have%20always,evidence%20that%20he%20was%20wagering.

Agreed, it shows how much the person understood the world of gambling, the last time I had a similar discussion with some friend, they believe that spending much time with gambling is what makes you the real gambler, and they believe that been laggy when it comes to gambling, maybe gamble twice in a week until the following week makes you a unserious gambler.

I would rather become an unserious gambler because it's the right way to go with gambling, if you really want to avoid getting addicted you need to spend most of your times with things that really matters for you and your future, because if you focus too much on gambling and you avoid all the necessary things you will end up wasting your time.

To me my time is the ultimate tool I have left in this world, I have to use it to my own advantage, once it gets passed you, there is no turning back the hands of time, it's gone for good, use it wisely.

I find this interesting- I define "addiction" as when a person cannot control his urges to play either for profit or for entertainment.

While in my definition Jordan is considered as an addict, in the general definition that you have provided and the circumstances in which he is in makes him not an addict. But I do agree that he has tons of resources to allocate for his gambling expenditures. Though this may be the case, I have seen some documentaries where Jordan is brutally competitive wherein he would risk anything just to win.

I guess this mentality of him is what makes him potentially an "addict" but in reality is not. He is just competitive in nature to the point that he wants to win everything as he is confident about himself and his skills.

For me , addiction is something you do without control from yourself meaning like gambling in which you wanted to play when there are lot of things you can do aside from that.

For me , MJ is gambling addict on his own way, not because he still supports His family meaning he isn't addict , because he is showing what addict do.

Does your friend know Michael Jordan personally? Did he just read some gossip article about Michael Jordan being a gambling addict?
I don't hear any news about Michael Jordan going bankrupt because of his gambling addiction. This probably means that he keeps his gambling behavior under control. He's rich enough to spend lots of money on gambling and still maintain his wealth.
The same question applies to Drake and other rich and famous people, who spend lots of money on gambling. Are they addicts?
I would say no, because their behavior doesn't affect their overall wealth.

Drake is not an addict but I suspect that he uses his bets as an advertisement to promote Stake. So I don't take Drake's post about his bets seriously because it is for commercial purposes. 

Many celebrities have gone broke because of gambling addiction. But we have never heard that Micheal Jordan is suffering from any financial problems. Sometimes they might keep their financial condition secret but Micheal has been a billionaire for many years. From my observation, he is gambling with what he can afford to lose. He doesn't see gambling as a major source of income which is why he works hard to make more money from different business ventures. He is not like most celebrities who focus only on gambling without diversifying their income. I conclude that Michael Jordan is a responsible gambler.   

I know there were a lot of issues and conflicts during his time in the NBA where I remember that he is with his dad gambling or something. I think with what you posted OP, it's like "He can be an addict and still manage to be responsible". Since he has a lot of money, he doesn't necessarily get affected much because of the pool of money that he has. I'm seeing this as a type of "it's okay to be an addict as long as you're responsible".

Wouldn't that be a good question? Some people nowadays are getting more and more into video games and they are still responsible but spend a lot of time in front of a computer.

He gamble because he has promotion deal with that big casino so expect that we see him gamble from time to time since its provably part of promotion. If he doesn't have anything like that for sure we can see him gamble in minimal manner since for sure even if they are rich they are aware about any unnecessary loss from gamble since there are professionals handling their finances. Same with Michael Jordan for sure he is not in situation where he can't control his gambling activity since if he's really into abusive situation especially on gambling scene for sure this is a large scope for media and this will be in news. But we don't actually see that so I guess same with Drake they are just spending some time having fun gambling and they didn't take it seriously since they have other more business that need to deal with that's why Jordan became billionaire since he is busy on his businesses and other basketball related activities.

Gambling addiction does not affect those who have money to fuel the addiction. Like you said, he is a responsible guy, that is only because he is a billionaire and does not need to think about money. Every time Nike sells an Air Jordan, he gets paid a certain amount as a percentage because they use his name. Imagine how many of those shoes are sold worldwide every day and how much he makes only from Nike. When you have so much of money in spare, you can do whatever you want to do with it. 

MJ would be broke already if he is addicted with gambling. No matter how rich a person is, as long as he is addicted with gambling, all his money will be gone in just a short period of time. However, since we only hear news that MJ gambles a lot of money, but his finances is still fine, there's no reason to assume that he is a gambling addict. The right words are, he loves to gamble, that's it.

I did a quick google search about his net worth, and the result figure is $3 billion. So he is far from being addicted, probably spending a lavish lifestyle but he deserve that as he is making lots of money especially from his own brand Jordan shoes.

most of his income really came from Nike, and as per report, he made billions from it.

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/news/michael-jordan-made-nike-contract-revenue-net-worth/tahhp5y8wneeljjrdhqgpkg9

You can also see on the same article that his overall salary from NBA is just less than $100 million.

By the definition itself of addiction that you provided from Wikipedia. Defining addiction means user have an urge to gamble. It’s different to like something to do but rather it’s almost compulsory thing to do for him that’s why he is urging to do it.

On case of MJ, he clearly just using it for entertainment since he already has the money which means he doesn’t have any serious intention to get more rich. He also has a good family status and everything to him is fine including finances. I believe the only time he can be considered as gambling addict if he is losing money more than the income he is getting in regular basis.

Yeah, I don't think that we have heard him admitting that he is a gambling habit, but I think his bet on golf is legendary already and so his gambling addictions too. But as I have said, money is not a question of a person like Jordan, he can earn millions in a day and so that his just chump change for him.

Unlike let's say a player during his height of his NBA careers, they've gotten millions in contract and so they could fell and gamble and they won't be affected. But the big difference is that when they retire, that's the time that they will realized what they done is wrong because there's no more money coming in to them and they've lost everything in millions to the casinos.

He is seriously competitive, that I know.
And he use gambling as a means to make people pay for their mistakes. Just like what he did on most of his Chicago Bulls game where his friends at golf are telling him that the Cavaliers will win against them because he is half-drunk. He scored 40 in that game and they won it by 20+ points. And so they pay for taunting him. :D
It won't even matter if he is a gambling addict or not, he can pay for it and money is coming even now because of the Jordan brand which I think is a never-ending entry of money and even his kids will inherit it.
Jordan does love a lot of sports and I think he will always make a bet especially if he will be the one playing the game. I mean if it is his skills that are on the line either with golf, baseball, or basketball. Well, sports gambling is not really an expensive gambling one to two rounds will be enough, and then it's done.

until now I have never heard news from a valid source if Michael Jordan is addicted to gambling.
If it's true that when he was still playing, of course he could manipulate the match fixing. and when he retired as a high-ranking official at the NBA washington wizard club, he could also arrange the results of the match but I have never heard of MJ being hit by a match-fixing case and being processed to court.

Every definition of gambling addiction applies to Jordan's behavior it's not a competitive behavior that he claims he poses in his character it is more of the urge to prove that he can excel in gambling while others accumulate losses, from his early days to his high school days while playing in the NBA and after he has done playing in the NBA he still has it and until base don the account of people around him he still does, its just his enormous earnings from endorsement and his business ventures that keep him go beyond zero in his gambling adventures.
Only time can tell if he can keep up or if he will find a way to cure himself of his addiction.




https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/michael-jordan-and-gambling-a-brief-history-of-basketballs-most-famous-bettor/

Addiction is defined by its impact on a person's life, not its frequency. Is MJ's gambling harmful? Most important question. He has a successful career and family, suggesting his gambling hasnt hampered them. Addiction typically shows up subtly. Do gambling pleasures surpass other areas of his life? Does it dominate his thoughts?

Addiction is biological and behavioral. Remember that even mild habits can escalate. Understanding moderation and control is crucial. Does MJ govern his gambling or vice versa? This distinction is vital for distinguishing a hobby from an addiction.

MJ's gambling may not be a major issue, but it could get worse. Moderation and self-awareness are crucial. A harmless interest and a harmful addiction might be muddled.

If it were based on your definition (or wikis) then no, not really since anything negative is basically offset by the immense wealth that he has. I reckon your friend simply assumed that if MJ wasn't as successful as he was, gambling would've devoured him. Now sadly this is just a what if scenario and can't be answered no matter what since, well, MJ was successful. For all we know he could really just like gambling, or his itch for gambling is pretty much well scratched due to the sheer amount of money he has.

I'd assume he wasn't as well really. Just the fact that he takes care of his family and is involved in the business world is enough to say that he has his wits with him all the time.

I think Jordan has some kind of a different gambling addiction. He gambles and spends a lot of money not to win money, but he simply likes that fact of competition. That is his mentality. He always wants to be bigger, better, greater, score more points, make more rebounds, win in every dispute, be the first in everything. He likes challenges and win in them, and he also likes to show that. Maybe we could say that he has harmless gambling addiction.

You don't have to show you don't take care of your family or it proven to be so that you don't take care of your family before you are considered to be an addict gambler. Family may be someone's first love and then second thing becomes gambling or other things that you enjoy doing and if that thing you like to do affects your other area of life or don't allow you a concentration to balance off all that you do then you are addicted to that thing that shields you off from that other aspects of your life. Even when you allow your work to take you away from other part of your life then you are addicted to it.

So in the case of Mj, he can be said to be addicted if he allows gambling to control his other aspects of life., giving money out to family is not the only thing important in the family but quality time also matters, so does he give quality time to the family? That should also be important to know if he is addicted above his family.

Well I doubt he is a gambling addict, otherwise he would not be living such a luxurious life (anymore). Gambling addicts tend to break themselves financially, even if they were rich before. Furthermore, there is only 1 true MJ and it is not Michael Jordan. ::)

He seems to have things under control, if you ask me.

Gambling is a disbalance of neurochemicals. In other words its a imbalance in the chemicals in your brain. And unless you started early, when you were a kid and your brain was still in the development phase, it will not "alter" your brain functions permanently. So the best cure for gambling addicts is to go cold turkey for a long time.

MJ can be called a gambling addict because he has been playing gambling since he was very young, from his high school years until he became famous, his betting value has also been increasing over time.
He's also had some gambling problems, but it's all resolved.  If he wasn't addicted, he might have stopped gambling after having problems with gambling. Luckily he's a professional basketball player and has a good busines so he gets a lot of money.*

* (https://thesportsrush.com/nba-news-2-billion-worth-michael-jordans-gambling-addiction-started-when-he-bet-against-his-prom-date-and-won/)

I am not getting this. Have you heard of any match fixing that Michael Jordan was involved in? I have not heard of anything like that. Like we have said already, Micheal Jordan is not an addict. Or we can say he is a successful gambler. A successful gambler can nyit be considered as an addict. That is why no newsonline will refer to him as an addict.

I would focus on the consequences of dependencies.
If an ordinary person, having a family or without a family, working a simple job, begins to become overly involved in gambling, then he will have problems with finances, in his personal life, probably with health and relationships with other people. I mean a person who cannot control his gambling passion. That is, the reason for everything is finances, that is, their absence. In the case of Michael Jordan, even if he is addicted to gambling, most likely he does not experience financial problems and will not experience them in the future.

Anyone,  irrespective of his affluence or influence can be an addict. It has got nothing to do with how the society sees you but when they find you at the extreme of addiction, which logically wrecks you that's when it becomes a call for concern.

MJ might be an addict but a healthy addict as every of his gambling activity is done in moderation. But, once thing to learn from him is that even in his state of addiction, he still has a way of maintaining a healthy balance across board.

I think he is because he already spent a fortune doing this and has no regret will all the wasted money and he has a long history of this ever since his school days and there are a lot of reports about the money that he spends and how he gambles, how about the unreported, I believe he pays people not to expose his addiction but for average gamblers the amount is just too much.
He may think that it's nothing because he is earning enough to cover the losses, but the fact remains the same he has an uncontrollable urge to gamble and money doesn't matter to him when he bet.

Did he admit he is an addict?

If not, then he isn't a gambling addict. I don't know if gambling addiction could also be a positive thing, because we can be on a scenario that we are making a lot of money in gambling and we are getting addicted to it, and people who sees us that we are going to the casinos all the time believe we are addict, but personally I feel like I'm okay being judge and called as gambling addict.

In the case of MJ (The GOAT), I'm sure he isn't addict in gambling, he just have a lot of money that he wants to throw to get entetained, that's it, nothing more, nothing less.

I knew a retired NBA player which which reportedly addicted to gambling, and that is Charles Barkley, but never heard MJ gets reported before.

I don't think he's an addict either. On the one hand people are shocked to see the money he bets, but it is a matter of percentages, for him certain high stakes are little money. On the other hand, a person who has been a gambler for many years, even if he has not been an addict, is far from being a perfect gambler, and he will have had sessions in which he will have played longer than he had planned or lost more than he had intended. The question is whether these are one-off sessions or whether they become regular and present a problem. It is the barrier that separates a problem gambler from a regular gambler.

When you are hurting yourself and those around you is when you have to really sit back and realize you have a problem. Jordan is far from that mindset. He worked hard in his life and is playing hard with the spoils.

It's hard to affirm if he is an addicted gambler or have been addicted to gambling at some point of his life. What we know is that he his a very competitive person who doesn't accept losing, besides having a wealth estimated in billions of dollars, so naturally he can afford losing expensive bets without being considered an addicted gambler, because the sums of money he bets are still inside his budget.



Michael Jordan in interview for australian TV channel in 1993.

---

"I took my punishment in that situation and I am done with it" - Michael Jordan opens up on gambling addiction in rare interview from 1993 (https://www.sportskeeda.com/basketball/i-took-punishment-situation-i-done-it-michael-jordan-opens-gambling-addiction-rare-interview-1993)

As we can see, Jordan confessed back then he commited mistakes, like everyone else does, and pointed out that gambling was related to those mistakes, since it went out of proportion. He felt punished for that situation he faced and seemed to have learnt a lesson from this. On the other interview he said to be able to stop gambling if he wished, but mentioned being a competitive person, what looks to be an obstacle when trying to stop gambling, because if he did, he would be accepting his defeat to the house.

And it's really an important point to pay attention to. When we decide not going ahead chasing our losses, we are definitely accepting the casino can't be defeated, so we have to retreat. To play responsively and respecting personal limits is the acceptance we are in an unfavorable position against the gambling house, what can be extremely difficult for competitive and too proud person to do.

The question is, do people go ahead wagering because they are too stubborn or because they are addicted? Could stubbornness lead to an addiction development?

That's what he has and he is different because he has lots of money to waste and gambling for them is just a habit and for killing time. Just like other billionaires, they don't have any problem every time they lose some big money because they can easily get it back but that doesn't mean it's ok to be reckless like that. Everyone should be aware of his actions on where they will gonna bring them because every person has different capabilities and one cannot take another person's habit as his one because most of the time he lacks the resources and the necessary mindset to recover his lifestyle.

Personally I wouldn't want to out rightly see him as an addict because it literally haven't caused him any severe harm such that he has to seek for help or probably have to quit so he can get better and going by your wiki definition it's usually ending in a negative result or effect on the person who is addicted but with him I'm sure there's yet a thing as such in his case.

But then I don't know how persistent he is with his gambling habit because once you continually indulge in something consistently such that you literally don't stop there's an addictive tendencies even if it isn't harming you yet probably because you have the means readily available to fund the habit with little to no effect on you, I don't know if there's anything as a healthy addiction and if there's then I think he has such a case. He has the means and obviously he gambles for fun and never to get rich but whenever he wins, he turns out even richer because his stakes ain't small.

    -   But from what I saw, even though he went through that before, it looks like he was able to catch up with his passion before, in my opinion. The really rich people don't really care if they throw money at them, no matter how much it is.

Whereas for others, before they can earn the money that the rich are losing, they will almost die, and it will take them to old age before they can get it. So this MJ, from what I noticed, overcame being addicted to gambling during the times he was addicted to it.

Talking about Michael Jordan, of course almost 99% of NBA gamblers and fans know, at least the background of MJ's life and activities, he has a history that the public knows about, this can be seen from one of his own sources. say it.


So from some data I've seen, MJ said the same thing, even though he argued so, I think Michael Jordan was addicted to the world of gambling.

I’ve always thought with an addiction, gambling or some other habit could most likely bring financial problems. Cause when addicted to a particular activity, that activity would be foremost on your mind all day and you’ll spend whatever it may take to indulge in that activity.

With Michael Jordan, although he gambles, i don’t think he’s an addicted gambler. Although he gambles frequently, he doesn’t dedicate all his time and resources to gambling and he still has the money to take care of his and the family wants and needs. With a gambling addiction, money problems usually creeps up. In this case, it’s not likely to happen.
Michael Jordan is a frequent gambler and not an addicted one.

I don't think he's an addict because in my opinion an addict is usually synonymous with bankruptcy as long as he doesn't go bankrupt because of gambling and playing recklessly and irresponsibly so that he wastes money unnecessarily I think he could be called an addict, but if he is still considered rich and has many businesses I wouldn't call an addict, maybe we all know what an addict looks like.

Addicts are always synonymous with a messy life, for some reason we seem to be starting to recognize characteristics like that in films too where an addict always lives a useless and bankrupt life and doesn't even have anyone to be around him and even becomes poor because of gambling itself, MJ is a person who has wealth. so in my opinion he gambles just for fun or just entertainment.  ;D

MJ isnt gambling, he is spending money on everything he wants :D If he would stop spending, his money would start to rotten from the bottom. Cant call him a gambler, this looks more like a hobby to me, or a time killer. If gambling would be his only activity, then we could have said that he is addicted, but since he is busy "all other different stuff", he isnt gambling addicted to me.

Everyone likes winning just as MJ likes it, all I can say is that everyone is addicted to winning. But winning in gambling is not what all can do.

For people who have money and can't stop gambling, it's just called a hobby after all he didn't starve his wife and they still have lots of money regardless of how much he lost.
But for the people who have lost entire savings and their wives left them homeless, they are addicted and need intervention.

You don't always become broke when you're addicted, look at Steven Tyler, Keith Richards, Ozzy Osbourne and many other legendary rockstars, they're addicted to cocktails of different drugs ranging from heroin, cocaine, nitrous, weed and crack but a lot of them didn't even go broke, maybe some of them did but the point is that you don't have to go broke if you're an addict, sometimes there's just a lot of money that you've got that you're having a hard time losing it all at once with your addiction. Now in regards to Jordan's gambling habit, I don't think he's there yet but he's hair's breadth to be considered a gambling addict, probably the only thing that's making him not being considered an addict in my opinion is that he's not a consistent gambler but if he's spending millions a night then I would somewhat consider him an addict.

Not admit but diagnosed with such condition. Addiction is not something which usually comes to the awareness of the gambler or an individual. Not because a gambler is betting unbelievably huge amount means that he's addicted in an instant. There are criteria to consider when determining whether a person is addicted to something also with how the individual is affected with that obsession. Some people are just betting huge amount simply because that's their financial capacity of doing so. Likewise with Drake's betting habit if you guys are familiar. That man is also losing huge amount of money in a singlet bet but did we see him cry over it? Not because he is gambling for a long time means he's addicted to this activity.I view it more as an activity which he enjoys. It even seem that he's managing his bankroll in a better manner, 'coz it's been so long since he engaged with gambling activities.

Rich man bored of his money might be more accurate a description since he is quite capable of betting all day if he likes and still being ok.   So long as he handled his prior earnings well he can spend the proceeds now however he wants.   I think its more about being an ex top sportsman who no longer has that challenge and adrenaline rush in his life anymore so he wants to bet and remain part of the game.   Hard to judge the man for how he chooses to spend his cash even if it seems excessive to the likes of us who are not millionaires with great incomes.

I'd say he isn't an addict and the point you guys are bringing up is what makes the difference. Where's the line between someone who does something because he likes it and an addict. IMO the lack of control over what they're doing is the key, the way you can just like eating and being obese and sick from it. If you see someone eating a lot but still looking good and being healthy, is that really an addiction?

So if Jordan can manage a normal life, healthy mindset, a family and still gamble, good for him. I wouldn't criticize anyone for doing it, but you can quickly go from this to ruin, so watch out.

I get where you're coming from but I don't agree that being rich and looking successful means someone can't have addiction issues. Addiction can show up in different ways and impact anyone no matter their money situation. We should think about the feelings and thoughts tied to gambling not just how things seem on the surface or how much money someone has. Only MJ can answer if he is gambling addict or not.

But he is playing in a gambling platform (casino) any better words than the term gambler?  We all know if one person gambles in regular terms, he is called a gambler.  But being a gambler and a huge spender does not mean a person is a gambling addict.  It is that MJ has more money so he can afford to lose a huge sum to the casino.  Besides, there is no news about Jordan being a gambling addict.

We know that the media always wanted to sniff the negative side of a celebrity, but never I read or heard that MJ is a gambling addict.  A big spender yes, but never a gambling addict.

It is incredible to read things like; "... if you can afford to lose money, you are not an addict,"really!  it is total ignorance, I mentioned it in another Thread of these typical of addiction, it is not about having a balance of $1 or a balance of $1 million is a symptomatic condition.

Under this symptomatic condition it necessarily has its side effects that manifest under certain symptoms, then, a guy does not stop being a drug addict because he does not consume, hence, a gambler is the same and these types of pathologies lead to others mental problems such as depression.

To know if MJ is addicted, he must be diagnosed, there are such complex tests these days that determine it and in this case there is potential given his background, anyway it is not about running out of money or Spending money that you can afford to lose, I thought people understood that this popular phrase is used to contain subsequent economic problems is not a cure for gambling addiction.



^{#TBT topic with different contexts.
*Divorce, alcohol problems, and the fact that his ex-wife took more than 150 million from him, perhaps shaded his wife's comments regarding the subject of gambling. But that has nothing to do with being the best athlete of all time.}

Definition of addiction is based on facts, not opinions. Healthy gambling?  MJ? He handles his responsibilities well, therefore gambling is fine. Is it ruining his life? Don't think so. A billionaire who runs empires still plays games. That's multitasking with an entertain, not addiction.

Addiction goes beyond doing something often. It's when something destroys your life. MJ? His life is stable. Family, enterprises, etc. If gambling was a wrecking ball, wouldn't cracks be visible? The beast of addiction destroys. MJ's trail: where? Show me the proof and we'll chat. Passion is not addiction. He thrives on challenges. Being alive and wanting excitement is not addiction. So who are we to judge? It's his business as long as he's in charge and not hurting others. Focus on facts, not rumors. MJ? Addict? Let's wait for proof before labeling.  :-\ :-\

Why people cant really just realized that fact? They are really that trying out to generalize that if someone is already that spending up tons of money into gambling which they would really be that automatically be
making out those conclusions that they are already that addicted to it without even trying to look at in regarding about someones situation on which we have seen that MJ is really just that fine in terms of finances and in terms of his own family relationship status or something that correlated to it. People are really just that loving to peek into someones life and really loves on making or drawing out with those conclusions without
even trying out to realize that it would be better that they should really be focusing on their own but well people do really love on seeing things and making out those conclusions.

But in the end, whether he's addicted or not with gambling or simply just playing for fun then its none of our business since he's been using up his own money.
No matter how big it would be then its not our business or concern for us to mind on. Lets mind on our own business and its better to gamble
with our own but well people would be always have to say.  :D

Smart comment. I agree with you.
You can be winning millions of dollars, be in a great financial condition, providing for your family from gambling and still be an addict. You don't measure addiction by how wealthy someone is, whether he's winning or not and how much and if the person is successful in his job. For instance, a millionaire with a steady job, a family, who usually wins at poker can be considered an addict if he plays that poker every single day and can't function without gambling. Many drug addicts think they aren't addicted, but try separating them from their drugs and you'll see the truth.

Yeah see I was hoping someone would bring that in to the conversation.  I had heard the whole leaving the league for the year conspiracy deal..but man, MJ brought back basketball.  He's the best thing to ever happen to the game..I really doubt this was Sterns call..but who knows.  His dad dying because of gambling debts, that to me is more realistic..but who knows.


Thanks everyone for your responses. I'm not sure there's a clear cut answer but I like see the different thoughts. Sharing this with my buddy who I was arguing about this with me.  Going to lock this now out of respect for Hilarious and Cyrus's time..anything more would just be redundant at this point.  Cheers ya'll.