On the hardcourt, Michael Jordan seemingly defied gravity by dunking from the free-throw line. But according to rumors, MJ’s “reach” for his wallet at the dinner table left a lot to be desired.
In a Reddit thread called “Which celebrity is a complete asshole?”, plebs got to vent their frustrations about why Michael Bay is a supreme a**hole, or share stories about William Shatner charging $100 for an autograph. Of course, when it comes to an open forum such as Reddit, facts should be taken with a grain of salt.
One anecdote that caught our attention, however, was a slight at Michael Jordan’s tipping habits. According to user Westfunk, MJ takes the Kanye approach when it comes to gratuity at dining establishments—a.k.a., “My presence is a present kiss my a**.”
While you could easily dismiss the claim as complete hearsay, it’s not the first time we’ve heard shots fired at Jumpman’s willingness to fork over bills after a meal. Two years ago, Sports Illustrated reported that fellow HOFer and dining companion Charles Barkley called out Jordan on Conan O’Brien’s show for being cheap:
[pullquote]”There’s nobody cheaper than Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan,” Barkley said. “Oh yeah, [Jordan is] cheap. I always give homeless people money and he will always slap my hand [and tell me], ‘If they can ask you for spare change, they can say, ‘Welcome to McDonald’s, can I help you, please?’“[/pullquote]
https://twitter.com/jfjabbo/status/452191300813467648
Barkley isn’t the only high-profile person to shed light on the matter either. Back in 2010, SB Nation reported that Rich Strafella, VP of Hard Rock Hotel, witnessed Wayne Gretzky correct Jordan’s $5-chip tip to a waitress by snagging it away from her and replacing it with a $100-chip from MJ’s stack.
https://twitter.com/KennyNorton/status/462681175111122944
But perhaps we’re jumping the gun—maybe MJ has a hierarchy of tipping we’re unaware of. Said Reddit user Kevo31345:
Now, that ain’t no mulligan, is it?