Did Michael Jordan say that kids who "can afford $8 cups of coffee" can also afford "to pay their own student loans" as a viral post on Facebook said? No, that's not true: the quote first appeared on a Facebook page that is part of a network of self-described satire websites and pages known for publishing made-up stories. If a global celebrity like Jordan had really said these words it would have been major news but Lead Stories found no such news reports after searches on Google and Google News.
The claim originated from a post (archived here) on Facebook where it was published by the "America's Last Line of Defense" page on August 16, 2024. It opened:
The average college student spends more than $800 a month on coffee and takeout.But sure,,,we should pay their loans for them.
'If these kids can afford $8 cups of coffee, they can afford to pay their own student loans.'
This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Mon Aug 19 15:22:26 2024 UTC)
The post did not name Michael Jordan, a now-retired NBA star player.
However, Lead Stories found no evidence that Jordan made any such statement.
The image
Amazon Rekognition confirmed that the picture indeed showed Jordan.
The former NBA player sat in front of a microphone with the same NBA logo wearing the same outfit on January 24, 2020, in Paris, France, when he held a press conference before the Hornets vs. Bucks game. The event was recorded, for example, by ESPN (archived here). Photos capturing Jordan at that press conference are also easily available on stock image databases, for example, here (archived here).
The quote
A Google search focusing on the day of that press event and the next 24 hours for the keywords seen here (archived here) did not produce any results confirming that Jordan brought up the alleged link between buying coffee and the capability to pay student loans.
A search across thousands of news websites indexed by Google News for the direct quote from the post didn't show (archived here) a single credible media outlet citing the sentence in question.
Lead Stories contacted Jordan's representatives for additional comments. If we get a response, this story will be updated as appropriate.
The source of the claim
The Facebook page that published the post that is the focus of this fact check is part of the "America's Last Line of Defense" network of satire websites run by self-professed liberal troll Christopher Blair from Maine and a loose confederation of friends and allies. They mostly publish made-up stories with headlines specifically created to trigger Republicans, conservatives and evangelical Christians into angrily sharing or commenting on bogus stories on Facebook.
Every site in the network has an About page that reads (in part):
About Satire
Before you complain and decide satire is synonymous with "comedy":sat·ire
ˈsaˌtī(ə)r
noun
The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.Everything on this website is fiction. It is not a lie and it is not fake news because it is not real. If you believe that it is real, you should have your head examined. Any similarities between this site's pure fantasy and actual people, places, and events are purely coincidental and all images should be considered altered and satirical. See above if you're still having an issue with that satire thing.
Further reading
Other Lead Stories fact checks about sports can be found here.
