Getty Michael Jordan smiles during the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 21, 2024 in Talladega, Alabama.
On September 19, basketball icon Michael Jordan was spotted attending the Champions League fixture between Monaco and Barcelona. In the photos that emerged of Jordan at the Stade Louis II Stadium, his eyes looked rather yellow, triggering concern among fans on social media.
Michael Jordan is in the house for Monaco vs. Barcelona 🐐
According to The Daily Mail, some fans speculated if Jordan’s yellow eyes were a sign of him “suffering from jaundice wrought by alcohol abuse or elevated melanin pigment on the surface of the eye.”
Fans fear for Michael Jordan’s health after worrying photos emerge from Monaco trip.
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However, a source close to Jordan, 61, told the English outlet that the former Bulls guard is in good condition despite fears over his health.
“Mike is OK,” an unnamed source said, according to The Daily Mail September 21. “He goes to the doctor, he is just getting older and the recent pics are in no way or should be a reason for concern.”
‘There is nothing wrong with him. Like everyone, we should get a little more exercise and Mike enjoys the life he has made for himself, but there isn’t any hidden illness that he is dealing with.”
The New York Post reported that Jordan was on a European vacation with his wife, Yvette Prieto.
“Thus far, stops have included Saint Tropez, Barcelona and Ibiza before Thursday’s soccer match in Monaco, with travel via his mega yacht, the ‘M’BRACE,” Michael Blinn wrote on September 20.
Michael Jordan ‘Embarrassed’ by Viral Reaction
According to The Daily Mail, the source close to Jordan added that the Hall of Famer is “embarrassed” by the viral reaction to his rare public sighting in Monaco.
“He has heard fans concerns and he appreciates the concern but also is a little embarrassed that people are seeing him in this way,” the source said, according to The Daily Mail. “He doesn’t want to be remembered by people as looking sick and down and out, the next time we see him, it will be dramatically different and he will look much better, he will bounce back.”
Damn, is Michael Jordan getting worse? His eyes are looking really yellow 😳
While Jordan’s latest photo drops caused concern among some fans, others pointed to him having yellow eyes even during the “Last Dance” docuseries on Netflix.
After the series was released in 2020, a doctor speculated to Vice about the appearance of Jordan’s eyes.
“(Jordan’s) eyes are slightly discoloured which may point to jaundice, but there seems to also be a slightly raised lesion on the eye, which can point to something local causing the discoloration like a pinguecula,” said Dr. Val Phua, an ophthalmologist at Eagle Eye Centre Singapore, according to Vice.
A pinguecula is a benign growth that develops on the surface of one’s eye, according to Vice.
“Yellowish discolouration of the eyes may be more obvious in a dark-skinned individual compared with someone who is fair-skinned,” Phua said, according to Vice.
Michael Jordan Rarely Seen on TV
The source close to Jordan had a theory as to why fans are startled during his rare public appearances, according to The Daily Mail.
“Michael Jordan isn’t always out there and on our TV screens, so we haven’t seen him age,” the source said, per the outlet. “Most of the time people see him is when his highlights are shown, or we see his crying face that has become one of the biggest memes of all time.
“So when we see him like we have just seen him, it is very jarring because we have to reason to ourselves that our hero is getting older, which means we are getting older,” the source said. “Everyone sees Charles Barkley and Shaq [Shquille O’Neal] all the time, and they have both considerably aged, but since we see them all the time, it is easier to reason the changes that have happened to them.”
In his post-playing career, Jordan undertook several business ventures, including ownership of two franchises, but he rarely makes appearances on television. In comparison, other contemporaries of his era such as Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas and Scottie Pippen, among others, have been spotted frequently as analysts on television.
Jordan retired in 2003 after 15 seasons in the NBA, the final two of which came in a Wizards uniform. The North Carolina native retired twice from the league, first between 1993 and 1995, and again between 1999 and 2001.
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Michael Jordan Health Concerns Answered After Photo Surfaces: Report