Jayson Tatum Recalls Accidentally Spilling Wine on Michael Jordan During Their First Meeting: ‘I Was So Nervous’

Jayson Tatum may be an NBA star, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t get nervous around basketball legends like Michael Jordan.

During an appearance on the Tuesday, Jan. 21 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the Boston Celtics player, 26, recalled an embarrassing moment he experienced while meeting Jordan, 61, in 2019 when he signed with the Jordan brand. Tatum was in Los Angeles this week as the Celtics play the Clippers on Wednesday, Jan. 22.

The athlete explained that the two met in Paris during a retreat the brand would host during summer.

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“It was my first introduction to everybody on the team, and it was like a welcome to the family moment,” he said before admitting that he actually “ruined” his experience.

Tatum recalled that the same day he announced his signing with the brand, there was a dinner for everyone that included Jordan, Jordan’s wife Yvette Prieto, and Spike Lee, who were all sitting at one table.

“I was so nervous, my hands were shaking and I go to shake his hand and I knock over his wine glass and I spill it everywhere. I break the glass and I’m speechless,” said Tatum.

According to the five-time NBA All-Star, Jordan didn’t seem fazed by it as he acted “super cool about it.”

“That’s something we laugh about to this day,” admitted the dad of two.

While sharing the story on the 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony podcast last July, Tatum gave further insight into what Jordan said immediately after he spilled the wine glass.

“He’s like, ‘Yo, young fella you’re alright,’ you know what I’m saying? ‘Go sit back down, you good.’… Ever since then, we’ve been locked in and that’s another person I will text [and] I will call,” he said.

Tatum also recalled how Jordan helped him early in his career.

“I remember right before my first time going to the finals. I remember we got to San Francisco, and I called him. I was like ‘Yo like, how’s this going to be? What is it like being in the finals? What should I expect?’ ” he said, noting that the two “talked for a long time.”

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“He’s somebody that [will] text me after games and whatever, so I got his name in my phone as Uncle Mike,” Tatum said.

Tatum has played for the Celtics since he was drafted with the third overall pick in 2017. The St. Louis native and the team won the 2024 NBA Finals Championship in June.